This is not one of those highly efficient Japanese learning journeys. I’ve spent a year and a half, but I’m probably only at mid N4 level, a bit of N3. Frankly it’s rare that I stick to something for so long, I keep picking up new hobbies and dropping them after a month. I already consider it an achievement that I’m still plugging away at Japanese.
But my ADHD ass still bites me, and I am constantly trying new methods instead of sticking to one. I’ve probably tried them all at this point –
1. I’m tried and dropped so many different pre-made Anki decks, and also tried mining my own Anki from anime, manga, & textbooks.
2. I’ve read textbooks (Tae Kim, Genki I and II) but lost interest in doing the exercises in the workbook/textbooks.
3. Watched a ton of youtube videos, but favorites are Cure Dolly. I’ve probably watched her videos over and over at this point.
4. Watch one episode of anime a day. Tried using japanese subs but gave up and I’m still relying on english subs. But I try to listen and only glance at the subs if I can’t understand.
5. Attended a physical class. Switched schools after a semester because I didn’t like the teaching style. But currently I’m enjoying my 2nd school with the social interactions and opportunity to practice talking.
6. Tried italki and Japatalk. Since my language school is on a long break, I’ll probably continue with Japatalk so that I have the opportunity to practice speaking.
7. Started reading simpler books and manga. But I don’t have much time so only read a few hours a week at the most. Did a 1 month subscription on Satori reader but dropped it.
8. Listen to japanese podcasts, but again I lose interest after a few days and switch back to english ones, or back to music.
I already know some kanji from being a chinese person. So I find it impossible to have a count of my vocabulary like what I often see posted on here. Furthermore my anki statistics are in a mess since I keep resetting my decks or starting new ones. lol
To add a bit more context, I’m a working professional with kids so not a lot of time to study. I also still love gaming as well and I haven’t been successful giving up gaming time to study japanese. To be honest, other than Anki and my weekly classes, I don’t really “sit down and study” anymore. I watch anime, I read a bit here and there, and that’s it.
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2 comments
How well can you read Chinese? Can you read Chinese books for native? If so, there are Chinese resources that are much more efficient for learning Japanese.
About subtitles and anime: It might be a good idea to try watching a show you’ve seen already over again, but this time leave the subtitles off! If you have a half decent memory of the story, the bits that you don’t catch won’t be too disruptive to the experience, but it can still be good listening practice! Heck, if you have a second screen you can even just have it running in the background while you game. I also have ADHD, and do this sort of thing a lot.