What I Regret About Learning a Second Language

Do you ever regret anything? I mean, do you ever wish that you would have acted a certain way at a certain time or made more out of an opportunity? I do. While I don’t think it’s healthy to worry about the past, I do believe that re-evaluating past decisions helps us know how to help others, and it helps us know how to help ourselves in the future.

When I think about the idea of regret and language learning, I realize that there are a few things I would have done differently when I was learning my second language, Spanish. I took Spanish classes at my high school in the United States when I was 14-17 years old. Later, I spent a couple weeks in various Spanish-speaking countries. Finally, I spent four months in Panama at a language school when I was 22.

I am now 33, and it has been several years since I was in a Spanish-speaking country. I have a family and a steady teaching position, so I have less time to work on my Spanish. I am, however, constantly surrounded by Spanish speakers because I am teaching them English.

When I was living in Panama, I communicated fairly well. I spent hours with friends, speaking in Spanish. I led classes in Spanish. I sang songs in Spanish. I was never fluent, but I was quite able to communicate at a high-intermediate or low-advanced level.

Years later, my Spanish-speaking proficiency has eroded some. I understand some of that, given that my life has changed, but I still have some regrets when it comes to language learning. I share these regrets in hopes that it will inspire you to take risks in your language learning journey. For most people, learning a second language is a life-long process that has seasons of focused acceleration. I still plan on learning Spanish for my whole life, and look forward to those seasons of focused acceleration.

Here is my list of language-learning regrets.

1. I wish I would have studied abroad all by myself in college.
2. I wish I would have been closer friends with native-speakers of Spanish.
3. I wish I would not have avoided using difficult grammar, for fear of making a mistake.
4. I wish I would have asked for more clarification when I didn’t understand someone, instead of just nodding my head in agreement.
5. I wish I would continue to immerse myself in Spanish-speaking cultural activities, even when I’m living in the U.S.

Perhaps you can take my list of regrets and turn it into personal goals for learning English.

1. I will study abroad all by myself when I’m in college.
2. I will be close friends with native English speakers.
3. I will not avoid using difficult grammar, because it is okay to make mistakes.
4. I will ask for more clarification when I don’t understand someone, instead of just nodding my head in agreement.
5. I will immerse myself in English-speaking cultural activities, no matter where I’m living.

I hope you learn from my list of language-learning regrets and apply these lessons to your own language learning journey. I’m also taking this opportunity to look at this list of personal language-learning regrets and plan how I might further my Spanish fluency in the future.

Every regret is an opportunity to re-evaluate and start on a new path. What regrets do you have and how can I help you overcome those regrets? Comment below. Here’s to you having no regrets as you learn English.