How Did I Manage To Speak French (In A Few Year's Time)?

There is no secret nor is there a shortcut in learning a new language, especially if you do it at a later age.  I officially started learning the French language back in 2012, few months after I married my French husband.  But way before that, while we were still at the boyfriend-girlfriend stage, he was already starting to give me a few grammar lessons.  And after each of those grammar lessons, I was almost convinced that "no, this language isn't for me, it's too complicated" only to find myself conversing in French a few years later! Lesson learned: never underestimate your own capacities...ever!

Since the beginning of our relationship, we've always agreed that English will be our primary language in conversing together but later on we realized that it's actually very important for me to learn his language especially since we envision living in France for a few years before finally retiring somewhere else.  This led us to making a decision of me going to language school, if I want to be fluent in French his grammar lessons won't be enough.  But it was only for a couple of months, far from being enough yet it was already a good kick start.  

I officially started learning at the first quarter of 2012 and was already able to speak the language decently enabling me to work part time the last quarter of the next year and yes, this too surprised me in a way.  My husband and I have met a lot of people who asked us how I managed to learn and get fluent as quickly as I did and there is no single answer for this question.  As previously mentioned, I went to language school for a couple of months just before leaving for France.  And when I arrived, as part of my integration process, I attended four hundred hours of language training but aside from that here are the other things that helped me get the hang of it:

1. Have an open mind.  Learning a new language, especially a tricky one like French, needs an open mind.  Don't get yourself stuck in the grammar rules and pronunciations of the language or languages you speak.
2. Buy or scout for free learning materials online and don't just stop there, USE THEM.  Learning is investing.  This new language you're trying to learn may take you places, give it all you have with the time and resources you have.  And there are a lot of fun apps for smart phones that are very effective now a days.
3. Get a "Becherelle" or download a conjugation app like "Le Conjugueur".  This will allow you to know the different conjugation of each French word according to their tenses.  If you want to be fluent with your French then this is a must.
4. Embrace the awkward.  Hearing new words and trying to say them by producing odd sounds can be really awkward in the beginning but you'll never get used to it unless you allow yourself to repeat it enough until it sounds and feels...well, less awkward.  Hey! You're learning a new language, the word new isn't there for nothing so chill! 
5. Live in the country where this language is spoken.  They say that this is the best way to learn a new language, true, unless you opt to speaking your own language while living in that place.  Language is a beautiful part of the culture, integrate yourself and trust me, you'll be appreciating the country's culture in an even deeper level and it'll make your life easier.  You won't have to worry about making sign languages when faced with someone who can't speak the same language you speak.  Not that something is wrong with sign languages, it can be fun and creative too! ^_^ But would it not be better if you can go about your daily life in a normal way like everyone else around you?  In France, not a lot of people speak English let alone Cebuano or Tagalog or whatever Filipino dialect you speak.
6. Read-Listen-Imitate, repeat.  Each of us retain information differently, this worked for me.  I look at a word, listen to someone say it, try to imitate the person and I repeat the procedure.  They help me remember the words, thus, enriching my vocabulary while helping me with the pronunciation at the same time but pronunciations are tricky, don't get discouraged too easily, brave it out!
7. Start from scratch, use children's books.  In France, they have these booklets called "cahier de vacances" that are available in different subject matters, pick the one for learning French and enjoy learning easy-everyday vocabularies.  Imagine you're four years old again and just started going to school.. ^_^
8. Don't be afraid to watch that television.  Say,  you live in that foreign country now and you're too afraid to watch your t.v. set because most channels speak a language that you don't understand.  Don't be.  Go on and watch that t.v. but not with a goal of understanding what's shown just yet, use it to get yourself familiar with the words and how they say it.  Then later on, you'll be surprised when you start to understand and follow simple conversations or topics.  Sitcoms, variety shows, the news and cartoons are very good things to watch in foreign television.
9. Make good old "subtitle" your friend.  Watch a movie in a language that you understand and have it subtitled with the language that you're trying to learn.  Or watch a French movie with an English subtitle.  I know not everyone is a friend of Mr subtitle but this is a very helpful technique especially when it comes to idiomatic expressions since these are things that aren't translated literally most of the time.  Now, you're leveling up!
10. You can't overdose on music.  Have you already heard of a song with the lyrics that you don't understand but the beat was so nice it stays in your head and you end up actually enjoying it?  I think most of us already have.  Music is another part of a country's culture, a beautiful part.  When you listen to music with the language that you're trying to learn don't get frustrated, first you'll understand only bits and pieces of the lyrics and little by little you'll understand the whole song.  France has a lot of beautiful, meaningful, romantic songs, don't miss them!
11. Don't be ashamed to ask even when talking to that random person at the grocery.  French people don't bite.  Don't let the lack of vocabulary hinder your improvement.  And at home don't stop asking questions about words that you've heard and you'd want to understand.
12. Make notes.  Keeping cheat sheets is a good way to helping you remember those newly learned words and expressions.  When you hear a word that's used so often, jot it down and when you get home ask your husband or wife or whoever is with you.
13. Live, breath and eat French.  Make it a part of your life.
14. Don't settle for less.  Practice, don't be afraid to make mistakes, allow others to correct you without feeling offended and don't stop and be contented with a limited vocabulary.  Believe you can and you will!

Trying to speak a new language can be very challenging but it is all worth it in the end.  I'm a talker, I love sharing my ideas and communicating with people around me.  If I were not able to speak French then my life in France will not have been the same.  I wouldn't have been able to find even a part time job.  I'd always have worries about not being understood and I'd always be depending on my husband for everything.  I'm not saying I master the language because I don't, I'm very far from that and I most probably won't reach that level, but I know enough to go about my daily life just as how I went about it in the Philippines and this gives me a certain freedom and confidence and if I am able to do it then there's no reason why you won't be able to do the same, you might even be better than me. ^_^

SUGGESTIONS:

• Try getting the LIVING LANGUAGE COMPLETE COURSE - this is a package with a very well explained book, an English-French dictionary and 4 CDs.  This book helped me a lot in understanding French grammar.
• Visit  LanguageGuide - they have a lot of beginners' exercises available for free.