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Originally Posted On: https://sofrenchnow.com/80-20-pareto-principle-language-learning/

 

Learning a New Language Fast

A lot of people can be intimidated or even discouraged by learning a new language. One of the most common motivation-killers, fear of failure, is rampant in today’s society.

“The language you are about to hear… is disturbing.” 

–  Dave Chappelle

A lazy but effective way to learn a new language fast is to capitalize on “quick wins”. The Pareto Principle applied to language learning is definitely a right way to go after “quick wins”.

If you haven’t heard about the Pareto Principle sometimes called the 80/20 rule or 80/20 Principle, it suggests that you can achieve more by doing less. From the name itself, the 80/20 principle means that you can achieve 80 percent of the work while just doing 20% work. A lot of research effectively backs up the claims or a least the concept that this principle is a game-changer regarding productivity and success.

If you want to achieve real success fast, the Pareto Principle is the way to do it. In this article, we’ll be talking about how to implement the 80/20 Rule or Pareto Principle in language learning.

What All the Fuss is about the Pareto Principle and 80/20 Rule?

Before talking about language learning, we need to first dive into the basics of the Pareto Principle or 80/20 Rule. There’s this unhealthy notion that leads a lot of us to believe that spending your entire day working is what will lead you to success when this is entirely false.

Take this scenario for instance- you work 9 hours every day, and you see that even after a month, the results of your business aren’t getting any better. Your sales aren’t improving no matter how hard you’re working on finding customers. In this scenario, maybe you’re using your effort on the wrong aspects of your business. Take the time to reflect on where the success of your business is mostly reflected. 

For instance, if you see your potential customers reach you more on social media rather than your website, maybe it’s time to focus on social media marketing rather than adjusting your website.

Use 20% of the effort to get 80% results in an aspect that actually works. That’s what the 80/20 principle is all about. It debunks the myth of hard work on all fronts. That’s useless and unhealthy. Rather, focus on achieving more by doing less through this essential Pareto Principle. Through this rule, instead of draining yourself doing everything all at once, work smarter, not harder! Focus on one relevant aspect of your project and be efficient in!

“The 80 20 Rule states that you get 80 percent of the value out of something from 20 percent of the information or effort. (It’s also true that you’re likely to exert 80 percent of your effort getting the final 20 percent of value.).” 

–  Ray Dalio about the 80/20 Rule

Through this principle, you’ll achieve so much more!

The unfortunate truth of the matter is that we live in a fast-paced world where everything is expected to be instantaneous. In such a context, many think that being on all fronts at the same time is the right way. It’s not working at all. Break Free from this Culture of Busy-ness!

Instead, the 80/20 principle teaches you to choose a priority and focus on that to pour your efforts and energy into. Instead of trying to be good at everything and trying to do multiple tasks all at once, you can instead learn about prioritization. In reality, you have more free time by using the 80/20 principle. Since you’ve chosen the most important tasks for the day, once you’re finished, you have more time for other tasks or even for a break. The 80/20 principle suggests that out of 10 tasks, choose 2 of the most important things to do and focus on only those 2 tasks- nothing else. Our tendency is to try to finish all our work tasks for the day when that will never lead us to success. Instead, it’s all about priorities and pouring your energy into the right aspects.

The Pareto Principle and Language Learning

A lot of people are intimidated with learning a new language because admit it or not, it isn’t as easy as reading a book. You might be wondering- what has the 80/20 principle got to do with learning a new language? By applying the said principle above, learning becomes much easier and more efficient. Learning a new language the wrong way can be so difficult. By applying this Pareto Principle into your learning process, you can focus on the things you already have knowledge about and build up your confidence from there.

Learning a new language is much easier than you expect with the right approach. In fact, we’d go as far as to even say that it’s effortless given the right approach– and this approach is the 80/20 principle applied to language learning. 

You may not realize this but a lot of English speakers use French on a daily basis. For instance, cliche and deja vu are both words that English speakers often use. People aren’t aware of how diverse the French language is being used all over the world and it’s being implemented in their daily English conversations. Whether in culinary terms, dance, or adjectives, French is all over. By using the 80/20 principle, you can focus on what you already know  and have the awareness to remember the words.

When you feel overwhelmed with information or knowledge, this often stems from trying to learn everything all at once. This doesn’t just apply in learning academically, but also in learning a new language. Learning by the books before speaking or trying to integrate it in your life will often go to waste. To put it simply, you’re wasting your time. For instance, if you try to read the entire dictionary in one sitting, the tendency is you won’t understand or remember even a single word of what you just read. The same concept applies to learning a foreign language such as French. You can’t just try to grasp the knowledge all in one sitting. The 80/20 rule is brutally honest: around 20 percent of your effort in learning will yield about 80 percent of your overall knowledge. By focusing only on what’s relevant and significant, learning French or any new foreign language will become much easier than you expect. From day 1, applying the Pareto Principle will get you much further in your progress rather than trying to learn everything immediately. This is the right and most sustainable approach to learn a new language fast, easily and effectively.

How Do You Apply the 80/20 Principle in Language Learning?

Since this rule is all about prioritization and placing your effort in the right place, create your list of words you often use on a daily basis. You can’t immediately worry about advanced words or sentences right from day 1, especially when it’s a complete waste of time to learn something you rarely use. Instead, worry about the words you often use in your vocabulary. You also can’t think long-term immediately with learning French (or any other language for that matter). Instead, take it one step at a time and focus on short-term goals. The more “quick-wins” the better! Quick wins are very important to stay motivated and build-up consistency in your learning process!

“I see this around the web a bit, basically learning most frequently used vocab and speaking like a child. You learn new words via context clues and rather than trying to master grammar before communicating, you learn to speak in a natural way. The way we learned our first languages growing up.” 

–  2gsrnz on Reddit.com

Learn French Fast with So French Now and the Pareto Principle

By implementing the Pareto Principle in learning French, this is where So French Now comes into significance with easy quick wins!

So French Now provides complimentary visual and audio examples along with simple, easy-to-remember French grammar tips. The So French Now Quotes section offers all the basics of that remarkable language- while still not exhausting yourself beyond your capabilities.

 

With bite-sized French lessons, So French Now will make you realize that learning French has never been easier– as easy as riding a bike or even flying a kite-. The quotes section of So French Now doesn’t focus on confusing or advanced vocabulary. It focuses on basic terms that you use in your daily routine, you won’t feel as drained in learning French.

 

So French Now is the most practical way to learn French with minimal efforts. Through illustrated quotes from celebrities, you can clearly see the pattern between the English and French language. All audio quotes are in English and French to make English speakers understand the slight change in pronunciations that similar words may have. Learning a new language has never been this fun and engaging.

The Right Approach to Learn a New Language Fast: Conclusion

This article shed a light on how exactly you can use the Pareto Principle or  80/20 rule in learning a new language faster and why So French Now is an excellent choice to help you apply that principle in your French learning process.

Learning French can be almost effortless when you avoid learning the traditional way which is burdening yourself with all this information that you might not even use daily. With So French Now, you’ll find learning French more engaging and interactive and you’ll be able to learn it in no time.

Visit SoFrenchNow.com for more information.