Talent & Language Learning

What do you think when you hear the word "talent“? Do you think talent in language learning exists and — if yes — that it makes a great difference?

While I think that some people are able to learn pronunciation and other things more easily than others, for example, I don’t think that "talent“ is the only explanation to this. There are so many other factors that can influence someone's progress, but these are easily overlooked. That’s why I don’t like it when someone is called "talented“ just because he or she is good at something. That’s not the whole story.

Why believing in talent can be problematic

Another reason why I’m careful when it comes to "talent“ is that it makes many people think that if they don’t have this talent, they should give up. Believing in talent can destroy your motivation and joy to learn a new skill. When you feel stuck or when you made a mistake it’s easy to think "This is because I have no talent. I will never learn this language“. Thoughts like these can make it more and more difficult to continue. And if you give up, you stop improving completely. Believing that you can't learn something because you don't have talent is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Maybe there are things you have trouble with but please don’t discourage yourself by thinking that you need a special talent to learn a language (or whatever you want to learn). Learning a language is challenging. It's only natural that you struggle. But thoughts like "I don't have talent" won't help you to overcome your struggles.

I think that everyone learns a bit differently. That’s why not every method works equally well for everyone. Plus, your life situation and your habits can also have a huge influence on how well you learn. If you are not satisfied with your progress, find out where the problem is and try something different. In most cases there is more than one way to learn something. Try to find solutions instead of thinking that you can't do something because you don't have this special and mythical thing named "talent".

Shift your Focus

Don’t forget to look at your life situation, too. Is there something in your daily life that makes it more difficult to learn your target language? Noise, anxiety or stress are not good for your well-being and they have also an effect on your ability to concentrate. Work on these things first. Try to find a room or a location that makes you feel comfortable. Plus, try to change your schedule so that you can learn regularly (a little bit every day, if you can). The better you feel during your learning sessions, the better.

I think that it’s important to keep your goals and expectations realistic. If you fail to reach your goal of passing the language exam after only six months learning the language, it’s probably not because you are not talented enough. Maybe there are people who reached the exact same goal, so it’s not impossible. 

But how much do you know about these people who claimed that they passed the exam in this time frame? Do you know how their daily life looked like? What about the amount of free time, responsibilities, job / university / school, etc. ? Did they really start as complete beginners? Their life is probably different from yours. That’s why a fair comparison is not possible in many cases. 

Make sure that your goal is realistic under your circumstances. If you need more time to pass this exam, for example, that’s fine. There is no reason to feel ashamed. It’s not because you have less talent but because you have to deal with a different life situation. Learning a language is a very personal process.

Some people need goals to motivate themselves. But big goals can also make some people feel stressed. If big goals and competition make you feel anxious, try a more relaxed approach. You don’t need to reach a high level in a short period of time. 

To me, learning languages at my own pace is such an enjoyable hobby! I'm fully aware that I won’t break any records nor become a "famous language guru" or something like that, but that’s not my goal anyway. Learning languages makes me feel relaxed and I want to keep it this way.

That’s why I don’t care about "talent“. It doesn’t matter if some people learn languages more easily than you. Believing in talent only holds you back. Try to focus on what helps you to improve and what makes you enjoy the process. Don’t overestimate other people’s success stories. Please remember: It is your journey. So adapt it to your own needs and your own situation.

Please note that this is only how I feel about this topic. If you have a different opinion that's fine. And please understand, that I can't cover everything with one post and that I'm not an expert. Disabilities and diseases can affect the learning process or even the ability to learn, too. That's why my post is probably not accurate for everyone.