"Teach yourself polyglottery for beginners - a short course
At this point you already know all the secrets of the polyglots, and we can now talk as equals, as colleagues. And yet, by way of concluding, allow me to offer you some simple and precise instructions. In fact, if you come to feel doubtful about some of them, trust the author: all that will be discussed here is firmly based on science and many years of experience by the polyglots.
Try to follow all the recommendations in the form and in the sequence in which they appear. This is important, for without some of the parts being offered to you, the mechanism may not work. In the details, however, you have complete freedom. For example, it might say that you must memorize a list of words, preferably by yourself, from a notebook. But if you absorb better aurally, ask a family member to read it to you, if you are more visual - write the words in color on a sheet of paper and hang it over your bed. Keep trying different things, keep exploring yourself, but somehow you've got to master that list. For what is recommended, is for everyone, and it's up to you to adapt it to your own personality and talents. The latter are guaranteed to exist. And while you are looking for them, the most important thing is to not torture yourself, to not wear yourself out. Remember: the only type of labor that works with a language is the kind that requires daily, but not strenuous, effort. It's great when you derive pleasure from the effort. If your find this feeling appear momentarily in your studies, "capture" it, try to remember and reproduce it. This is the key to success, while the rest of the tricks are merely assistants. And so, despite the concise and practical nature of this chapter, I will ask you to listen to an ancient fable.
There was once a farmer, who sowed some grain and was hoping for a quick crop. So, as soon as he saw the shoots appear out of the ground, he started pulling on them, so as to make them grow faster. The roots clung to the ground for a while and ... tore off. The shoots dried out, and the impatient farmer went hungry. The moral of the story is: all living things grow gradually, and one can only speed up their development to a point.
As you understand, of course, it's not the plants we are concerned with here. The same can be said of mental health. Its essential ingredient is love of one's own language and respect for someone's else's. That's why we've already said and will say it again, that interest and ability in languages is neither a profession nor a hobby, but a character trait. It goes with this that in your studies you will not have to labor hard, but neither will you get to laze around.
First you have to determine how much you need the chosen language. Whether you are ready to make it your companion in life. Suppose you are not. Then why do you need it?
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Next you will need a textbook of the chosen language. ... It is best to get a textbook for self-learners. ...
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And now, armed with the textbook, patience, and interest, we can move on to the main part - the lesson. Having established the format of the lessons, we will try to stick to it for the most part. In this regard, moderation and diligence are key to success. The format of the lessons consists first of all in their regularity. All polyglots say in unison that one should study daily. I'd like to bring it to your attention that periodicity is a force multiplier: better a short lesson each day of the week than one Sunday from dawn till dusk.
Establish the duration of a lesson. The optimum is 45 minutes a day, only without a minute's break. Usually people want to extend the lesson beyond an hour, they start reading on suburban trains, put in extra time during holidays. However, when they get busy, they make the lessons shorter. I'd like to warn the reader off of such extremes. As far as extending the lessons, at best it's useless, because attention has its limits, and at worst - downright detrimental, for you will quickly get bored with the language. Still, if you have time and desire, plan on a 15-minute or so repeat lesson three to four hours after the main one, and save the appetite for the language until tomorrow. Shortening the lesson also has its known limits - it should last no less than 30 minutes, or the brain just doesn't have enough time to fully kick in. And if you don't have even half an hour, you may wish to take a second look at your life.
So, 45+15 minutes - that's an A+ schedule, 45 minutes - an A, 30 minutes - a C. If your schedule happens to get disrupted, try to get back to the regular routine in the next three to four days. Such a break is not really significant. If, on the other hand, you have stopped for a week or more, there's no choice - start with lesson one.
Try to set a fixed time for your studies and do not vary it needlessly. I understand this may not be easy, but it should be possible nevertheless. According to scientific opinion, the best study time is from 8:30am until 10:30am or from 4:30pm until 6:30pm, and it happens to be the case that in the first case the short-term memory is at its most active, while in the second - the long-term. So, it would be nice to study during these hours, and especially nice if you could do the 45-minute lesson in the morning, and towards the evening repeat it during 15 minutes. By the way, most likely you've been conditioned to this rhythm at school or at work. If not, no big deal - sprinkled through the 24 hours are other, although smaller, productivity peaks. And if you firmly establish any period of time convenient to you and stick to it, one of such peaks will surely happen to be nearby and will shift to your study interval. That's in the nature of things.
Let's establish the location of the studies too. Preferably, it should be fixed. As to where to study, it makes no difference whatsoever. If it's at home or at work, find yourself a comfy spot where you can settle down for half an hour without disturbing anybody; if it's in public transport on the way to work, so much the better! Generations of polyglots, include the author of this book, have studied languages in streetcars and buses and couldn't be happier with it. ... There is only one important thing here - to ride without transfers for half an hour and that there be no one to talk to... Squeeze through to the nearest lamp or window, open the book and bury yourself in the wonder world of languages.
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