No Pain, No Gain? A Language Mission Diary
A preserved 2012 language-mission diary about difficult Mandarin calls, discomfort and what practice looked like before fluency.
Category: positive mentality
The underestimated usefulness of pre-fluency (My 2 month Mandarin video)
[Captions in traditional and simplified Chinese, as well as in English. Youku link for those in mainland China] Keeping up with the video-every-two-weeks plan, here is my two-month point! After a bumpy start, during which I hesitate a bit because I’m quite aware of the camera, you can see that once I got used to […]
Are you problem minded or solution minded? My 1.5 month level of Chinese [video]
Since we are at exactly the half-way point of my three month mission to speak fluent Chinese, it’s time for another video update! This time, it is 100% unprepared, unscripted, and unrehearsed 😉 Check it out: [Subtitles in traditional & simplified Chinese, as well as in English; enable YouTube’s closed captioning to see – mistakes […]
6 short videos to help you configure your very own reality distortion field
Six short videos explore persistence, bold goals and the habits behind Benny's own version of a reality distortion field.
Is long-term solo travel… lonely?
Benny looks honestly at loneliness during long-term solo travel and shares the routines and choices that helped him build a social life abroad.
The ONLY way to speak a language
Study methods can help, but speaking is a skill you need to practise. Benny explains how to make conversation part of learning a language.
Easy lifestyle adjustments to get a huge boost when things are going slowly
When progress slows, small changes to sleep, exercise, food, work and routine can restore the energy you need for a demanding language project.
29 Life Lessons I Learned While Travelling the World
Benny Lewis revisits 29 life lessons from eight years of travel, covering language, friendship, money, mistakes, culture and connection.
Another myth busted: Northern Europeans DON’T only speak English to you
Northern Europeans do not always switch to English. Benny explains how your approach can create more chances to use the local language.
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