Culture Awareness Archives - Cultured Simplicity

Five Cultural Misconceptions that are screwing UP your business interactions

May 5, 2021

Reading Time: 9 minutes

cultural misconceptions that are screwing up your business interactions

We’ve all been guilting of falling prey to common misconceptions about culture. Misconceptions that can make or break business interactions.

In the world of networking and business, stereotypes are detrimental. Especially when they’re false.

Which is why it’s so important that you squeeze the misconceptions listed below out of your head ASAP.

Keep in mind that the misconceptions addressed in this article are:

for people from other countries. Not for people of these ethnic backgrounds who were born in or raised in your country.
largely misconceptions in America

Understand that the alternatives to these misconceptions are not always true (but normally are)!

Culture is a very sensitive topic so please don’t take offense to anything discussed below. Thanks in advance!

Stereotypes you need to ditch like… yesterday

Cultural Misconception #1: Asian counterparts are shy and reserved (It’s just their nature, right?)

Asians are sometimes stereotyped as silent, withdrawn, or shy by Westerners.

If you lead a multinational team that comprises both Asians and Westerners, you’ve probably encountered the usual Western criticism that Asian team members don’t speak up and aren’t as forthright in giving their individual views in team meetings.

When giving a presentation (or even engaged in an enthusiastic discussion), you may be irritated by an Asian counterpart’s seeming lack of engagement.

This cultural stereotype, however, did not accurately represent Mr. Chen’s motivation in The Culture Map by Erin Meyers– as it doesn’t for most Asians.

However, Meyer’s next step when she encountered a scenario of “Asian reservedness” was one that most of us Westerners skip. Politely asking your counterpart why he or she didn’t speak up.

When Mrs. Meyers asked Chen why he didn’t speak up during their lengthy co-presentation, he responded “Were you expecting me to jump in?” This was asked with a genuine look of surprise on his face.

He then proceeded to explain the case as he saw it. “Erin is the chairman of the meeting in this room… I wait for her to call on me since she is the senior individual in the building. While I’m waiting, I can demonstrate that I’m a decent listener by holding my voice and body silent.”

An Asian colleague’s quietness is completely justified when you take note of just how much Americans talk

Chen went on to comment on the fact that in China, they sometimes get the impression that Westerners talk up too much in meetings to show off, or that we are bad listeners.

Mr. Chen noted that Chinese people pause for a couple seconds longer before speaking than Westerners.

In a gathering, we “Westerners basically talk over each other.”

He remarked:

I kept expecting Erin to be silent long enough for me to join in, but it never happened.

Chen shared that Chinese people also believe Americans don’t listen well in favor of constantly interrupting one another to make their arguments. (Which let’s be real, we sometimes do.)

If an acceptable duration of delay had occurred, he would have loved to make one of his arguments. “But Erin was constantly chatting, so [he] just sat and waited.”

Last but not least, Chen shared a Chinese proverb his mother had raised him on:

You have two eyes, two ears, but only one mouth. You should use them accordingly.

What does this mean for you as a businesswoman, businessman, or small business owner?

When giving presentations with an Asian counterpart, or engaged in a team meeting, invite them to speak up. No, not with your eyes or by angling your head in their direction.

Actually voice your invitation out loud. And if they don’t speak immediately, wait a few seconds before carrying on.

If you’re in a leadership position, you may even implement a hand-raising method of some sort. (Preferably at the start of meetings so that half-way through, co-workers don’t get irritated by their “Asian teammate who never has anything to contribute”.)

Cultural Misconception #2: The
French are masters of implicit and indirect communication

cultural misconceptions and stereotypes for international business — Heres to me wishing I was as put together as she is.

I’ll be real with you. I wasn’t aware of this culture misconception until I read The Culture Map. But turns out it’s a very real thing.

The French are thought to be masters of implied and indirect contact, communicating and listening with delicacy and sensitivity, while Americans are thought to prefer overt and straightforward communication.

In other words, we believe that frank is good, and subtle is useless. Which is basically the direct opposite to the French.

However, in Erin Meyers’ tale “Deaf Dulac,”, an American administrator complains that his French assistant lacked the intellect to understand his underlying message, whereas the French employee is blissfully unaware of her boss’s discontent.

Turns out this kind of situation is a lot more common than you’d think.

If you interview fifty French employees and ask them one by one how their American employers give them negative reviews, almost all of them will respond with vague, contradictory, or confusingly deceptive.

This trend is perplexing since Americans are almost always more straightforward and transparent than the French.

The exception to the norm

The one glaring exception is when supervisors provide input to their employees. Positive feedback is normally provided indirectly in a French company, whereas negative feedback is given more explicitly.

In the U.S., positive input is normally delivered explicitly from American administrators, who aim to package negative comments in positive, motivating words.

When admins utilize the traditional American formula of three positives for any negative, French subordinates are likely to leave a meeting with encouragement ringing loudly in their ears, while the negative comments seemed insignificant.

If Dulac had been mindful of this cultural tendency while reviewing her work results with her new American employer, she may have emphasized the bad aspects of the assessment more than she might have if it had come from a French boss, allowing her to interpret the reviews more correctly and maybe save her job.

What do this mean for you as a business owner?

If you’re in a position of leadership over an employee from France, be sure to reframe your communication during performance assessments. Start with telling them that you always begin with a few positive aspects before going into areas for improvement. Make sure they understand this and then go on with the assessment.

Simply telling them this beforehand will make sure that they pay attention during the assessment’s more critical, and important, points.

Cultural Misconception #3: Indian counterparts are disinterested in what it is that you have to say

When you live, serve, or move about regularly in regions abroad, you pick up a lot of contextual clues that help you decipher interactions and adjust accordingly.

When you interchange e-mails with a foreign counterpart in a region you haven’t visited, it’s far easier to overlook cultural nuances that affect interactions.

A basic example is the half-shake, half-nod of the head, which is a characteristic Indian behaviour. When doing business in India, you’ll quickly discover that the half-shake, half-nod isn’t a symbol of conflict, misunderstanding, or lack of encouragement like it is in most other societies. Instead, it connotes curiosity, zeal, or even, polite listening.

After a few hours there in person, you’d see that every native does this. Then logically, you’d make a mental note of what it seems to convey, and you’d read the gesture correctly while discussing a negotiation with your Indian outsourcing team.

However, when communicating with your Indian counterparts via e-mail or telephone from your home office across the world, you never see the setting in which they live and function.

Which means you fail to ever recognize the true meaning of their subtle head gestures.

When you’re on a videoconference with a major Indian executive, you may misinterpret his half-shake, half-nod as a sign that he’s not completely sold on your concept.

You try harder to persuade him, but the more you speak, the more he (apparently) shows his disapproval with his head. You hang up confused, irritated, and possibly furious.

So what does this mean for you as a small business owner, businesswoman, or businessman?

Simple. You recognize that there are cultural cues at work here and you embrace the half-nods and half-shakes. Next.

Misconception #4: Nuanced (layered) communicators aren’t trustworthy

Most of us have been in a “sales-y” situation before where the seller went on and on about the product, using numerous attractive adjectives, and seeming to “beat around the bush” before addressing cons (or possibly, a higher-than-expected sale price.)

This kind of behavior has led many westerners to distrust long sentences. Short is transparent. Long is elusive.

However, nuanced speech isn’t a bad thing (and can be indicative of the speaker’s respect for your intellect!)

Some cultures rely on straight-to-the-point communication, while others rely on layered communication.

The chart below shows which countries as a whole lean on straight-to-the-point communication (low-context) versus layered communication (high-context).

Taken from Erin Meyers “The Culture Map:

Major takeaways from that graph include:

Western countries (and Australia) don’t value eloquent speech filled with unnecessary “frilly” words
- Precise communication is favored
Eastern countries and African countries consider “good communication” to be sophisticated and layered
- Messages aren’t clearly stated, but implied
Central American countries, Spain, and Italy fall more in the middle but lean towards an appreciation of nuanced speech

If you come from a low-context country, a high-context communicator can seem discreet, cryptic, or incapable of communicating effectively.

If you come from a high-context society, you might see a low-context communicator as overstating the obvious or as demeaning and flippant. Your low-context counterparts may even feel that you speak to them like children.

This misconception was written for someone from a low-context culture, but if you’re from a high-context culture: flip it.

Low-context communicators shouldn’t distrust layered speech.

And high-context communicators shouldn’t regard short sentences as condescending.

What does this mean for you as a small business owner, businesswoman, or businessman?

Be mindful of your communication with international partners. Consider using nuanced speech so that your eastern or southern connections don’t feel that they’ve been demeaned.

If you’re marketing to a high-context culture, consider elongating your descriptions and/or presentations.

On the other hand, consider communicating more precisely if you’re from a high-context society. Pin-pointing the more important details can go a long way in connecting with a Western audience.

Misconception #5: A joke wasn’t told if not followed by a smile, laugh, or “just kidding!”

This misconception is specifically for Americans and Brits.

On the Communicating scale, both Americans and Britons are at the low-context end.

However, the British have a greater tendency to talk between the lines compared with Americans, which is particularly noticeable in British humor.

Many British people like telling funny or humorous stories with a deadpan expression. Unfortunately, many Americans don’t get this kind of humor; they might think a Brit is kidding, but they risk showing their teeth just in case he isn’t.

Consequently, the British sometimes say that Americans “don’t get sarcasm.”

A better interpretation is that Americans are actually more low-context than their British counterparts.

When an American tells a joke, particularly in a professional environment, they are more apt to explicitly state, “This is a joke,” which is completely unnecessary when a British individual is referring to a fellow Brit.

What does this mean for you as a small business owner, businesswoman, or businessman?

Simply, to not be afraid to laugh when speaking with a British colleague. But to also recognize that your humor could be lost on foreign counterparts. In professional settings with international listeners, pick your jokes very wisely.

Even researching beforehand, despite how “uncool” that may seem. Jokes are great at lightening the mood during any social situation, so there’s no shame in having a few Google-searched ones on hand.

Conclusion

So what did we learn today?

Most Asians aren’t naturally silent or reluctant to share their opinions in team settings
American negative feedback is a whole lot less direct than French negative feedback (and probably numerous European countries). You should reframe personal assessments so that an employee doesn’t think their areas for improvement are “minor details.”
Indian business partners aren’t disinterested when they half-nod or half-shake their heads. Contrary to western culture, these body gestures convey interest.
Nuanced (layered) speech is totally trustworthy… at least when spoken by someone in Asia, Central America, France, or Spain. These “high-context” societies naturally use more words than Americans and most Westerners.
Americans aren’t the kings of irony. Just kidding. But Americans are quite poor at detecting British sarcasm. The big lesson here is to be mindful of the jokes you make around international connections.

For a regular dose of cultural goodies and business-minded advice, join the Cultured Simplicity community. Free cultural digital stickers coming your way!

Also keep up with me on Instagram. Pinterest, and YouTube! I’ll see you around.

Make sure you check out 20 culture quotes that’ll make you rethink life!

Have you personally discovered any cultural misconceptions / stereotypes to be false?

20 Culture Quotes that’ll make you rethink society

December 30, 2020

Reading Time: 6 minutes

As someone who flaunts the alias “Cultured Simplicity”, it’s quite important that I’m able to provide answers when questioned about culture. Such as…

How do you define culture? (You’d be surprised by how much this answer differs from person to person and… well culture to culture!)

Or what is culture in simple words? (A word for the ‘way of life’ of groups of people, meaning the way they do things. Next question.)

Personally, I find that referencing the words of people from cultures all over the world is the best way to truly grasp the essence of culture.

The funny thing is that “culture quotes” are constantly categorized by their secondary underlying messages. There are quotes about culture and identity, quotes about culture and heritage, proud of my culture quotes, quotes about culture and education, etc.

Then there are also quotes about culture shock, quotes about cultural relativism, quotes about ethnocentrism, quotes about assimilation, and well a lot more.

For the sake of this article, all the culture quotes listed below are exactly that; culture quotes. Quotes about culture that’ll provide a deeper level of insight as to the definition of “culture.”

Quotes that’ll address both the connotation and denotation of the word. Culture quotes that’ll reshape your understanding of what culture is and *hopefully* allow you to more greatly appreciate all cultures.

Make sure you also check out 50 stress-relieving quotes from around the world before you leave!

Culture Quotes that’ll transform your mind

1.

Preservation of one’s own culture does not require contempt or disrespect for other cultures. – Cesar Chavez

2.

Without culture, and the relative freedom it implies, society, even when perfect, is but a jungle. This is why any authentic creation is a gift to the future. – Albert Camus

3.

A multicultural society does not reject the culture of the other but is prepared to listen, to see, to dialogue and, in the final analysis, to possibly accept the other’s culture without compromising its own. – Reuven Rivlin

4.

Learning a foreign language, and the culture that goes with it, is one of the most useful things we can do to broaden the empathy and imaginative sympathy and cultural outlook of children.
Michael Gove

5.

Moral values, and a culture and a religion, maintaining these values are far better than laws and regulations. – Swami Sivananda

6.

It’s good to be proud of your heritage and your culture, but pride can be perverted. – Sam Hunt

7.

I feel like our culture is so good at pulling other people down and being so judgmental, but there’s space for all of us to be who we are. There’s space for us to celebrate each other and root for each other and not take each other down. – Tracee Ellis Ross

8.

Travel early and travel often. Live abroad, if you can. Understand cultures other than your own. As your understanding of other cultures increases, your understanding of yourself and your own culture will increase exponentially. – Tom Freston

9.

I think a culture of nonviolence will help create the condition where poverty is unacceptable, where racism is way behind us and not something that we have to deal with on a frequent basis, and where militarism and violence are reduced almost to be nonexistent. – Martin Luther King III

10.

I think nowadays it doesn’t really matter where we are physically located. We create our own culture around us to a large extent, whether it’s what we’re listening to, what we’re watching, what we’re reading – it can have very little to do with one’s immediate cultural environment. We are in a global culture in that respect.
David Sylvian

11.

For the first time in human evolution, the individual life is long enough, and the cultural transformation swift enough, that the individual mind is now a constituent player in the global transformation of human culture. – William Irwin Thompson

12.

The highest possible stage in moral culture is when we recognize that we ought to control our thoughts. – Charles Darwin

13.

Our culture is all about shallow relationships. But that doesn’t mean we should stop looking each other in the eye and having deep conversations. – Francis Chan

14.

Culture is not made up but something that evolves which is human. – Edward T. Hall

15.

The fact that societies are becoming increasingly multi-ethnic, multicultural, and multi-religious is good. Diversity is a strength, not a weakness. – Antonio Guterres

16.

Hatred is something peculiar. You will always find it strongest and most violent where there is the lowest degree of culture.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

17.

The test of our social commitment and humanity is how we treat the most powerless of our fellow citizens, the respect we accord to our fellow human beings. That is what reveals our true culture. – Azim Premji

18.

The idea of cultural relativism is nothing but an excuse to violate human rights. – Shirin Ebadi

19.

Stereotypes, they’re sensual, cultural weapons. That’s the way that we attack people. At an artistic level, stereotypes are terrible writing. – Junot Diaz

20.

Whether born from experience or inherent physiological or cultural differences, our gender and national origins may and will make a difference in our judging. – Sonia Sotomayor

Before you go…

I hope you’re feeling a real nice dose of cultural awareness right about now! I enjoyed finding these culture quotes for you just as much as I hope you enjoyed reading them.

Want to know the ultimate way to gain insight into foreign cultures? Learn a foreign language!

Check out 15 motivational quotes for learning a language if you need a bit of a push!

If you need a consistent, time-efficient way to study a language daily (or bi-daily), do yourself a favor and check out Pimsleur.

Pimsleur is perfect for busy bodies who want to drive, clean, exercise, cook, or do something else while listening to a language learning podcast. At least give it a try.

You can also get a nice dose of language learning inspiration on my Pinterest, Instagram, and right here on this blog.

Receive both blog post notifications as well as your own digital creative language learning tool kit straight to your email by signing up below!

And trust me– I never spam.

Keep learning languages my friend! And I look forward to seeing you again real soon.

How to study a language for multiple hours

10 Creative Things to do instead of stressing over covid

August 16, 2020

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Stressing Over Covid? It’s safe to say that more than a few of us could use some much-needed distractions from Covid, financial worries, politics, media, and literally everything else. Finding healthy ways to cope with stressing over covid is the secret ingredient behind a successful, happy life.

Humans are simply not programmed to victoriously deal with anxiety 24/7. So as a little “just because” gift for you, here are 10 creative pastimes I’ve thoroughly enjoyed during my extra quarantine time, and ideas I’m sure you’ll love as well.

The #1 social distancing friendly way to travel & getaway

August 8, 2020

Reading Time: 9 minutes

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Day Trips – A Summer Vacation Alternative

Summer vacations were a bit of a no-show this year.

And while staycations are great for a little while, most of us can only go so long before wanting to bang our heads against a wall.

Staring outside our windows don’t exactly compete with the great big world out there.

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Fortunately, day trips can be exciting with or without some grand destination. While it’s a bit unrealistic to pack our bags and stay overnight somewhere during the world’s current health scene, road days trips make for the perfect short-term getaway. And here are 5 reasons that’ll prove it.

5 Reasons for My Day Trips

1. They’re super cheap

Your literal only expense is gas (…And maybe driver’s insurance if you’re trying to get technical with me here.) While stopping at restaurants and shops are part of what make road trips so fun, you could definitely go with free, more health-conscious alternatives.

Chilling at a lake, setting up a picnic, going on a brief hike, or something else are all great ways to have fun at little to no cost. Plus be at one with nature. Even petting zoos, drive-in theaters, or outside live music are cheaper, more social-distancing friendly alternatives to traditional road trip stops. If you do decide to treat yourself to a meal out, the price will still be next to nothing compared to that of a full-scale vacation.

2. They last however long you want

Whether you want to be on the road for 3 hours or 12 is totally up to you. Thanks to Google Maps, you can literally look up any location and have an immediate approximation of how long it’ll take you to get there. I’ve also found Pingster, a photo-sharing GPS social network available on Android, Apple, and Desktop, to be a great source for finding interesting road trip stops both near and far from you. The app’s time lapse feature takes a snapshot of all images taken within a certain distance, and shows them all in a display. So you won’t even have to think too hard about where your journey will take you.

3. Time to bond with your family (or whoever you’re living with)

For the time-being, sitting closer than 6 feet to someone you don’t currently live with isn’t advised or even safe according to the CDC. So your road trip companions are more than a bit limited. Unless you’re one of the approximately 28% of single resident households in the U.S., you have at least one other person you could hit the road with. A family trip, couple’s trip, or trip with roommates could be the exact thing you all need to ‘revive’ your relationships. Being locked up with others for months on end allows all of you to get up close and personal with one another’s flaws. A road trip is the perfect way to alleviate that tension.

4. You can social distance the whole time

With most outings, it’s literally impossible to not get closer than 6 feet to another human at some point. Grocery stores are only so spacious, restaurants aren’t exactly roomy, and even walks at the park involve crossing paths with others. The public in general is a bit of a health hazard zone.

When you decide to go on a road trip that’s more sight-seeing or nature-focused, keeping distance between you and strangers is so much easier. Even passing through a drive through ensures a distance of at least 6 feet. Though not in every sense, your vehicle is like a protection, and your health is worth protecting.

5. They’re a chance to observe the world in real-time

Viewing the world’s events through the camera lenses of others is great and all… but chances are that what’s actually going on both nationally and globally becomes a bit blurred by bias and media. Our homes are our safe havens, and allowing the news to be our sole source of keeping up with the outside world is a bit risky in terms of reliability.

Sometimes the internet may exaggerate something minor or understate something serious, and the best way to ensure a consistent flow of accurate knowledge can quite literally be seeing things with your own eyes. Plus it never hurts to see all the positive things occurring in your community, since each serves as a reminder that we won’t be in this pandemic forever.

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Final Thoughts

Before heading off on your road trip, make sure to follow me on Pingster and take advantage of the awesome travel guide and trip planner that Pingster is. Discover new places near you & find locations that appeal to you. Simply click on a picture that interests you & find the fastest route to it in a jiffy. No need to get into the hassle of finding a city guide anymore.

Pingster Username: cierrasmith
Pingster Display Name: Cultured Simplicity

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The truth about Covid19 and America’s Teenage Students

August 8, 2020

Reading Time: 2 minutes

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As I begin school as a senior in the class of 2021, I feel the need to speak on behalf of students everywhere whose school life has been turned upside down by Covid19. A voice for those younger than me as well as my peers.

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My hope is to provide answers to questions that students quite frankly haven’t even been asked.

A bit of insight…

What does it feel like being the first-ever group of students to enter a school year knowing absolutely nothing about

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How things will go

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Or how things will end

[/fusion_li_item][/fusion_checklist][fusion_separator style_type=”default” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” class=”” id=”” sep_color=”” top_margin=”” bottom_margin=”15″ border_size=”” icon=”” icon_size=”” icon_circle=”” icon_circle_color=”” width=”” alignment=”center” /][fusion_text columns=”” column_min_width=”” column_spacing=”” rule_style=”default” rule_size=”” rule_color=”” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”left” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_offset=””]To be honest with you, it sucks. This whole situation, for lack of better words, sucks. [/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column]

5 ways to make an impact in your community during Covid19

August 3, 2020

Reading Time: < 1 minute

As a nonessential worker

Why language learning is so important during quarantine

August 3, 2020

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Though language learning can initially appear to be a ‘lonely’ hobby, it’s anything but. And it could be the one thing you need to boost you out of a self-quarantine slump. To once again revive your excitement for life after Covid19. ‘Cause it’s coming, hopefully someday soon, and you may as well learn a lifelong skill in the meantime.

Don’t put your life on hold until the world “gets better.” Adapt and adjust. Language learning is a past-time that offers you the constant opportunity to connect with people on a virtual scale. And since that seems to be the path in which the world is moving, why not use your extra time to keep up with it? And hey– it never hurts to add a new skill to your resume.

How to travel the world from your couch during COVID19

August 2, 2020

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Travel the world

8 questions to ask yourself before deciding which Asian language to learn

May 12, 2020

Reading Time: 19 minutes

Hey fellow language learners! Welcome to Cultured Simplicity– a language learning site for creatively inclined aspiring multi-linguists. If you’ve clicked on this article, then you must be in the process of making a very big decision. One you’ll need to commit to for years to come.

You’re getting married! Just kidding… it’s probably too soon in our acquaintanceship for me to be cracking jokes. You might not be tying the knot, but you’ve made the decision to learn a whole new language. But not just any language. An Asian language.

If you didn’t already know this, most Asian languages are among the hardest languages for English speakers to learn. Well, I won’t say “hard,” they’re just typically more time consuming when trying to reach fluency. This is by no means said to scare you. I just want to make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into.

But don’t start having second thoughts now. I want you to join me in my Asian language learning journey. It’ll be kinda lonely without you. Plus, by learning an Asian language, you’ll be finally opening yourself up to the other half of the world. Unless you’re from Australia, chances are your contact with the eastern hemisphere has been limited at best.

I know mine sure was before I started learning Vietnamese. If I’m being totally honest with you, I was even a bit ignorant. Basically the epitome of the American stereotype according to the rest of the world. All I knew about Asian culture was what I either saw on the media or learned about in History class.

So… basically nothing.

I feel like in the United States, we know more about the continents of Europe, South America, Australia, and North America (duh) than we do about Asia and Africa. And I do believe this is due to the imbalance between developing countries and developed countries– also known as third-world and first-world countries.

Personally, I think this issue is significantly more profound with Africa, but that’s a discussion for another time. The 3 Asian languages that English speakers typically tend to flock to– Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Korean– come equipped with economic benefits.

China is basically the manufacturing powerhouse of the world, Japan is the only Asian country considered to be “high-income,” and South Korea has experienced dramatic growth in industrialization that has allowed it to achieve a pretty high level of prosperity. But I may be getting a bit ahead of myself here; I’ll save the rest of the things you should consider for the actual article.

In today’s post, I’ll only be addressing questions to ask yourself before learning an Asian language. Because I myself am learning an Asian language and genuinely only consider myself to be adequately knowledgable in my understanding of languages from that continent.

I’ll apologize in advance for not directly addressing each language you could possibly learn that’s spoken in Asia. But since Asia is home to about 4.46 billion people speaking nearly 2,300 languages, I’m sure you can forgive me.

Plus I have a pretty good idea of what languages you’re actually debating about learning. After a lot of internal debating, I decided not to include Russian as one of the Asian languages I’ll be addressing.

Although the language is spoken in Central Asia, Russian was not only born in Europe but is the largest native language in Europe. So it would more adequately fit in a list of questions you should ask yourself before learning a European language. If that’s a let-down, I’ll make it up to you by helping you score 25% off Lingualift’s immersive program for Russian. Just use the code courage to get your limited-time discount.

As for the main languages I’ll be addressing today, I used a pretty powerful tool to find the most popular languages English speakers are learning. Alright, I used Duolingo. So here’s a run-down of the Asian languages I’ll be attempting to include in the background knowledge to the questions below.

Most popularly learned Asian languages ranked:

*According to Duolingo*

Japanese
Korean
Chinese
Arabic
Turkish
Hindi
Hebrew (native to Israel if you weren’t aware)
Vietnamese
Indonesian

So those are all the languages Duolingo teaches… but I think they’re just a bit exclusive. Innovative Learning also includes courses for Thai, Urdu, Malaysian, and Filipino (similar to Tagalog), so I’ll be trying to include them as well.

Trying to decide where or not you even want to learn an Asian language in general? Then check out 7 questions to ask yourself before learning an Asian Language. No need to go into this journey blind!

Which category is the language in?

This question is first because I do believe it may be the most important question just after your personal reason for learning the language. If your fiance is Japanese and that’s why you’re considering learning Japanese then I’m not going to tell you to choose another language simply because it’s easier.

That’s dumb. Personal reasons trump all these questions. If you’re part Turkish and want to connect with your roots, then I’m not going to tell you not to learn Turkish. If that’s your motivating factor, then I think that’ll push you along better than any “category definition” will.

But before I get ahead of myself here, what are language categories? According to the Foreign Service Institute, a language’s category illustrates the time usually required for a student to reach “Professional Working Proficiency” in the language, or a score of “Speaking-3/Reading-3” on the Interagency Language Roundtable scale.

These timelines are based on what the FSI has observed as the average length of time for a student to achieve proficiency, though the actual time can vary based on a number of factors, including the language learner’s natural ability, prior linguistic experience, and time spent in the classroom.

Some websites list 5 categories, some list 4. The above site lists 4, but I prefer the list that categorizes languages by 5 difficulty levels; as I believe they better reflect time expectancies for certain languages. For the sake of this post though, I’ll be sharing the 4-category list, as that’s the list that is federally used.

I have the whole list of all languages on my home page, but here’s the list of Asian languages alone.

Category 1 (24-30 weeks/ 600-750 class hours): No Asian languages are considered to be similar enough to English to reside in this category.

Category 2 (Approximately 36 weeks /900 class hours):

Indonesian
Malay

Category 3 (Approximately 44 weeks/ 1100 class hours):

Albanian
Azerbaijani
Bengali
Burmese
Dari
Farsi
Hebrew
Hindi
Kazakh
Khmer
Kurdish
Kygryz
Lao
Mongolian
Nepali
Sinhala
Tagalog
Tajiki
Tamil
Telugu
Thai
Tibetan
Turkish
Turkmen
Urdu
Uzbek
Vietnamese

Category 4 (88 weeks /2200 class hours):

Arabic
Chinese – Cantonese
Chinese – Mandarin
Japanese
Korean

So there you have it. If you’re planning to learn any of the super mainstream Asian languages, they’re all category 5— so it’ll take you just about as long to learn any of them. I will tell you though that Japanese is officially considered the hardest language for English speakers to learn.

Thai, Mongolian, and Vietnamese are considered to be the hardest category 4 languages. So you can expect to take a little longer than the “expected” times for these. Whether this is or isn’t what you wanted to hear, at the end of the day, the time commitment you’re making to a language should be one of the biggest things you consider before deciding.

If you’ve never learned a language before, like not in school or anything, then maybe you should consider trying out one of the “easier” languages first. Just to get your feet a little wet. But only try out a language you actually want to learn.

For those of you aspiring to be a polyglot, definitely consider the time commitment you can expect from each language you intend to learn. You never want to feel rushed or deflated because you didn’t give yourself enough time to improve to the level you needed to be at.

How much time are you willing to dedicate to studying?

As if you couldn’t already tell this is where I was going with the first question… time is of the essence when it comes to learning a language.

So that you know how long you can expect to take to reach proficiency in a language, you need to ask yourself if you’re really willing to put in that time.

Long-term and short-term thinking is encouraged at this point in the decision process. Are you willing to study this language for years to come? Are you happy to put aside time– maybe daily– for the next 3 years?

Or are you more prepared to crank out high hours for the first year and then dial it back after that? You know the time you can expect to dedicate to this endeavor, but are you actually willing to study for those 1200 or 2400 hours?

And if you know you don’t have a lot of time daily, how many years are you willing to dedicate to consistent study? 20 minutes a day will ultimately lead to quite a few years. Or you could do 3 hours a day, and reach proficiency in 1 or 2 years.

But what sounds realistic for you? Just remember that there’s not really any time limit when it comes to your life. You don’t have to rush the process if you don’t want to. You could happily casually study for the next 10 years if that’s what it’ll take for you to enjoy the process.

Language isn’t really something you’re ever finished learning, so regardless of how much time you put in at the beginning, you’ll still have to engage with the language for however so many years to keep it in your memory.

Are you self motivated?

When deciding on an what language to learn, it’s no secret that certain languages have way more teaching resources available. For popular languages like Mandarin Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and even Arabic you’re never going to be at a shortage of resources.

You’ll have English speakers around you who are also learning the language. You’ll have games available to you in the language. You’ll have TV shows accessible in the language. You’ll have hundreds of digital teaching resources made specifically for the language you’re learning.

Even when you delve into social media, you’ll be able to easily spot content creators learning the language and sharing their knowledge. There are literally tons of Instagram pages dedicated to Korean, Japanese, Chinese or Arabic.

But those are the only Asian languages you can expect that abundance of material for. Other languages are kind of pushed to the side. Granted Hindi does have more teaching resources available than other Asian languages, even this language doesn’t get the same treatment are the “mainstream 4.”

I’m not saying any of this to discourage you. After all, I myself am learning one of the “less popular” languages: Vietnamese. But the accessibility to teaching resources is definitely something to consider. The more obscure of a language, the more creative you’ll have to get in finding ways to learn it.

The 13 I listed at the beginning of this article definitely have a good amount of of teaching resources available online. But you can basically assume that a language’s popularity on Duolingo is basically proportional to the amount of resources provided by other companies for you to learn the language.

And though this may initially seem a little unfair; it totally makes sense. Companies want to make money. So, of course, they’re going to focus less on languages that less people are learning.

Most mainstream language teaching platforms focus more on European languages and the mainstream 4 Asian languages. But sometimes even Arabic will be excluded. Indonesian may be included more often than other Asian languages simply because it’s significantly easier for English speakers to learn.

For example, Babbel offers teaching services in Dutch, Danish, English, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Spanish and Turkish. They’re a bit of an oddball for not offering any of the mainstream Asian languages, but they definitely demonstrate what I mean by a focus on European languages.

FluentU offers teaching in Chinese (Mandarin), Spanish, French, English, German, Japanese, Italian, Korean, and Russian. Now I’m not trying to overly generalize here, but I’d say those are the top languages that English speakers learn (other than English, of course.)

So you can generally assume that if you’re learning a language other than those 8, language teaching platforms will be hit-or-miss.

Memrise does a little bit better, offering English, Korean, Spanish, Japanese, French, German, Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Arabic, Dutch, Indonesian, Italian, Polish, and Turkish. So not only do they offer the mainstream 4, but they also offer 3 Asian languages that some other teaching platforms skip over.

So yeah, Turkish, Indonesian, and Vietnamese are lesser common Asian languages that can still expect to show up more than other lesser common Asian languages. So if you know you’re not really self-motivated, then I wouldn’t encourage you to go for any language that’s not one of the 13 listed at the beginning of this post.

And if you’re not super self-motivated, then I wouldn’t encourage you to go for any language not offered on Duolingo. You don’t actually have to learn Duolingo to learn– but their numbers are a pretty good indication of what the digital world has to offer you teaching-wise.

Click Here to Learn Korean with KoreanClass101.com

Are you more easily slumped by mispronunciation or misspelling?

Certain languages are significantly harder to pronounce while others are significantly harder to write.

For example, Chinese (both), Korean, Arabic, and Japanese all have lettering systems that literally look nothing like the Latin alphabet. But at least Arabic and Korean both have at least some form of alphabet. Chinese (both) and Japanese have logographic writing systems, meaning they use symbols that represent a complete word or morpheme.

Well actually Japanese combines Kanji (logogram) with Hiragana and Katakana (alphabet); so the language is at least partially photographic. Logographics makes writing extremely difficult for Engish learners. It can take a really long time for you to really get it down packed.

Languages that already use the Latin alphabet include Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Malay; so writing is typically easier to learn. From a personal viewpoint and what I’ve heard from others though, Vietnamese is crazy hard to pronounce correctly for English speakers.

Vietnamese has 6 different tones when you’re speaking while Chinese only has 4. So debatably, Chinese is actually easier to pronounce for English speakers who are used to only speaking in 1 tone.

But there are 80,000 different Chinese characters compared to only 29 Vietnamese letters… so in the long run, Chinese is definitely harder. Korean and Japanese are both not tonal languages– so you can rejoice over that.

But I’d really suggest you do some research before deciding to see what people who have already learned the language have to say about its pronunciation difficulty.

And then definitely research the language’s alphabet. I don’t think its’ ever to soon to familiarize yourself with the characters.

How important is it for you to have access to media in the language?

As I alluded to number 3, certain languages have way more entertainment options available. A lot of English speakers learn languages with the hope of eventually being able to watch TV shows and movies, listen to killer music, and read some bomb novels.

But most of these are kinda limited in languages other mainstream ones. Korean’s got K-pop and tons of amazing films. Japanese has anime and manga. Chinese has got literally tons of high-quality movies and Tv shows. And Arabic’s got this whole thing called Bollywood going on.

But other Asian languages? Not so much. Like I mentioned earlier, most Asian countries are still developing so TV show or movie production isn’t really a priority. Sometimes education levels are a bit low and even books aren’t a common commodity.

So consider the GDP of the countr(ies) where the languages you’re deciding between are predominantly spoken. Because if you’re planning for movies and music to be your main source of interaction with the language further down the line, then don’t go for any Asian language other than the 13 mentioned at the beginning of this post.

I have to even admit that Vietnamese is a tad bit disappointing in its selection of quality films, but I can’t even imagine how little content I’d have available with a language like Khmer.

Don’t be too quick to skip out on Indian languages if this question is a concern of yours. Like I mentioned with Arabic, Bollywood is thriving and you’d be surprised how many films are produced annually in Tamil, Hindi, and other Indian languages.

How important is in-person communication to you?

Most people who learn languages don’t do so with the intent of eventually moving to a country where it’s predominantly spoken. They learn the language so they can speak to people in their own country who speak the language.

If that sounds anything like you, then you should figure out what Asian subpopulations live in your area. Especially, if you’d like for your multi-lingual skills to pay off one day in a local industry. Speaking multiple languages is honestly only a competitive edge when you speak languages that consumers in your field or region speak– at least from an employer standpoint.

But aside from any economic advantages, you need to know from the get-go whether or not in-person communication in the language is even accessible in your area. If you plan to keep communication digital, then the following factors won’t even matter. Just keep in mind that internet access across the world isn’t always as readily available for average citizens.

For those top 13 I mentioned, internet communication is a totally route to take. But you make want a bit more of a personal aspect to the learning process.

Personally, I find the fact that there are so many Vietnamese immigrants in America extremely motivating in continuing my study of the language. I would love to speak with these people in person and possibly make them feel a bit more comfortable during everyday outings.

But that’s me. If you too are a resident of the U.S., then I’d say you’re a bit in luck with the variety of languages different subpopulations speak. 14 percent of our nation’s residents are foreign-born– or 1 in 8.

According to the American Migration Council, the top countries of origin for immigrants are Mexico (25 percent of immigrants), India (6 percent), China (5 percent), the Philippines (4 percent), and El Salvador (3 percent).

Migration Policy includes a few more immigrant groups in their 2018 report of the Top Ten Largest U.S. Immigrant Groups.

So what is that pie chart telling us as American language learners? That if you’re learning a language that isn’t on the chart, you’re going to have a hard time finding native speakers. From the standpoint of someone looking to learn an Asian language, you’ve got your pick of 5 countries: China, Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, and India.

But look at your state in particular, as numbers differ drastically. And let’s be real– country of origin doesn’t always indicate someone’s first language; at least with India.

The following chart, also provided by Migration Policy, lists the languages that immigrants speak. The only drawback is that they don’t make a distinction between Mandarin and Cantonese or Tagalog and Filipino.

So long story short, if you’re learning Chinese (I’ll assume the majority of U.S. residents speak Mandarin), you’re one lucky cat. You’ll not only have your pick of native speakers, but you’ll also have a whole community of Americans learning the language. But this can still vary by state.

I’ll be transparent with you– I live in North Carolina (that purple-blue state farthest to the right) where the third-largest spoken language is Chinese. But I’m still learning Vietnamese. Proving that you can still find the motivation to learn a language with a smaller population of native speakers in your area.

But had I started this journey with economic gain in mind, or with a goal of directly interacting with as many foreign-born residents as possible, then I would’ve went with Mandarin Chinese. If either of those are motivating factors for you, take a look at your state on the map. (If you live in the U.S.! I’m sure there are stats online for other countries as well.)

But there’s still the chance that your state’s third most spoken language isn’t even an Asian language. If that’s the case, then refer back to the numbers on the chart before the last. Also, you should consider growing refugee populations.

So suddenly Burmese has become a logical choice. But if you’re looking for economic gains then I’d encourage you not to learn a language spoken specifically by refugees fleeing from their home countries. It’s a bit unethical, and even more unpractical.

Listen, if those numbers above aren’t satisfying I totally get it. I mean Japanese hasn’t crossed any of those charts yet it’s the most learned Asian language according to Duolingo. So as a language learner, sometimes you have to consider the accessibility of fellow language learners.

I mean in-person communication is in-person communication whether or not it’s with native speakers or now fluent learners. But like I said earlier, there are plenty of Americans learning the mainstream Asian languages of Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Arabic.

It’s only if you’re concerned with connecting with people who only speak their mother tongue, that native speaker numbers come into play. Maybe those stats convinced you to drop Japnese or Korean for Tagalog or Vietnamese.

That wasn’t my goal per say but I’m glad you’re narrowing down your options. My all-time favorite resource for viewing native speakers by state is the interactive map provided below by Migration Policy.

You can filter by any country you want and the map will show you the top counties, total number of immigrants, and density by state. So give it a try with the countries of origin of the languages you’re deciding between.

Then you can pretty much make assumptions about how many people speak your potential target language in the U.S. Like I think it’s pretty safe to assume that the 348,000 immigrants from Japan speak Japanese. And the 95,500 immigrants from Indonesia speak (Bahasa) Indonesian.

So scroll as needed to view the full chart and give it a try!

Learn Vietnamese with VietnamesePod101.com

Are you learning a language with the intent of moving abroad?

If so, then you can basically disregard everything I mentioned for the last point. If you’re planning to live abroad anyway, then the speakers in your area now don’t really matter much at all.

What does matter is how easy it’ll actually be for you live in a country where your target language is spoken. If you’re planning on studying abroad, then residency should be a easier task– as it’ll be temporary regardless of where you study.

But if you’re planning to live in a foreign country for years to come, you’ll first need to make sure that’s even a possibility for the countries that speak your target language.

Believe it or not, most Asian countries don’t actually want foreign residents. Shocker? Eh– not really. And even beyond government regulations, will you even want to live in the country? Living standards differ drastically from North America, Europe, Australia, or South America.

While I’m by no means trying to stereotype, developing countries have higher crime rates and fewer security regulations. Sometimes the political regimes in place in the country are corrupt or not-at-all foreigner-friendly.

So consider these things before choosing a language with the intent of living where its predominantly spoken. According to Matador Network, the five Asian countries most accessible for American expats to move to are:

Cambodia
Philippines
Vietnam
Malaysia
Indonesia

Living costs are pretty low and visas are easily attainable. According to Tour Radar, the top 12 safest countries to visit in Asia in 2020 are:

Singapore
Japan
Malaysia
Taiwan
Indonesia
Mongolia
Laos
South Korea
Vietnam
Cambodia
China
Thailand

So the only mainstream language that didn’t make the cut was Arabic. Just something to consider if that’s one of the languages you’re debating between. Japan is the highest-income country in Asia but it is not easy for foreigners to live in Japan.

According to Japan Guide, if you are a citizen of one of the over 50 countries with which Japan has a “general visa exemption arrangement”, you need only a valid passport to enter Japan as a “temporary visitor”. Otherwise, you need to obtain a visa before entering the country. Temporary visitors from most countries are allowed to stay for up to 90 days.

If you are a citizen of Austria, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Switzerland or the United Kingdom, you have the possibility to extend your stay to a total of up to six months.

According to Internations, when it comes to the process of moving to China, vaccinations and visas should be your first priorities. DPT, polio, MMR, and hepatitis A are all required vaccinations for China, and you’ll also need to undergo a comprehensive medical examination for some visa types.

Depending on which region you’re moving to, there may be additional health risks: dengue fever is prevalent in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, and Yunnan, and malaria is still a problem in rural areas. There are also everyday health measures you may not be used to taking into account, like the hand, foot, and mouth disease

And relocating with a pet is a whole other hassle, so make sure you read up on those.

As for South Korea (I won’t even tackle North Korea in this article since you’re not getting into that country), foreigners are permitted to purchase real estate there; a privilege that isn’t possible in every country.

According to Internations, relocating to South Korea is either than both China and Japan, thanks to the country’s less strict import requirements. Luckily, South Korea has started to open their borders, and welcomes more and more foreigners every year. This, in turn, has made the visa application process easier than what it used to be in the past.

So sounds like you may be in luck if you decide to learn Korean with the intent of moving abroad. I am not an expert on foreign resident living requirements, so be sure to research all these things yourself when you have the time.

Are you planning to learn other languages after?

Basically are you planning to full-blown polyglot in the next few years? If you don’t already know which languages you intend to learn, I’d say now is a better time than any to figure them out.

I actually think your smartest course of action here would be in choosing a language that has at least 1 related language. There’s a reason Spanish is so easy or English speakers to learn. The languages are related.

If you’d like for the language you learn after this next one to be an easier process, then there’s no shame in choosing to also learn its sister language. So if you learn Thai now, then in a year or two, you’ll be able to easily pick up Lao– another member of the Tai-Kadai language family.

And in terms of writing, several languages use the Arabic alphabet, such as Persian/Farsi, Urdu, Pashto, and Kurdish. So if you learn the Arabic alphabet now, you’ll be setting yourself up pretty nicely to quickly acquire any of these other languages.

Or if you decide to go with Turkish, you’ll have an easier time picking up Mongolian or Kazakh. So you get where I’m going with this.

Research the languages you’re debating and whether or not they have closely related languages. This could turn out to be your deciding factor, so don’t skip over this step.

Granted, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean all belong to their own unique families so this won’t help you decide between those 3…. bur for every other language, you might be pleasantly surprised.

Keep in mind though that just because languages are in the same branch or family, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the languages are actually similar. Khmer and Vietnamese are most closely related to one another yet have no linguistic similarities that I’ve been able to pick up on.

So take advantage of the online language learning community. You might be surprised how forthcoming they are with information sharing their own experience attempting to learn “related” languages.

But wait… there’s more!

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Exclusively for learners of Japanese, Russian, and Hebrew. For just a few months, you can score 25% a subscription off using the code courage.

No worries if you’re learning another language though! Personally I use VietnamesePod101, just one of the 34 languages offered by Innovative Language.

A teaching platform that allows you to learn practical, native-level conversation in minutes! Innovative Language’s teachers explain everything, word-by-word, in every lesson.

The Asian languages that they offer both free and paid subscriptions in include:

Plus some European languages if you’re interested!

And that’s just a few of them! With 1+ billion lesson downloads since 2005, you’ll be learning with the largest library of lessons.

But before you head off on your language learning journey– I want us to stay in contact with one another. Us language learners have to stick together right?

My language craziness expands to multiple platforms so you can also find me cranking out polyglot inspiration on Instagram or Pinterest. Don’t hesitate to direct message me or comment on one of my posts! I’d love to get to know you beyond this screen.

Aside from that fun, if you’re still here then I want to make sure you don’t miss out on your free language learning toolkit.

All exclusive content curated specifically for atypical language learners looking to make the language acquisition process as fun and unconventional as possible.

Equipped with a 4-week checklist, 100 fun learning ideas, the keys to a “naturally simple” approach, and a rapid acquisition 2-week plan. All straight to your inbox. And trust me– I never spam.

Email Address *

Keep learning languages my friend! And I look forward to seeing you again real soon.Image

8 questions to ask yourself before an Asian language pin — You can still pin for later!

50 Stress Relief Quotes from around the world

April 24, 2020

Reading Time: 8 minutes

Hi friends! It’s no secret that self-quarantine has brought on some quite… stressful times. Whether its because you’re temporarily unemployed, stuck at home 24/7 with kids, alone and having existential crisis’s, or right at the throats of your room-mates; there’s no doubt there’s something that’s stressing you out.

So I figured I’d take 6 hours out of my day, and look for all the best quotes from around the world that I could find. The goal was to find international inspirational quotes for stress relief and your girl was not disappointed.

Turns out the world has tons of inspirational quotes to share. All of us could use some stress-relieving quotes from time to time — with or without quarantine. So I recommend you either pin, download, or screenshot your faves for later.

There’s nothing like an international quote for a cultured social media caption, right?

These inspirational quotes don’t mention stress exactly, but definitely offer some positive mindsets and stress relieving mantras.

And make sure you read to the end– ’cause I’ve got some special treats waiting for you!

Get yours!

Each hand-designed journal is A5 size, showcases an inspirational language quote on the cover, and contains 128 dotted grid pages.

Stress Relieving Quotes from around the world

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop. – Confucius

Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success. – Napoleon Hill

Don’t aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally. – David Frost

“There’s always tomorrow.” — Anonymous

“Good health is a crown worn by the healthy than only the ill can see.” — Anonymous

“The pillow is a good advisor.” — Portuguese Proverb

“No cliff is so tall it cannot be climbed.” — Hawaiian Proverb

Nothing is too heavy in life. Heavy or light is only in our mind– Merry Riana

Think of many things. Never place your happiness in one person’s power. Be just to yourself. – Vikram Seth

A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song.
Chinese Proverb

An inch of time is an inch of gold but you can’t buy that inch of time with an inch of gold.– Chinese Proverb

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is today. — Chinese Proverb

Patience is a bitter plant, but its fruit is sweet. –Chinese Proverb

After it rains the ground gets harder. Hardships make you stronger in the end. — Korean Proverb

“Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present.” – Jim Rohn.

“Tough times never last, but tough people do.” “Los tiempos difíciles no perduran, pero las personas fuertes sí.”
– Robert H. Schuller

“After hardship comes relief.” — Swahili Proverb

There is no distance that has no end. — Swahili Proverb

Slowly is indeed the way to walk. — Swahili Proverb

Why can’t we control our anger? Because we love perfection. Make a little room for imperfection in our lives.” – Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Alone is strong. — Swedish saying

Everything comes round. — Swedish saying

The deepest well can also be drained. — Swedish Saying

Ride slower, advance further. — Russian Proverb

Sleep on it! Morning is wiser than the evening. – Russian Proverb

Don’t trouble till trouble troubles you; Let sleeping dogs lie. – Russian Proverb

The further into the woods, the more firewood you’ll encounter. – Russian Proverb

A problem shared is a problem halved. –Emanuel Strauss

After rain comes sunshine.– Mawr

What is done no longer needs to be done.

Divide and conquer.

Faith is half the battle.

He that can have patience can have what he will.

Don’t cry over spilt milk.

English equivalent: Good health is above wealth

English equivalent: After rain comes sunshine.

Translation: All that dangles does not fall.

English equivalent: All is not lost that is in danger.

He who perseveres shall win.

Patience is mother of success.

As long as there is still life, there still lies hope.

English equivalent: Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill.
Literally: An elephant made out of a mosquito.

English equivalent: If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

English equivalent: All is well that ends well.

Literal translation: God lets us sink, but not drown.

One must accept things as they come.

We can’t change the direction of the wind, but we can adjust the sails. – Indian proverb

Harsh words cannot pierce your body. If anybody speaks ill of you, just continue on unperturbed. – Sai Baba

Everything in its own pace happens. The gardener may water with a hundred buckets; fruit arrives only in its season. – Kabir

Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes. – Mahatma Gandhi

So now that you’ve got a nice dose of refreshment…

You can take a deep breathe and smile. No need to stress when things start to go a bit awry. Now is a better time than any to find inspiration from foreign cultures and further your knowledge of languages.

When life starts feeling stressful, it’s super important that you document your feelings and organize your thoughts through journaling.

And bullet journals are absolutely amazing tools to make your writing (more) fun. So grab some of your favorite quotes from this list and head over to The Smart way to bullet journal to speed up language learning (Self-Quarantine Edition). Write some of these quotes down for daily inspiration and reminders when life gets a bit rough.

It would mean the world to me if you’d at least check them out. Here are the covers being released today.

And yes, all of these can be used as one-of-a-kind language journals to track your foreign language progress! ‘Cause that’s basically all I use my bullet journal for at this point (tee hee.)

If these quotes have actually inspired you to further study another language then make sure sign up for your free language learning mini toolbox.

Equipped with a 4-week checklist, 100 fun learning ideas, the keys to a “naturally simple” approach, and a rapid acquisition 2-week plan. All right to your inbox.

Email Address *

And as for some truly reliable, high-quality online teaching resources, I can truly only recommend 3:

Fluent City (currently offering your own free language assessment and $40 off when you sign up for their email list)
- Through in-person classes, online tools and corporate training, Fluent City provides a contemporary curriculum and highly interactive approach that has made it one of the country’s fastest-growing language companies
Lingualift (currently offering a 25% discount using code courage and a free 124-page ebook on “Language Learning Secrets” when you sign up for their email list. )
- Full access to LinguaLift’s Software
- Dedicated Tutors
- Your Customized Road Map to Fluency
- A Free copy of Language Learning Secrets

For the price you would pay for 4 lessons with a local tutor, you can get all this for one year!

Innovative Learning
- Join and get all new language lessons, all the time… for free. From Beginner to Advanced, and available in 34 languages.

I’ve also published a full Stay–at–home toolbox made specifically for life during self-quarantine. If you’re bored and looking to not only learn languages, but also to make money, save money, and stay healthy, then be sure to check it out!

You’ll find a few free deals, quick cash opportunities, and language course goldmines.

Stay healthy my friend! I look forward to seeing you back here real soon.

Stereotypes you need to ditch like… yesterday

Cultural Misconception #1: Asian counterparts are shy and reserved (It’s just their nature, right?)

An Asian colleague’s quietness is completely justified when you take note of just how much Americans talk

What does this mean for you as a businesswoman, businessman, or small business owner?

Cultural Misconception #2: TheFrench are masters of implicit and indirect communication

The exception to the norm

What do this mean for you as a business owner?

Cultural Misconception #3: Indian counterparts are disinterested in what it is that you have to say

So what does this mean for you as a small business owner, businesswoman, or businessman?

Misconception #4: Nuanced (layered) communicators aren’t trustworthy

What does this mean for you as a small business owner, businesswoman, or businessman?

Misconception #5: A joke wasn’t told if not followed by a smile, laugh, or “just kidding!”

What does this mean for you as a small business owner, businesswoman, or businessman?

Conclusion

Culture Quotes that’ll transform your mind

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Before you go…

Day Trips – A Summer Vacation Alternative

Fortunately, day trips can be exciting with or without some grand destination. While it’s a bit unrealistic to pack our bags and stay overnight somewhere during the world’s current health scene, road days trips make for the perfect short-term getaway. And here are 5 reasons that’ll prove it.

5 Reasons for My Day Trips

1. They’re super cheap

2. They last however long you want

3. Time to bond with your family (or whoever you’re living with)

4. You can social distance the whole time

5. They’re a chance to observe the world in real-time

Final Thoughts

Pingster Username: cierrasmith

Pingster Display Name: Cultured Simplicity

My hope is to provide answers to questions that students quite frankly haven’t even been asked.

How things will go

Or how things will end

Most popularly learned Asian languages ranked:

Which category is the language in?

How much time are you willing to dedicate to studying?

Are you self motivated?

Are you more easily slumped by mispronunciation or misspelling?

How important is it for you to have access to media in the language?

How important is in-person communication to you?

Are you learning a language with the intent of moving abroad?

Are you planning to learn other languages after?

But wait… there’s more!

So now that you’ve got a nice dose of refreshment…

FOLLOW

Cultural Misconception #2: The
French are masters of implicit and indirect communication