3 Strategies To Minimise Culture Shock

Posted on 25. Sep, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Musings & Inspiration, Tools & Resources
3 comments

As I mentioned before, I don’t believe that culture shock can be avoided altogether. But it can certainly be lessened.

We all know one of those “lucky” expats who seem to adjust effortlessly anywhere, no matter what kind of a hellhole their sadistic HR department sends them to. The truth is, luck has nothing to do with it. These highly adaptable individuals have mastered a few strategies that allow them to navigate through culture shock efficiently, if not entirely painlessly.

A lot of it is common sense, yes. But you know what? Common sense can go a long way.

3 Strategies To Minimise Culture Shock

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Good Question: On Learning The Language

Posted on 09. Sep, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Tools & Resources
3 comments

A reader visiting from Study Abroad In Argentina blog recently asked the following question:

How can one merge with society in order to really learn the language if they don’t have a job there or any other activity surrounding them with natives?

Great question! We all know that immersion is the best way to boost your language skills, but if you’re never around local people, you’re not going to make that much progress.
Here are three scenarios* you may be faced with:

*or should it be scenarii? These Latin plurals are so darn confusing!

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Feeling At Home: Build Your Networks Online

Posted on 07. Aug, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
1 comment

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and al are the modern-day equivalent of the letters of introduction that well-connected travellers used to carry.

These sites allow you to build and grow networks anywhere in the world, so put them to good use!

Contrary to popular opinion, this is not about “making friends” – it’s about tapping into a worldwide network of people who have the answers to your questions. It’s about making contact with local people whom you may never have met otherwise.

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Language Learning: Sound (Almost) Like A Native Speaker

Posted on 01. Aug, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
5 comments

Expat fantasy: mastering the local language so well that people wonder if you were brought up bilingual. And that’s not just for the bragging rights – for many long-term expats, sounding like a native speaker is the ultimate in fitting in and being fully integrated.

I entertain this fantasy on a regular basis myself. I am not quite there yet. Although my English is completely fluent, someone recently described my accent as “continental” – as in, I get you’re from somewhere in Europe, but whether that’s France, Sweden or The Netherlands is anyone’s guess!

So I am still working on it – and here are some of the techniques I use to keep improving my language skills:

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Language Learning: From Conversational To Fluent

Posted on 30. Jul, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
1 comment

Congratulations! You’ve been studying diligently, and your language skills have tremendously improved. You can understand and be understood, hold a conversation, and go about most of your daily tasks without having to use English.

That’s already a pretty impressive achievement, and depending on your situation, this may be all you need to master. But if your goal is to become fluent, here are some tips that will help you get there faster:

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Take Your Foreign Language Skills To The Next Level

Posted on 28. Jul, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
2 comments

You’ve been practicing up a storm and you are now ready to take your language skills to the next level. You’re almost at the end of your lessons or self-study course and you’re not sure what the next step is.

Here are a few suggestions that will have you on your way to fluency fast:

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Language Learning: Practice, Practice, Practice!

Posted on 25. Jul, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
2 comments

“You don’t learn a language to speak it; you speak a language to learn it.” – John Rassias

Well said!

Even as a beginner, it is crucial to step away from your books and start practicing as soon as possible.

Of course, this is much easier if you are already living in your new host country – provided that you actually do go out and engage with native speakers, not just fellow expats.

But even if you are just studying in preparation for your move and haven’t relocated yet (which, as a side note, is exactly the way to go!), there are plenty of ways you can practice those new language skills of yours.

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Language Learning Strategies For Beginners

Posted on 23. Jul, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
0 comments

Learning a language as a beginner can sometimes feel like a long, arduous slog – especially if you are stuck with an old-fashioned method that is heavy on the grammar and the vocabulary lists.

Here are a few tricks that I like to use to keep language learning rewarding in the early stages:
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Language Learning: Getting Started

Posted on 21. Jul, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
0 comments

Disclaimer: I am not a language expert, nor am I a teacher. I am, however, an expat with a bad case of wanderlust and this had led me to learn several foreign languages.

What I offer here is based on my personal experience – since I have been at the beginner stage many times in my life, I’ve had the opportunity to test a lot of different methods so you don’t have to!

Study consistently

Ideally, set aside a good chunk of time (45 minutes to 1 hour), and plan on studying every day. If you don’t have that kind of time, don’t let that stop you from getting started! Studying a little every day is tonnes better than not studying at all while waiting for “the right conditions”.

If you do have to take a break from studying, go back until you hit a lesson you master perfectly, then resume studying from there.

Get the right tools

If you are in the market for a language-learning product, your first stop is likely to be the bookstore. Rather than relying on the sales associate’s recommendations, I’d come prepared – you can ask a foreign language forum for recommendations, or you can browse product reviews on sites like Language Learning Advisor or Links 4 Languages.

Make sure that any product you purchase includes a lot of recorded dialogues and plenty of opportunities for you to practice repeating what you hear. Between a thick book with 2 CDs and a shorter book with 8 CDs, I would definitely go for the latter.

This goes for classes as well. Will you get enough practice in the classroom? How much time is devoted to conversation? Some teachers still favour a grammar-heavy, passive learning approach, so it is worth asking a few questions before signing up for classes at your local cultural centre.

What’s your learning style?

Do you learn best through listening? Download some podcasts, or carry your language CDs with you and listen to them whenever you have a few minutes

Are you a visual learner? Make flash cards or track down some language-learning videos on YouTube.

If you’d rather have a combination of text, audio and video, consider online and software-based methods, like About.com and Rosetta Stone software.

If you tend to give up when things get more challenging, why not find yourself a penpal or join a conversation group? Knowing that someone expects you to write back or show up for a group meeting is a good incentive to keep studying consistently.

What are your main challenges as a beginner? If you are more advanced, what helped you get through the beginner stage more easily? Please share your language-learning tips with us!

Do you know that you can get even more expat tips by signing up for the free newsletter? No spam and no hassle, of course (because I’m not that kind of person!), just helpful expat resources sent directly to your inbox.

Emmanuelle

Image by Jasmic, via Flickr Creative Commons

Language Learning: Staying Motivated

Posted on 18. Jul, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation, Tools & Resources
3 comments

Staying motivated and focused can be a challenge in long-term projects, and learning a foreign language is no exception. Without measurable goals and a clear intention, you can easily end up overwhelmed and discouraged.

Even worse, you can find yourself stuck in procrastination mode, with all the layers of guilt and self-criticism that go with it. I don’t know about you, but that’s not my idea of fun.

Willpower and struggling

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