Patience, Humility, And Self-Improvement
Learning about others probably taught me more about myself
In learning a language, or anything new, you will likely find that you are often wrong about something.
That is part of learning, after all.
It’s different with languages, though. I had trouble with thoughts such as “It’s only words. I’ve read the grammar, I know the rules. I speak English, so why not this?!”
It left me doubting myself and my ability to learn. Really, what I was doing was grossly underestimating what it means to learn a language. This is especially true if it’s your first foreign language.
TL;DR
- Be easy on yourself, nobody is perfect
- Be easy on others, they’re learning too
- Different is not bad
- Your assumptions can be wrong, too
Be easy on yourself, nobody is perfect
When you make a mistake at first, show yourself some grace. You shouldn’t be holding yourself to unrealistic expectations. The way that you respond to yourself, the way you react to your own perceived shortcomings, is directly reflective of how you act towards others.
When you make a mistake on something you think you should know, be easy on yourself. It’s like the person that read all the books on parachuting, would you trust them to tandem jump?
In other words, just because you’ve seen something or heard something many times before, that doesn’t mean you have the practice to know it on recall.
Be easy on others, they’re learning too
Not only should you have patience with yourself, but you should have patience with others. You’re not the only one trying to communicate. You don’t know the difficulties that others have; give grace.
If you were trying your hardest to think of the right word or a different way to convey a point, you’re likely going to struggle. We do it in our native languages from time to time; think when something is on the tip of your tongue. The fact that someone has a strong accent, can’t think of a word, or is even just plain wrong, doesn’t warrant harshness or some ruthless criticism.
Different is not bad
Whether you put yourself out there to practice speaking or only to read original texts, you’re going to be exposed to various ideas from foreign cultures, often of different times. Don’t be too off-put by these differences, shocking as they may be.
You must be prepared to abandon your assumptions
If you find something so objectionable, immoral, or illegal, you don’t have to talk to anyone. In some cases, you should absolutely report people. What I mean here is that you should strive for a healthy tolerance of other ways of life. If you can’t tolerate such differences, I urge you to reconsider why you’re learning their language.
Your assumptions can be wrong, too
This patience and tolerance goes beyond making mistakes and being mistaken. We all have some assumptions about what people in another part of the world are like, and this isn’t a bad thing. We call these stereotypes, and they’re generally based on our experience, or inexperience, with another group of people. You’re only working with what you know.
If you’re going to put yourself out there in some manner and develop a greater world view, you must be prepared to abandon your assumptions. Likewise, you may have some idea about yourself or your home country. These ideas will also be challenged as you broaden your scope. Keep this in mind and be humble.
Please let me know in a comment if you’ve found something here helpful. Likewise, if there is something you think I’ve missed!
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