abroadinjapan

Why I've Started STUDYING Japanese Again | Tips for LEARNING the Language

Added 2021-01-30 13:40:27 +0000 UTC

It's Saturday afternoon and amidst editing an upcoming video with Ryotaro and pouring over the feedback on the latest video reacting to Japanese Youtubers (unbelievably, already one Japanese Youtuber has released their reaction!), I've spent the last two hours immersed in studying Japanese.

I never thought the concept of "studying" something would bring me joy, but over the last 8 years or so learning the Japanese language has been a deeply rewarding experience. The fantastic thing about learning a language is you can see results quickly in your studies; whether it's picking up a book and reading a new word, listening to Pete Donaldson shouting out a random Japanese word on the Podcast or discovering how to say the word "cat" in a whole new way.

This year, I've immersed myself back into studying the language after a hiatus that's gone on far too long. Like a lot of learners, I became complacent when I reach the point of being able to order a McDonald's, renew a phone contract and chat with Natsuki down the bar fluently without any issues.
Once you reach the point of confidently going about your life in Japanese, the motivation to continue can easily wane - something that's fairly common amongst other foreigners I've met in Japan over the years.

In many respects it's become a source of shame. I got off to a solid start in the first two years, got sucked into the world of "language hacking" (god, I'm glad the overuse of the word "hacking" died out around 2016) and won a regional speech contest that I've bragged about for half a decade.

After becoming a full time Youtuber in 2016 (around the same time "life hacking" died out), I turned all my energy towards filmmaking and lost out on my early lead.

And while it's a decision I don't regret, I often wonder what level my Japanese would be at had I carried on studying in the years after. All the additional words I would've picked up; the confidence to say yes to certain opportunities on Japanese TV; the possibility to meet and befriend more folks around the country.

Who knows, maybe I could have become best friends with Hyde? He could have been a regular!
- And then we might finally have been able to replace Ryotaro.

But there's also a feeling of guilt that's crept up on me over the years. Having lived in the country 8 years now, I feel my level should be higher. In the early days I'd cheekily brag about being able to speak with confidence within 18 months, but now I find myself avoiding the subject of how long I've been in Japan when meeting Japanese strangers.

Still, I don't study out of fear, embarrassment or guilt. I do it because I enjoy it and nearly every time I learn a new word, I see it or hear it at least once in the following week.

One of the best things to come out of it has been chatting to Natsuki every week over video chat; once a week we sit down for an hour and a half and I practice Japanese for 45 minutes, and he practices English.

We've been doing it for a month and it's been surprisingly educational. Natsuki's actually a very generous and patient teacher! (Something I need to work on admittedly).

So in the spirit of learning Japanese once again, I thought it may be useful to share useful resources with you below, as I know many of you are studying the language.

First off, there are already six Abroad in Japan episodes on learning Japanese, conveniently on a playlist. I highly recommend watching them if you're just starting out.

How to Learn Japanese | Playlist
🍿Watch: http://bit.ly/3coFtBX

BEGINNER RESOURCES

🇯🇵 Human Japanese: https://www.humanjapanese.com/

If you're about to learn Japanese from scratch in the next 10 minutes, I cannot recommend Human Japanese enough. To this day, it's the best app I've ever bought. It's like a friend teaching you the language in a fun, down to earth way. (There's also a free version as well to sample). Available on iOS, Android, PC, MAC.

🗾 Genki Textbook 1: http://amzn.to/1NLnmpc
The most popular Japanese textbook series and easily my favourite. Fantastic book to kick off with, that covers basic vocabulary and kanji characters.

🏯 Heisig's Remembering the Kanji: http://amzn.to/1SSPoOG
The best way to memorise Kanji characters; how to write them and understand their meanings. It doesn't teach you how to read them out loud, but given there are 2,200 characters to master, it's very effective to learn the meaning and writing order first. Everyone I know who mastered Japanese to a native level, started here.

⛩️WaniKani: https://www.wanikani.com/
A more recent potential alternative to Heisig, that's proven very popular. It actually came out after I'd already learned the kanji characters, otherwise I may have used it instead. However, everyone I know still swears by Heisig - I think if used alongside the book, this could be a very effective resource.

INTERMEDIATE RESOURCES

🇯🇵 Human Japanese Intermediate: https://www.humanjapanese.com/
The intermediate successor to the best Japanese learning app ever made. This really saved me in my second year in Japan and got me speaking with confidence in everyday life.

🗾 Genki Textbook 2: http://amzn.to/1NLnqVI
The successor to the popular Genki 1 textbook. Again, easy to understand and a fun learning resource for mastering vocab, grammar and kanji.

⛩️ Tae Kim's Grammar Guide: http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/ A fantastic resource that teaches you all the grammar you need to speak Japanese fluently and reach JLPT4 level. I go back to this more than any other app! Recommend downloading on iOS or Android as the website is a bit clunky.

🏯 An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese: https://amzn.to/3pCMl2w
Effectively the next level in the Genki series once you've finished the first two books. An excellent resource on vocab, grammar and characters and my favourite Japanese textbook.

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If you guys have any resources you'd like to share, fire away in the comments below!
Happy studying,
Chris