Thinking in a Foreign LanguageIf you want to think in a for

Thinking in a Foreign Language
    Good morning, everyone. Today, we’ll discuss how to think in a foreign language.
    In short, if you want to start thinking in the target language you’re learning, you have to get out of your comfort zone and make the foreign language a part of your life. Don’t be afraid. I promise nothing bad will come out of it! It’s something we all hesitate to do because we are all afraid of the unknown, and we are all afraid of having a feeling of discomfort. Staying in your language bubble and in your comfort zone are easy options, but they are unfortunately not what will bring the best results in terms of foreign language fluency development.
     (1)Many people—in fact most people, it seems—approach language learning in a very, how should I put it, "confined" manner.(2)What I mean by this is that they see language learning as something to be "studied" or "learned" during a certain period of time during the day/week, and then everything else they do is somehow totally unrelated to the language they are learning.(3)I often ask my students what they do outside of class to improve their language skills.(3/4)Nine cases out of ten, they either do nothing or study a bit through their textbooks. They basically pat themselves on the back for paying for language lessons, and as soon as the lesson is over they somehow turn a switch in their brain which means they can totally forget about the language they are learning.(5)Many students later wonder why they aren’t somewhat fluent after studying the language for years upon years.
     (6)I’ve thought about it and I think that the reason why many people recommend to go abroad to learn a foreign language is that it kind of forces yourself to step outside of your native tongue bubble((7)although many expats still manage the amazing feat of staying inside their native tongue bubble for years, despite living in a country that speaks an entirely different language). If you go to Spain, for example, you’ll be forced to hear Spanish on the streets,(8)to read signs in Spanish, and perhaps even to(9)listen to Spanish TV and, who could have imagined, meet Spanish people who speak Spanish.
    But that is still not enough. And, frankly speaking, one doesn’t have to go abroad to immerse oneself in a foreign language(Benny, the Irish Polyglot, learned Arabic in the middle of Brazil!). "Okay," you say, "so how can I do it?" Well, here’s a second list of tips that I encourage you to implement in earnest:
     (10)Start reading the news and/or blogs in your target language. To get into the habit of doing so, make your homepage(when your browser starts)a page that is in the foreign language you are learning. For example, every time I open Firefox, I get to see the news in Korean. I just can’t avoid it. I also try to avoid watching the news in English. Or what about Facebook? YouTube? Movie players? These are all websites or programs that have a changeable language option.
     (11)If your phone has a "language" option, change the language of your phone to the language you are learning. At first it will be really uncomfortable, but the necessity to understand your phone’s function will soon be strong enough so that you’ll have no choice but to remember a whole lot of new words and become proficient in using your cell phone in a foreign language. I’ve recently switched my phone to Korean and frankly, I don’t know why I didn’t do it earlier.
     (12)Watch movies in the target language. When you watch movies in your own language, try to watch them with subtitles in your target language. For example, if you are learning Spanish but decide to watch an American movie, either try to find the same movie dubbed in Spanish, or get the subtitles for it in Spanish. As you listen to the movie, you’ll be reading the entire time in Spanish. This will also tremendously help to increase your reading speed.
    The next time you need to install Windows on your computer,(13)ask somebody who speaks your target language to download the version in their language. Just as with a cell phone, it will be really uncomfortable at first, but you’ll get used to it eventually. The same can be done whenever you download programs such as movie players, etc. If you’re still a beginner, that’s not necessarily recommended, but for intermediate learners and higher, it’s worth giving it a try.
     (14)Watch YouTube videos in your target language. We all have the urge to do something completely unrelated to the task we have at hand. This is called procrastination. Kill two birds with one stone by procrastinating in your target language. You’ll be watching stupid videos, but at least they’ll be in a foreign language. Watching stupid stuff in a foreign language is cool.
     (15)Listen to music in a foreign language. Not only you will discover new, awesome music, but you’ll be getting used to the language’s flow, intonation, and rhythm. If you feel like it, get the lyrics and sing along your favorite songs. By the way, I’ve recently written a guest post about Korean music on Susanna Zaraysky’s blog. If you’d like to discover new music, check it out here!
    Meet friends who speak your target language. Visit a website such as meetup. com or Couchsurfing, join a local club, volunteer, make a language exchange partner online. Whatever you do, remember you have dozens of ways to get to speak in your target language. No excuses.
    What do you think? Have you ever tried to force yourself to think in a foreign language? How much are you willing to get out of your comfort zone? What steps are you actively taking to make the language you are learning a part of your life?
    By implementing only a few of the many tips I’ve given you today, I am confident that you will see, within a short period of time, a dramatic change in your fluency and in your ability to think in your target language. See it as a game, and as a way of pushing yourself and making language learning more than something that needs to be "studied". Remember, it’s all about having fun and challenging yourself!