which is typical for those of us from English-speaking countries,

這樣的狀況在英語系國家很普遍

and I had many reasons why

有很多原因

this is going to be the case for me for the rest of my life.

讓我將這個目標訂為我的人生志業

And I was very confident of this,

而且我非常有信心

because I had no natural talent,

因為我完全沒有語言的天份

I had a very bad memory,

記憶力又不好

I couldn't travel to the country yet,

我也無法到其他地方旅行

I was too old, I felt too old

我太老了，至少我自己是這樣覺得

and I was sure

而且我很確定

that I was going to frustrate the native speakers

我可能會使那些說母語的人感到挫折

and embarrass myself.

我自己也會很糗

And on top of this, in school,

最重要的是，在學校裡

I did really poorly with languages.

我的語言學習狀況很差

So, I did actually get the opportunity to get into languages

我真正有機會讓自己沉浸在語言環境中

after I graduated at university

大學畢業之後

with a degree in Electronic Engineering,

我拿到了電子工程學位

still only able to speak English,

但是我還是只會說英語

I moved to Spain.

後來我搬到西班牙

And I figured, this is it!

而我覺得，這樣就可以了！

This is going to solve my problems,

我的問題都會迎刃而解

living in the country.

只要住在這個國家就可以了

No!

才不是呢！

Six months later of living in Spain,

住在西班牙六個月後

I couldn't speak any Spanish.

我一句西班牙文也不會說

Now, a sensible person would have given up at this stage

現在，任何一個理智的人應該就會放棄了吧

and gotten the point.

到了這個地步

I'm not very sensible though.

但是我不是個理智的人

So I figured

所以我瞭解到

if I change my approach

如果改變學習語言的方式

and change my attitude,

並且改變學習態度

maybe I can change my language skills.

也許可以增進語言的技巧

And what happened to inspire me to get into language learning

啟發我開始學習語言的原因

was I met a polyglot.

就是我遇見一位通曉多國語言的語言通

A polyglot is someone who can speak many languages.

這個語言通會說很多國家的語言

And the first time you meet someone like that,

第一次遇到這樣的人

you can't help but feel really impressed.

真的讓我覺得印象深刻

Like, for instance there's Richard from the UK,

就像，有位來自英國的 Richard

and there's one video online where he speaks 16 languages.

網路上有他說 16 國語言的影片

Let me just show you a little clip here

在這邊讓大家看一小段

and you can see him:

你可以看到他說

French,

法語

Estonian,

愛沙尼亞語

Czech

捷克語

and Catalan

還有加泰隆尼亞語

which is pretty impressive.

這真的相當令人印象深刻

We also have Lucca from Italy,

還有一位來自義大利的 Luca

and here you can hear him speak in:

在這邊你可以聽到他說

German

德語

and Portuguese.

和葡萄牙語

And we also have Susana,

還有一位 Susana

who goes through here:

他在這說了

Italian

義大利語

Russian.

俄語

And a very impressive video I saw once

我還看過一部印象相當深刻的影片

of this 16-year-old from America called Tim,

是一位 16 歲的美國少年 Tim

goes through 20 languages in one video,

他在影片中說了 20 國的語言

and in this part here you can see him go through:

這個片段，你可以看到他說

Wolof,

沃洛夫語

Yiddish,

意第緒語

Hebrew,

希伯來語

Arabic, Turkish,

阿拉伯語、土耳其語

Swahili

斯瓦希裡語

and Hindi.

還有印地語

So wow!

哇

I met someone like this and I was so impressed.

遇到這樣的人真的讓我印象深刻

I thought to myself, "I want to be like that!"

我告訴自己：「我要像他們一樣！」

But the reason I wanted to be like that

但是我想要像他們一樣會多國語言的原因是

is because I wanted people to think I'm smart,

因為我希望別人覺得我很聰明

to be impressed with me,

別人對我印象深刻

and I met this polyglot at the start of my time in Spain

我剛到西班牙時遇到這位語言通時

and with this very superficial motivation,

當初的動機很膚淺

just because it will be cool to learn a language,

只是因為覺得學習語言應該很酷

I failed.

但是我失敗了

So, what I discovered after those 6 months

於是，六個月後我發現

is one of the biggest problems we have in language learning

通常學習語言有個最大的問題

but we don't know it,

但是我們卻毫不自覺

and that's motivation.

就是學習動機

A lot of us start with the wrong motivation to learn a language.

很多人在學習語言時的動機都錯了

We are learning the language just to pass an exam,

我們學語言只是為了要通過考試

to improve our career prospects

進而讓自己事業發展順遂

or, in my case,

或者，就我而言

for superficial reasons to impress people.

只是膚淺地想讓別人印象深刻

And what I've found

後來我發現

is that those polyglots that I've just shown in the video,

影片中的這些語言通

the reason they're learning the language

他們學習語言的原因

is because they're passionate about that language,

是因為他們對這個語言充滿熱情

They're passionate about the literature, and the movies

他們熱愛這個語言的文化、電影

and being able to read in a language

進而沈浸在它的文字當中

and of course to use it with people.

當然也用於與人相處

And when I changed that priority of use in the language of people,

當我改變學習語言的動機後

I was able to learn the languages myself.

我能夠自學

But there are a lot of things that people feel

但是有些人覺得

will not allow them to learn a language.

還是有很多事情阻礙著他們學習語言

So I want to go through...

我在這裡想要說的是

I think there's five, I asked a lot of people,

當我問過很多人之後，歸納出 5 點

there's five major reasons they'd never get into language learning.

他們對語言學習從來都不感興趣的 5 個主要原因

So, let me go through some of these here.

所以，我們在這裡討論一下

The first is they've no language gene or talent.

第一個原因，他們對這個語言沒有天份

No language gene or talent, well,

沒有語言天份，好的

what does that mean?

這代表著什麼？

I mean, sometimes this is actually just a self-fullfilling prophecy.

這代表了，有時候，這不過是個自我應驗的預言

In my case,

就我的例子而言

when I had to learn the language growing up,

當我長大必須學習語言時

or the six months of failed learning Spanish,

或是學了六個月的西班牙語，還是失敗了

it was just me telling myself, "I don't have the language gene,

我只是告訴自己：「我沒有語言天份

so there's no point in doing any work in the language."

所以我學不來。」

Because I didn't put the work in

因為我沒有投入

I didn't learn the language,

我學不會這個語言

it's just a vicious circle,

這只會成為惡性循環

it's all in your head.

其實要不要學，都是你自己決定的

There's no language gene,

並沒有所謂的語言天份

we all have it already.

我們與生俱來都有

But let's just imagine some people who do better,

但是，讓我們來想一下那些語言學得不錯的人

because we see it in school,

因為我們在學校看到

people advance faster than the rest of the crowd.

有些人就是比其他人學得快

So let's say there's some inborn trait

假設有某些天生的特質

to give somebody 20% advantage over the rest of the people.

可以讓那些人比其他人多 20% 的優勢

Good for them!

恭喜他們

But that doesn't mean that you can't,

但這並不表示你做不到

it just means that you have to work 20% harder.

這只顯示，你必須比別人多 20% 的努力

And I've found that, at least in my case,

我發現的是，至少我自己是這樣

when I work harder, I can catch up with the naturally talented

當我愈努力，我可以追上那些有天賦的人

and even overtake them.

甚至超越他們

So, not having talent is not a good excuse.

所以，沒有天賦並不是一個好藉口

The next reason

第二個原因

is that you are too old to learn a second language.

你覺得自己太老而無法學第二種語言

I certainly felt this myself

其實我也是這樣想的

because up to 21, I didn't learn a language,

因為一直到 21 歲，還沒有學會其他的語言

and lots of us feel that children...

大多數的人都覺得小孩子…

their brains are hard wired to learn languages better.

他們的腦袋天生學習語言就較快速

But is it really neurology at play here

但這不過是神經學的說法罷了

or could it be the environment

也或許是受到環境的影響

in which the child is learning the language?

在什麼環境就可以學習到那個語言？

Well, a study at the University of Haifa in Israel

但是，以色列海法大學的一份研究顯示

actually found that under the right conditions,

事實上，在適當的條件下

adults are better language learners than children.

成人在語言學習上，是優於孩童的

It's sound incredible but it's about your environment,

聽起來有點不可思議，但關鍵是你所處的環境

it's about your motivation,

跟你的動機有關

it's about the enthusiasm and encouragement

跟你對這個語言的熱情與來自於

you get from other people.

其他人的鼓勵有關

And when you think of it,

當你認真思考之後

adults tend to be studying dusty old grammar books

成人傾向於讀那些塵封已久的文法書

and doing boring exercises,

做那些無聊的練習題

while children are playing in the language, having fun in it.

而小孩則是在玩樂中學習語言，樂在其中

So I found that when I changed this to live through the language,

於是我發現，當我改變成從生活中學習語言

not making it by studying the language, but living the language,

不是藉由讀書，而是將語言融入生活中

then I was much more successful.

這讓我學得愈來愈好

So you're not too old to learn a language.

所以學習語言永遠不會太遲

I've met people in their sixties starting to learn a language

我曾經遇過 60 多歲才開始學語言的人

and being successful with that.

而且學得很成功

The next excuse people would have,

第三個人們常會有的藉口是

is that they can't travel to the country right now.

他們現在無法到那個國家旅行

Now, maybe 20 years ago this would have been a valid excuse

現在，也許 20 年前，這也許可以說服別人

but nowadays the world is smaller than you think.

但是現在，世界比你想像的還要小

Thanks to the internet,

多虧網路的發達

we can connect with native speakers from across the planet

我們可以和地球另一端的人說話

and you'll see that in a lot of cases,

你也許會看到很多情況

they might want to learn your language,

那些外國人想學你的語言

and then money is not even an issue,

錢並不是問題

because you teach them a little and they teach you a little.

因為你們彼此可以互相教導學習

But even forgetting the internet for a moment,

甚至忘了你們是用網路溝通的

a lot of us live in cities or towns

我們大多住在城鎮裡

that are more international than what we think,

這些城鎮比我們想像的更國際化

and when I was travelling in America,

當我在美國旅行時

I made it to Columbus, Ohio, of all places,

我走遍了整個俄亥俄州哥倫布區

to meet this very interesting polyglot called Moses,

為了見名為 Moses 的語言通，他很有趣

and he does what he likes to call "leveling up",

他最喜歡做的事是所謂的「向上提升」

where he'll go to some public place

他會去公共場所

and just see if he can find some foreigners

看看他是否能找到一些外國人

and practice the language with them.

和他們練習語言

And I joined him when we went to a mall in Columbus,

我在哥倫布區的一個購物商城加入他的活動

and the two of us managed to practice twelve languages,

我們兩個成功練習了 12 國語言

and just here in this clip you can see he goes through:

在這個片段你可以看到他說

Cantonese,

廣東話

and here's Cambodian,

還有柬埔寨語

and you can see that the guy really appreciated him trying.

你可以看到有一個人很欣賞他嘗試說那些語言

So, you can learn a language anywhere,

由此可證，任何地方都可以學習語言

and I wanted to push this to the limit,

而我想要將它發揮到極致

in my most recent project I went to the middle of Brazil,

我最近去了巴西中部

of all places,

到處走

to learn Egyptian Arabic.

為了要學埃及阿拉伯語

And I succeeded,

而且我成功了

because even though there were no Egyptians around me,

雖然我身邊沒有任何埃及人

I got on Skype

我上 Skype

and I talked for one or two hours a day

我一天聊 1 或 2 小時

and I managed to go up towards conversation levels.

我還進階到會話等級

So no!

所以你看

not being able to travel to the country is not a good excuse.

不能到那個國家旅行並不是一個好藉口

The next one people might give

第四個人們可能會有的原因是

is that they've got bad memory for learning all the vocabulary.

他們記憶力不好記不住所有字彙

And this was certainly what I felt

這也是我感同深受的

because when I first tried to learn Spanish,

因為我第一次試著要學西班牙語

I get a big list of words,

列了一大堆單字

I tried to go through them

試著全部記起來

and I forget them very quickly.

卻很快就忘了

But research on memory capacity

但是記憶力的相關研究

has found that

發現

it's better when you revise these words with the right frequency,

適時地去複習那些單字

and there's this technique called

這個技巧稱為

"Spaced repetition",

「間隔重複」

where you revise the word

當你複習這些單字時

just before you'll forget it.

在你快要忘記他們之前

And it looks something like this forgetting curve,

這個頻率看起來像是這個遺忘曲線

the red line is what typically happens

紅線是代表

when you first see a word

你第一次看到這個單字時的情形

but to get it into your head and stuck there permanently

但要讓單字進入到你的腦袋成為永久記憶

then just review it to make sure it goes,

只要重複地複習

like review it one day later, then a week later

一天複習一次，然後一週一次

and then a month later.

接下來一個月一次

And there are apps in your Smartphone

你可以在你的手機下載這個 app

and there's free programs that you can download

這是免費下載的程式

that help you time all of this.

可以幫助你計時

And that's great

這很棒

but you can learn the words

你可以學單字

faster and better if you combine this

結合這兩個會學得更快更好

with an image association technique.

再結合圖片記憶

So, for instance, let's say I wanted to learn

舉例來說，假設我想學

that the Spanish word for "to fit" is "caber".

西班牙文「caber」意思是「合適」

Well, what if I imagine then

假如我想像

that's barely possible to fit a bear in a cab?

要把熊塞進計程車裡是不可能的

"Cab-bear" it's "caber", it's "to fit".

「計程車和熊」聽起來像是「caber」就是「合適」

So you do this for a lot of words

將這個方式應用到大部分的單字

and it actually gets very easy with time

就會變得比較簡單而且比較省時間

and you can learn vocabulary instantly.

而且你可以更快地學會單字

So no, having a bad memory is not a good excuse.

所以記憶力不好不是個好藉口

Next,

第五個

and I think the most important one

也是我認為最重要的一個

that the people always say,

人們總是會說

is that they're going to frustrate native speakers.

他們會讓母語人士感到挫折

And this is just so not true.

這並不是真的

I've been to many places, I've spoken to many people

我去過很多地方，跟很多人說過話

and every time I attempt to use their language,

每次我試著說他們的語言時

they're overjoyed, they're so pleased

他們都很開心，超級開心

that I'm even trying!

因為我願意嘗試

And I just feel like, especially adults,

我覺得，尤其是成人

when we learn a language, we are such perfectionists,

學語言時，我們常常會變成完美主義者

we want everything to be just right,

我們希望每件事都是對的

and perfectionism is a really bad thing in language learning,

但完美主義其實阻礙了我們學習語言

because a language is a means of communication,

因為語言是溝通的工具

it's a way to get to know new people and new cultures,

是認識陌生人與新文化的工具

and when you embrace this,

當你體會到這個事實時

it's okay to make mistakes!

你就會不在意犯錯

And I actually have a goal to make at least 200 mistakes a day

我有個目標是，每天至少犯 200 個錯誤

because then I know I'm getting somewhere,

因為我知道，犯錯其實是在學習

I'm using the language!

我正在使用這個語言

So embarrass yourself,

所以不要害怕出糗

go out there, talk to people

走出去，跟別人說話

it's okay.

你做得到的