🎙️Find Your English Motivation and Consistency | Real English Conversations Podcast for Global Professionals

Summary

Podcast Summary

Podcast: Real English Conversations Podcast – Real English for Global Professionals
Episode: 🎙️Find Your English Motivation and Consistency
Host: Curtis Davies & Amy
Release Date: April 24, 2024

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the connection between motivation and consistency in learning English, especially for international professionals who want to communicate confidently in the workplace. Hosts Curtis and Amy share personal stories, practical approaches, and expert advice to help listeners break through fluency barriers and find an effective, enjoyable language learning routine.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Consistency is the Secret to Progress

• Amy introduces consistency as the “magic tool, the secret weapon” for language learning, arguing it is an easier–and smarter–way to make real progress.
• Example Scenario:
  • Person A: Studies 100 words in one 3-hour weekend session, then forgets most of them by next week.
  • Person B: Spreads learning and review over a week, mastering all words and recalling them easily.
    • Amy: “At the end of this time, Person A, they can't remember the words... Whereas Person B has these words very, very well known in their vocabulary now.” [02:05]
• Key Insight: Spaced, regular review is more effective than marathon study sessions.
  • “If you want to learn faster, you really need to focus on how you can be more consistent... when you’re not having to relearn, this is when it starts to get easier and faster.” – Amy [03:00]

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2. The Motivation-Consistency Cycle

• Curtis: “When I'm being consistent and learning a specific thing... when I have that realization of ‘I know this, I’ve learned it,’ perfect! Exactly. And then I get excited and I want to learn the next thing.” [03:33]
• Amy: Highlights that consistent learning breeds motivation by showing real progress, which in turn fuels desire to tackle even more challenging material.
  • “When you’re consistent, you are learning faster, which creates motivation... you’re probably going to be doing activities that are more demanding on your concentration, right?” [04:24]

Notable Quote:

• Curtis: “It’s that feeling of accomplishment and achievement that drives me to remain consistent because it’s all the pieces coming together for learning.” [04:14]

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3. Pitfalls of Inconsistent Learning

• Curtis shares his personal struggle as an “inconsistent learner,” cramming large amounts at infrequent intervals with little review.
  • Curtis: “It was putting way too much information into my head... Move on to the next thing without any review…” [05:55]
  • Amy: “You learn something and then you never look at it again... Sorry, man, it doesn’t work that way.” [06:38]
• Result: Stagnation at the basic level, constant relearning, little advancement.

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4. Turning Point: The Wake-Up Call

• Curtis recounts a pivotal moment trying (and failing) to participate in a lively conversation in Spanish at a lounge in Mexico:
  • Curtis: “I sat down at this table. The music was loud... I couldn’t involve myself in the conversation at all.” [07:27]
  • He realized that, despite “studying and learning a lot,” he couldn’t use the language in real situations.
  • “So I had this realization, well, I’ve got to do something to change this.” [08:11]

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5. Building Effective Habits & Practical Strategies

• Amy: “We really started to focus more on your consistency and creating a plan to help you become more consistent...I even made you a plan... but that plan, it was still difficult for you to stick to that plan, right?” [08:27]
• Curtis: Openly discusses his “procrastination problem” and tendency to get distracted.
  • “Lately you’ve been more consistent with your studying... I don’t move on to the next thing until I know that I’ve learned something and that I’ve reviewed...” [09:26]
• Amy’s Flashcard Hack:
  • Loads essential rules or examples into a flashcard deck, reviewing them regularly instead of rereading whole grammar pages.
    • “I take the most essential part of that lesson and put it in my flashcards so I see it like 10 more times before I’m done with it.” [10:37]

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6. Rediscovering Motivation and Enjoyment

• Curtis: “Learning something new now has been very exciting for me. I have that moment of achievement. It’s like, wow, yeah, this is cool. I want to keep going.” [10:41]
• Amy: Emphasizes aligning learning activities with enjoyment to maintain the motivation-consistency cycle, whether driven by external pressure or self-discipline.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Consistency:
  • Amy: “This is the easier way to learn... when you're not having to relearn, this is when it starts to get easier and faster.” [03:00]
• On Achievement:
  • Curtis: “It’s that feeling of accomplishment and achievement that drives me to remain consistent...” [04:14]
• On Realizations:
  • Curtis: “I thought, I’ve been studying and learning a lot and I couldn’t participate. I couldn’t be part of that conversation. So I had this realization, well, I’ve got to do something to change this.” [08:11]
• On Routines:
  • Amy: “Instead of having so many different things that you're focusing on, you're just focusing on one thing, trying to learn it better, at least reviewing it a couple times.” [09:44]

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Key Timestamps and Segments

• [01:10] – Introduction: Today’s topic – consistency and motivation in language learning.
• [02:00] – Amy’s example contrasting inconsistent cramming vs. regular small-study sessions.
• [03:26] – How consistency fuels motivation through visible progress.
• [05:55] – Curtis’s admission of failed strategies and the struggle with relearning.
• [07:27] – Curtis’s turning point: failing to keep up in a real-life conversation.
• [08:27] – Attempting to adopt consistency; Amy’s plan and Curtis’s challenges with procrastination.
• [09:44] – Practical tip: Using flashcards for ongoing review.
• [10:41] – Renewed motivation through focused, consistent learning.

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Conclusion & Takeaways

• Consistency is the foundation of successful language learning.
  Regular, manageable study and active review lead to better retention and faster progress.
• Visible progress fuels motivation.
  Recognizing real improvement encourages learners to continue, creating a positive cycle.
• Practical tip: Use flashcards to make review automatic and focused; reduce overwhelm by tackling one topic at a time.
• Personal motivation can be rediscovered.
  Relating language learning to real-life needs or enjoyable activities helps maintain both motivation and consistency.

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For more tips or to book a lesson with Curtis, check the episode description.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Welcome to the Real English Conversations podcast

[C]

where you'll learn how to break through your fluency barriers so you can speak easily and confidently in English.

[B]

To learn more about our fluency courses and how we can help you to take your English to the next level, visit realenglishconversations.

[C]

Hi everybody, I'm Curtis and I'm here with Amy.

[B]

Hi everybody.

[C]

And today we're going to have a really interesting conversation. It's an important one too, about the relationship between consistency and motivation, especially when you're learning a language. Right, Amy?

[B]

Yeah, that's right. And the first thing that I want to jump right into is talking about how important consistency actually is and how this is really the magic tool, the secret weapon, whatever you want to call it. This is the easier way to learn. And I'm going to give you a really, really quick example to demonstrate this really clearly. So if we have one person, Person A, they have to learn 100 words within a week. And then we have person B, who has the same problem. Person A decides they're going to spend three hours on Sunday afternoon studying these words because they know that they're working throughout the week. Person B also decides to take some time on Sunday to learn maybe 40 words. Okay? And they decide that on Monday they're going to spend 20 minutes reviewing those words and learning some new ones. And they repeat that each day of the week until the following weekend. At the end of this time, person A, they can't remember the words by the following Sunday. Maybe they know a few, but the majority of them are very difficult to recall or they've forgotten them completely. Whereas person B has these words very, very well known in their vocabulary now. They understand them, they can recall them easily, and most importantly, they can use them but person A has to relearn where person B is ready to learn more.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Okay, so this is a very, very clear example of the power of consistency. And if you want to learn faster, you really need to focus on how you can be more consistent. Because when you're not having to relearn, this is when it starts to get easier and faster.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

So, Curtis, when you're studying consistently, what happens?

[C]

Well, I get more motivated, I become more motivated. I learn things. I actually learn.

[B]

Okay, so you're realizing you're making progr progress then.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Okay, so how does that connect to the consistency? Can you elaborate?

[C]

Yep. Okay. So when I'm being consistent and learning a specific thing, I keep reviewing. Reviewing is the most important part for me as well. Reviewing consistently, learning consistently. And then when I have that realization of, I know this, I've learned it perfect. Exactly. And then I get excited and I want to learn the next thing.

[B]

Like you were able to use something that you learned, or you saw it being used and something that you read or something that you were watching and you realized, oh, hey, cool, I'm learning. Okay. I have space in my brain to learn something new, right?

[C]

Yeah. It's that feeling of accomplishment and achievement that drives me to remain consistent because it's all the pieces coming together for learning.

[B]

Yeah. So it's more like when you're consistent, you are learning faster, which creates motivation. Which creates motivation to study again. And in my case, when I'm highly motivated, I'm actually more motivated to do activities that are more challenging compared to periods where maybe I have lower motivation because I've been too busy, I haven't been consistent, and I'm kind of on that downward spiral out of consistency. So it's kind of a winning combination. If you're studying regularly, you're going to be learning faster and just, I don't know, able to have more room in your brain to be able to learn new things. You're going to have high level of motivation, which is going to help you naturally want to study without feeling like it's a chore. And if you're really motivated, you're probably going to be doing activities that are more demanding on your concentration, right?

[C]

Yeah. And with me, another thing that I realized with consistency is the thing of not having to relearn something over again.

[B]

Oh, yeah. Because you were a type A for sure. Yeah. Yeah. I would say Curtis was. Well, why don't you tell us about your learning strategy for the first two years? Just a quick version.

[C]

Well, it wasn't Really a strategy at all. It was putting way too much information into my head and thinking, oh, okay, well, I learned that. Move on to the next thing without any review and then learning something else

[B]

random, you know, the next time that you were studying for three or four hours at a time, and I have

[C]

a bad memory as is. So it really locked me into a basic level and I wasn't moving anywhere.

[B]

No, you were just relearning and relearning. I mean, and we're talking about basic, basic, basic stuff. Like. And it's not that you didn't have the guidance. I mean, I certainly gave you the guidance. I said, why aren't you reviewing? Why don't, you know, you learn something and then you never look at it again. You think you're going to remember it. Sorry, man, it doesn't work that way.

[C]

Yeah, you're on me, that's for sure.

[B]

Yeah. So anyway, I would say there's one thing that really changed in the last year. We actually have been living in Mexico now for three years. So for the first two years, your studying was pretty inconsistent, I would say. Or those long sessions, the three hours at a time, once every week or two, not reviewing anything. Okay. And that strategy wasn't working. So why don't you tell us about the moment where you realized that you had to change and you had a strong reason to help you change.

[C]

Okay. Well, it was when I was with a group of friends and they invited me to sit at their table. There was 10 or 12 people, Mexicans, native Spanish speakers. And I was like, oh, my God. I sat down at this table. The music was loud in this place. It was a lounge, so I couldn't really hear what was going on. And I couldn't involve myself in the conversation at all.

[B]

It was just trying to hear something, or if somebody's looking at you or they're kind of saying something right next to you, then it was okay. But you were lost at that point. Yeah.

[C]

So it was a realization of, oh, my God. I thought, I've been studying and learning a lot and I couldn't participate. I couldn't be part of that conversation. So I had this realization, well, I've got to do something to change this.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. And this is when we really started to focus more on your consistency and creating a plan to help you become more consistent. Um, you know, and I mean, I even made you a plan and I said, do. Day one, day two. I had review in there. I said, just follow the instructions. You need an hour a day. Follow These instructions. But that plan, it was still difficult for you to stick to that plan, right?

[C]

It was.

[B]

Because you've got the distraction syndrome.

[C]

Yeah. And I've got a bit of the put it off or procrastination problems.

[B]

Curtis has a bit of a procrastination problem. So for him, it's really, really difficult to remember the importance of review. Coming back to something and also puts it off. He usually puts it off until another time. Okay. But lately you've been. Okay, you've been more consistent with your studying.

[C]

Yes. Yep. And I don't move on to the next thing until I know that I've learned something and that I've reviewed and I'm always keeping it fresh by using it. Then I move on to the next thing that I can be consistent with to learn that.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. It's a little bit more. Instead of having so many different things that you're focusing on, you're just focusing on one thing, trying to learn it better, at least reviewing it a couple times. And, you know, I've been talking about using your flashcard deck to put in new rules or examples of a sentence or whatever it is that you're, you know, having to learn. Whatever you're reviewing, putting it in your flashcards. Because when you're reviewing your flashcards for the vocabulary, it's really easy just to see a sentence or the general rule of something that you've been reviewing that can be your moment to review. That's a strategy and a trick I've been using for a very long time. I don't reread a page of grammar rules. I take the most essential part of that lesson and put it in my flashcards so I see it, like 10 more times before I'm done with it.

[C]

And learning something new now has been very exciting for me. I have that moment of achievement. It's like, wow, yeah, this is cool. I want to keep going.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. So right now you're motivated, everything is good, you're on track. And really, this is the key. If you can find some sort of cycle to stay motivated. You know, sometimes it's a reason. Sometimes something pops up and you realize you have this sudden pressure that you have to learn the language. But other times, you just have to go back to the consistency, do things that you enjoy, do things that you look forward to doing, and just really let it help you to have the motivation that you want to have and get that consistency going and get it working for you.

[C]

Mm, exactly.

[B]

If you're ready to take your English to the next level. You might be excited to know that Curtis is currently accepting new students. Not only is Curtis a host on this podcast, but he's an expert teacher who specializes in developing speaking fluency, pronunciation, honing your listening skills, and building up rock solid confidence, often within just a few lessons. To get started, click on the description area below to view Curtis's calendar and book the time for your trial lesson.