Obviously this is a pretty international forum, and a comrade asked before which languages we speak, but which languages are you working on? Which ones do you aspire to learn someday even if you aren’t learning it now? I’m a Yank so I know English and took about 5 years of Spanish in HS, I was in the advanced classes, but it was years ago so I can understand Spanish, but I can’t speak it really. I’m learning Russian now because I’ve sorta been learning it informally my whole life, my grandma being born in early 30s rural Belarus meant she always wanted to pass that on to me, she spoke an Eastern dialect of Polish but knew Belarussian and spoke fluent Russian. I just knew basic basic Russian as a kid like Принесите Пожалуйста and Спасибо mixed with other phrases that were very local to her. In the past 2-3 years I decided to officially learn Russian bc the rest of my family is very American (I don’t blame them, that’s where we live and consume the vast vast majority of our entertainment/content from) the Irish side of my family doesn’t give a shit about the history of Ireland nor do any of them speak any word of Gaelic Irish, so at least by learning Russian I can communicate to a few cousins from the old country and my grandma. Realistically speaking Spanish would be most useful to me, being in the US, but if I finish learning Russian I wanna learn Arabic. I want to learn Chinese but goddamn thats one of the toughest ones to learn. I feel like Arabic would be cool to learn. What are yall thinking?
I was diagnosed with ADHD in 2022, at the age of 30, and am awaiting a formal ASD diagnosis (psychiatrist strongly suspected it but couldn’t diagnose in the meeting because meeting was for ADHD only). So I’ve got a lot of years of coping mechanisms for studying.
With my mix of ADHD and ASD I love routines but struggle to build new ones or add new habits. I build new routines and habits by hanging new habits off of existing ones. I already religiously brush my teeth; so I decided to moisturise beforehand every time. After a while the new habit grows. I then personally find that once I’ve developed the new habit, it’s a lot easier to move it about to a new “home” in my life/routine if appropriate.
Applied to language learning I would recommend doing a quick survey of your existing daily or weekly rhythm (I won’t assume a routine yet!). Are there any touchstones that remain relatively consistent across the days / weeks? Basic stuff like brushing teeth, washing. Maybe going to and from school/college/work? Food? Even if these things aren’t consistent in terms of the time of day (maybe your mealtimes are erratic), are they at least consistent across the week? e.g. do you always manage to eat at least one or two meals a day? If yes; great. You’re off to a good start. Remember these are examples; you’re looking for the patterns in your own life. Depending on the severity of your struggle with ADHD you might have more or less to work with.
Once you’ve spotted them, apply the language learning habit to these patterns as appropriate. 5 mins while food is cooking, or maybe listening to / watching something in the target language as you eat. Or maybe taking 5 mins to digest food while you practice or revise some vocab. Start small, build momentum. Don’t fret disruptions. You absolutely will forget and drop it. Even after years I still do this. Just forgive yourself and try to hit the next timeslot.
Once you’re happy with where you’re at with your consistency, take a second to evaluate. How would you feel with moving the habit about now? Is there a better “home” for it in the rhythm of your day or week? Maybe when you get up, or before/after you brush your teeth? Or are you happy with it where it is? Either answer is fine, just checking in with yourself is the aim
Hey thank you for the response, I really appreciate it. It is always fascinating to hear how people manage things like this, or just how other’s brains work in general. I was diagnosed last year as well at the age of 25. I’m the same way with loving routine and consistency but struggling to add new habits. The tip you mentioned about “hanging” new habits off of old ones is a good one, and something I’ve been gradually trying to implement in various areas of life in the past while.
All of the questions you’ve posited are good ones. I have definitely been trying to recognize patterns in my life and trying to understand how they influence the way I act and feel, ect. I also must remember to take to heart your advice about going slow, not fretting mistakes and what not.
At the moment I’m balancing working two jobs and taking courses at a local trades college as well, in addition to just being a single guy who is still kinda coming to grips with being a “functional” adult and all of the responsibilities that come with that. As such things like language learning haven’t been a primary concern, but I would like to gradually start implementing it into my routine. I see no reason why I can’t replace 15 minutes of scrolling facebook or whatever with 15 minutes of vocabulary studying. Just about building up to it I guess.
Once again thank you truly for the response, it has given me plenty to consider.
You’re very welcome. That sounds like a lot to balance, especially with ADHD. Good luck comrade, I know you can do it!