Anxiety & English Learning

A lot of people have asked me how to deal with the anxiety that comes from learning a new language and trying to use it in social situations. So I thought I would take this time to give you my views on it. So let's go. You are listening to the forty-fifth episode of season two of English with Dane. Hit it.

Before I say anything about this, anxiety has become quite a prevalent thing in today's society, to the point where it affects many people around the world, and apparently it comes in all shapes and sizes.

I want to start off by saying that I'm not a doctor, and if you're dealing with anxiety and stuff, if you find yourself feeling really anxious about things, you should go talk to someone, see a doctor, etc. What I feel I can talk about is the anxiety that I see in my students at times, and that they tell me about. The most common question I get is how can I feel more comfortable speaking English? The first thing I want to talk about is not getting overwhelmed, not feeling like it's too much.

I think when learning anything new and especially a language, we can feel overwhelmed very easily. We start to think about all the things we don't know and all the mistakes we make, and it's easy to lose motivation. I struggle with this too. Not with English learning, obviously, but with other things in life. What works for me is focusing on immediate goals, metas immediatas.

For example, this week I'm going to focus on questions in past tense, next week I'm going to practice using the third person. The week after that, I'll work on imperatives, etc. Take notes, read them before going to bed, and maybe again in the morning. This approach lets you, the reha, improve on one aspect of English at a time, and in depth, and you'll feel like you really know it before moving on. Once you start doing this, you will see how everything starts to fit together.

If you are one of those people, more power to you, that's great. But most of us don't operate like that. Explore different methods of learning until you find one that works for you, hasta que ves con uno que te funciona bien. I rather prefiero that you spend a month or two finding a method that works and then really focusing on it, than spending more time studying without a clear plan or objective. For some of my students, watching movies really helps, for example.

It helps them to understand language in use and how to put sentences together in a practical way. But for others, it makes them feel a bit lost, and then all of those negative feelings arise. So find what works for you. It's just like exercising. Some people love going to the gym and working out, some people hate it. Some people need to do something in a team setting, others prefer to practice alone. Some people need a personal trainer because they lack motivation. These are all okay.

What's not okay is spending your time doing something that isn't right for you. Be efficient. Nobody knows you like you do. I know that sounds cliche, but it's a cliche for a reason. When I learned how to play the guitar, for example, I learned by playing along to songs I loved. Some people start with theory, some people go to class, some people learn from YouTube. I learned how to play because my brother played and he taught me.

I didn't start going to class until I already knew how to play a bit, and that worked for me. This is another point I wanted to make. Classes help, of course, but you can't just sign up to a class or a program and think you will improve. This is where motivation comes in, and it's the other thing I wanted to talk about. You have to want to learn. A lot of us learn things because we know we should learn them, deberíamos aprenderlas, not because we really want to.

Instead of thinking, en vez de pensar, I have to learn English because blah blah blah. Try I want to learn English because blah blah blah. I think there's power in that. Don't make it an obligation, make it a desire. This again sounds cliche, but I think it works. We all have this inner monologue going on or happening all the time, and our lives are full of things we have to do. So let's change this one aspect, the aspect of English learning from a have to to a want to.

Next time you're thinking, okay, I should sit down and go over repasar my notes, or I should go practice, take that moment and change the narrative. Change it to I want to sit down and go over my notes, or I want to go practice. Practice is your friend, not your enemy. And again, I think there's some real power in changing the way you speak about things, not just with friends or family, but with yourself. Okay, before I go, I want to say one last thing. I want to give you some practical advice.

Take 20 minutes out of your day and write down the things you want to accomplish when it comes to English learning. Get a piece of paper and a pen and write down some statements or affirmations. Write down your goals. Don't write them on your phone, don't write them on your computer. Use a real physical piece of paper and a real physical pen. There's something about actually writing things down that seems que parece to help.

There's a lot of scientific evidence that suggests that physically writing things helps organize your thoughts. So that's what I want you to do. Do it today or tomorrow, but don't think about it for too long, because when we think about things for too long, we tend to overthink. Things become obligations. So take some time, write those goals down and put them somewhere you can see them. Put them on your wall, on your mirror, or even on post-its around your computer.

Just write them down and see how you feel. And if you want, share them with friends or colleagues or even me. Send me a picture of your notes. I promise you will be surprised with how you feel after doing this. Okay, enough with the self-help talk. Let me know how it goes. I know this is a strange episode, but I think it's something a lot of you need to hear. If you are already doing these things, great, keep it going. Maybe for you the challenge is something else.

Alright, that's the show for today. I hope you take my advice and I hope this was helpful. Let me know what you think, I'm always here to listen. Alright, talk soon. Bye bye.