So this year, let\u2019s do the complete opposite and set some achievable, bite sized Chinese learning goals that you (and I) can achieve!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have a Goal You\u2019re Interested In<\/h2>\n\n\n\n![\"interestedinlearning\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writtenchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/interestedinlearning.jpg?resize=400%2C267&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nIn the past, my Chinese learning goal was ‘improve my Chinese’. I’m sure you just saw the tumbleweed fly past you. There\u2019s no incentive, no motivation and NO way to improve with such a massive aim. First, I had to decide to actually take learning Chinese seriously and not rely on living in China, because surprisingly, that wasn\u2019t enough. I had to be interested in learning, and open to the language. If you see learning a language as a chore, then you either need to get a new interest, or find something out about the language that really gets the juices flowing. If you\u2019ve read any of my other articles about my Chinese learning journey, you\u2019ve probably heard me mention my love of radicals, and how, once the proverbial penny had dropped, radicals became my motivation for learning Chinese. I needed to find something that really fascinated me about the Chinese language, that made me think \u2018I want to learn this language\u2019. I\u2019m sure the \u2018thing\u2019 that interests you about Chinese is different to my own, but think about some of the following as a gateway into the Chinese language:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- – Chinese TV Shows<\/a><\/li>
- – Chengyu <\/a>(Chinese idioms)<\/li>
- – Chinese songs<\/a><\/li>
- – Chinese Homophones<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Break a Goal into Smaller Pieces.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As I mentioned previously, my goal of \u2018improving my Chinese\u2019 was basically an empty thought until I started to look at what I needed to improve and work on those precise details. What, realistically could I do to show signs of improvement? I needed to aim for something, so I started working on an HSK exam<\/a>. This is how I started to break my rather large \u2018goal\u2019 into smaller pieces that I could actually work on.<\/p>\n\n\n\nMaybe you want to pass the HSK 3 exam? For this exam, you need to learn around 600 words. How long do you think it might take to learn 600 words? 3 months? 6 months? 1 year? Don\u2019t make it too easy, but don\u2019t set an unrealistic goal either. Also, bear in mind, if you\u2019ve learned characters before, this will reduce the number of characters you will need to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, now let\u2019s say you\u2019ve decided to take an HSK exam in 6 months. Book the exam now<\/a>. Go on.<\/p>\n\n\n\nAll sorted? OK, now to take the exam in 6 months you need to learn 25 words per week. If you only study 5 days a week, that\u2019s 5 words a day. 5 words a day is your new bitesize goal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nBefore you go mental and say that\u2019s too many to learn in a week, look at this list of words from the HSK 3 exam<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\u7535\u8111 (di\u00e0nn\u01ceo)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u89c6 (di\u00e0nsh\u00ec)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u68af (di\u00e0nt\u012b)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u5f71 (di\u00e0ny\u01d0ng)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u5b50 \u90ae\u4ef6 (di\u00e0nz\u01d0 y\u00f3uji\u00e0n)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All five of these words feature the same character: \u7535 meaning electricity, which makes learning these words much easier since, after studying the first word, you will already know that character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, even 5 characters a day may be too many, or 6 months too soon in the future, but breaking up your goals into smaller chunks is really essential if you want to establish some good habits and achieve your larger goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Get into Good Habits<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve recently started to set myself goals, in all aspects of my life, but instead of making grand goals for the year, I split everything up into daily or weekly goals. You could almost call them habits now, and that\u2019s exactly what you want to do in order to reach your goals. There are lots of articles online that provide the golden number where picking up (or losing) a habit<\/a> is concerned, which vary between 21 and 66 days. It seems to come down to personality and the type of habit you\u2019re trying to start or break. However, I believe that setting a short, but very specific daily task, such as learning 1 character a day, will become a habit much faster than setting yourself the mammoth task of studying for an hour. I have to note, that I\u2019m still unable to get into the habit of journaling and reading 10 pages of non-fiction (55555!<\/a>), but I HAVE succeeded with my Chinese learning habit, YAY! I usually do it on my commute to work, it\u2019s only about 10 minutes, but that\u2019s a start and better than nothing, and as you\u2019ll read later in the article, the idea is to \u2018build\u2019 up habits. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWrite Your Goals Down<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Before I clap myself on the back of being such a good student, I would never have started my habits without using some kind of productivity type app to keep me on the straight and narrow. I recommend using TaskLabels, because you can set up recurring daily, weekly or monthly tasks and set reminders, which is perfect for making new habits. You might still prefer paper to write down your goals, or want to be more creative and have a goal board on Pinterest!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Balancing Your Expectations with Reality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Although I believe that a goal should be somewhat out of your comfort zone (otherwise it\u2019s just something you could have done before), I also think that it should be something realistic. I\u2019m not talking about your dreams and aspirations, but that your daily or weekly learning goals should be based on practical expectations such as time. If you have a full-time job, 3 kids and a dog\/cat\/hamster, then setting the goal of learning 500 words in 1 month, is probably unrealistic. Not impossible, I\u2019m sure, but pretty darn difficult. Consider your work schedule and available free time, including commuting or that sneaky hour you spend watching your favourite TV show (unless it\u2019s \u7231\u4e0a\u8d85\u6a21 -iSupermodel <\/a>of course)…<\/p>\n\n\n\nStart with 1 Goal<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Another reason why many of us fail at our New Year\u2019s Resolutions and goals is that we set too many. It\u2019s not realistic to change every part of your life, or in this case, become a Chinese learning ninja (although that would be great, right?). By starting with 1 goal, and starting 1 good habit, this will pave the way to set more small goals and habits further down the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have a Mini-Goal Every Month<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
If you read the article from the beginning of my post, you might have noticed that it differs from person to person on how long it takes to start or break a habit. However, starting a new mini – goal each month will help build new habits throughout the year instead of trying to accomplish too many things at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your Chinese learning goals could be as simple as learning X amount of Chinese words in a month with your end goal as \u2018Take HSK3\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Returning to the habit building idea, adding a new \u2018habit\u2019 each month will also prevent feeling overwhelmed with your resolutions. Here are some ideas for your monthly habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
January: Study Chinese Flashcards 15 minutes, 5 days a week
February: Learn a character every day (meaning, pronunciation, how to write etc)
March: Find an online tutor and have a class once a week
April: Listen to one Chinese learning podcast every day
May: Watch 1 Chinese movie a week
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You could track your goals in a notebook or Bullet Journal! Check out some other ways to study Chinese using a notebook in our article ‘8 Creative Ways To Use Your Bullet Journal For Language Learning’.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\nMeasure Your Chinese Learning Goals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n![\"Measure](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writtenchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-06-10-11_40_15-mim-@machalau-\u2022-Instagram-photos-and-videos-e1451469687874.png?resize=450%2C452&ssl=1\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nProbably one of the most difficult things about setting goals is knowing how well you\u2019re doing. If your resolution is to lose weight, you can use an app to measure your calorie intake, how much exercise you do and ultimately how much weight you lose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are a few different ways you can easily measure your Chinese learning progress:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- 1. If you\u2019re studying towards an HSK exam, print off the vocabulary lis<\/a>t, or keep them as a pdf and cross the words off that you have already learned.<\/li>
- 2. Make yourself a spreadsheet<\/a>, or document and manually record your progress.<\/li>
- 3. Get a Chinese character poster<\/a> and cross off the characters you know as you learn them.<\/li>
- 4. Use the study function in a flashcard app.<\/li>
- 5. Use an app like our favourite, TaskLabels, where you can see simple statistics on how many of your tasks you are completing.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s most important, however you measure the progress of your goal, is to be able to see how well you\u2019re doing. This will keep you motivated and able to achieve your big goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Good Luck to all of you with your Chinese Learning this year! If you have any other suggestions on making your Chinese goals stick, please leave them in the comment section below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nIn the past, my Chinese learning goal was ‘improve my Chinese’. I’m sure you just saw the tumbleweed fly past you. There\u2019s no incentive, no motivation and NO way to improve with such a massive aim. First, I had to decide to actually take learning Chinese seriously and not rely on living in China, because surprisingly, that wasn\u2019t enough. I had to be interested in learning, and open to the language. If you see learning a language as a chore, then you either need to get a new interest, or find something out about the language that really gets the juices flowing. If you\u2019ve read any of my other articles about my Chinese learning journey, you\u2019ve probably heard me mention my love of radicals, and how, once the proverbial penny had dropped, radicals became my motivation for learning Chinese. I needed to find something that really fascinated me about the Chinese language, that made me think \u2018I want to learn this language\u2019. I\u2019m sure the \u2018thing\u2019 that interests you about Chinese is different to my own, but think about some of the following as a gateway into the Chinese language:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- – Chinese TV Shows<\/a><\/li>
- – Chengyu <\/a>(Chinese idioms)<\/li>
- – Chinese songs<\/a><\/li>
- – Chinese Homophones<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Break a Goal into Smaller Pieces.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As I mentioned previously, my goal of \u2018improving my Chinese\u2019 was basically an empty thought until I started to look at what I needed to improve and work on those precise details. What, realistically could I do to show signs of improvement? I needed to aim for something, so I started working on an HSK exam<\/a>. This is how I started to break my rather large \u2018goal\u2019 into smaller pieces that I could actually work on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maybe you want to pass the HSK 3 exam? For this exam, you need to learn around 600 words. How long do you think it might take to learn 600 words? 3 months? 6 months? 1 year? Don\u2019t make it too easy, but don\u2019t set an unrealistic goal either. Also, bear in mind, if you\u2019ve learned characters before, this will reduce the number of characters you will need to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, now let\u2019s say you\u2019ve decided to take an HSK exam in 6 months. Book the exam now<\/a>. Go on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All sorted? OK, now to take the exam in 6 months you need to learn 25 words per week. If you only study 5 days a week, that\u2019s 5 words a day. 5 words a day is your new bitesize goal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before you go mental and say that\u2019s too many to learn in a week, look at this list of words from the HSK 3 exam<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u8111 (di\u00e0nn\u01ceo)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u89c6 (di\u00e0nsh\u00ec)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u68af (di\u00e0nt\u012b)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u5f71 (di\u00e0ny\u01d0ng)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u7535\u5b50 \u90ae\u4ef6 (di\u00e0nz\u01d0 y\u00f3uji\u00e0n)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All five of these words feature the same character: \u7535 meaning electricity, which makes learning these words much easier since, after studying the first word, you will already know that character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, even 5 characters a day may be too many, or 6 months too soon in the future, but breaking up your goals into smaller chunks is really essential if you want to establish some good habits and achieve your larger goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Get into Good Habits<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve recently started to set myself goals, in all aspects of my life, but instead of making grand goals for the year, I split everything up into daily or weekly goals. You could almost call them habits now, and that\u2019s exactly what you want to do in order to reach your goals. There are lots of articles online that provide the golden number where picking up (or losing) a habit<\/a> is concerned, which vary between 21 and 66 days. It seems to come down to personality and the type of habit you\u2019re trying to start or break. However, I believe that setting a short, but very specific daily task, such as learning 1 character a day, will become a habit much faster than setting yourself the mammoth task of studying for an hour. I have to note, that I\u2019m still unable to get into the habit of journaling and reading 10 pages of non-fiction (55555!<\/a>), but I HAVE succeeded with my Chinese learning habit, YAY! I usually do it on my commute to work, it\u2019s only about 10 minutes, but that\u2019s a start and better than nothing, and as you\u2019ll read later in the article, the idea is to \u2018build\u2019 up habits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Write Your Goals Down<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Before I clap myself on the back of being such a good student, I would never have started my habits without using some kind of productivity type app to keep me on the straight and narrow. I recommend using TaskLabels, because you can set up recurring daily, weekly or monthly tasks and set reminders, which is perfect for making new habits. You might still prefer paper to write down your goals, or want to be more creative and have a goal board on Pinterest!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Balancing Your Expectations with Reality<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Although I believe that a goal should be somewhat out of your comfort zone (otherwise it\u2019s just something you could have done before), I also think that it should be something realistic. I\u2019m not talking about your dreams and aspirations, but that your daily or weekly learning goals should be based on practical expectations such as time. If you have a full-time job, 3 kids and a dog\/cat\/hamster, then setting the goal of learning 500 words in 1 month, is probably unrealistic. Not impossible, I\u2019m sure, but pretty darn difficult. Consider your work schedule and available free time, including commuting or that sneaky hour you spend watching your favourite TV show (unless it\u2019s \u7231\u4e0a\u8d85\u6a21 -iSupermodel <\/a>of course)…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Start with 1 Goal<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Another reason why many of us fail at our New Year\u2019s Resolutions and goals is that we set too many. It\u2019s not realistic to change every part of your life, or in this case, become a Chinese learning ninja (although that would be great, right?). By starting with 1 goal, and starting 1 good habit, this will pave the way to set more small goals and habits further down the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have a Mini-Goal Every Month<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
If you read the article from the beginning of my post, you might have noticed that it differs from person to person on how long it takes to start or break a habit. However, starting a new mini – goal each month will help build new habits throughout the year instead of trying to accomplish too many things at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your Chinese learning goals could be as simple as learning X amount of Chinese words in a month with your end goal as \u2018Take HSK3\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Returning to the habit building idea, adding a new \u2018habit\u2019 each month will also prevent feeling overwhelmed with your resolutions. Here are some ideas for your monthly habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
January: Study Chinese Flashcards 15 minutes, 5 days a week
February: Learn a character every day (meaning, pronunciation, how to write etc)
March: Find an online tutor and have a class once a week
April: Listen to one Chinese learning podcast every day
May: Watch 1 Chinese movie a week
<\/p>\n\n\n\nYou could track your goals in a notebook or Bullet Journal! Check out some other ways to study Chinese using a notebook in our article ‘8 Creative Ways To Use Your Bullet Journal For Language Learning’.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Measure Your Chinese Learning Goals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nProbably one of the most difficult things about setting goals is knowing how well you\u2019re doing. If your resolution is to lose weight, you can use an app to measure your calorie intake, how much exercise you do and ultimately how much weight you lose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are a few different ways you can easily measure your Chinese learning progress:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- 1. If you\u2019re studying towards an HSK exam, print off the vocabulary lis<\/a>t, or keep them as a pdf and cross the words off that you have already learned.<\/li>
- 2. Make yourself a spreadsheet<\/a>, or document and manually record your progress.<\/li>
- 3. Get a Chinese character poster<\/a> and cross off the characters you know as you learn them.<\/li>
- 4. Use the study function in a flashcard app.<\/li>
- 5. Use an app like our favourite, TaskLabels, where you can see simple statistics on how many of your tasks you are completing.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s most important, however you measure the progress of your goal, is to be able to see how well you\u2019re doing. This will keep you motivated and able to achieve your big goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Good Luck to all of you with your Chinese Learning this year! If you have any other suggestions on making your Chinese goals stick, please leave them in the comment section below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
- 2. Make yourself a spreadsheet<\/a>, or document and manually record your progress.<\/li>
- – Chengyu <\/a>(Chinese idioms)<\/li>