Hugh Garry

Getting over the net (100 Hours Project)

Do I need to know how to conjugate ALL my Spanish verb infinitives? Or do I need to know just enough to get over the net?

Getting over the net is an interesting phrase to keep in mind when you're learning a new discipline. Ask yourself this... Do you have to know everything? Is perfection always expected from someone learning something new? I don't think so. There is a level you need to aim for. You need to know enough to get you over the net. Let me explain...

 

If a colleague from production approaches me and asks if we can do something with this thing he saw on his mates phone then he's hit the net. The conversation is over. However, if he adds that it had something to do with 'GPS' and 'checking in' then he's got 'over the net'. He's done enough. He's given me enough to elicit a response. I can advise him that he's probably talking about Foursquare or Gowalla and talk to him in more detail about how it works, the benefits and pitfalls, where I think it may be useful.

He didn't know everything there was to know about geo-locative applications, but he knew enough to engage me in a conversation, allowing me to fill in the gaps using my expertese on the subject. He did what it takes to get on the court. He came in with just enough knowledge to get over the net, then left clearing it by a good few inches.

I'm 15 hours into my 100 Hours Project (to learn to speak Spanish in 100 hours). It's going... just OK. Problem is I haven't spoken a word of it to anyone, so I can't get feedback, which is essential. I need to find someone who speaks the language and lives near me so that I can start putting it to use. I need to see if I'm anywhere near getting over the net yet.

100 Hours Project: The First 5 Steps

Yesterday I kicked of my 100 Hours Project. I'm going to try to learn Spanish in 100 hours. The project is more about hacking the learning process than any burning desire I have to learn the language. The questions I'm really trying to answer are: Are there any tricks or shortcuts to learning another language? How can I adapt the learning process to fit into my busy life? How much can someone achieve in just 100 hours?

Y'know that feeling you get when you've done no physical exercises for ages then throw yourself in a the deep end... lets just say my metal muscles needed a hot bath last night.

The ambition is to do 3 hours a day, 5 days a week with my target being to be able to have a conversation within 6 weeks. A conversation about what? Probably football. Yesterday I only really spent an hour actually learning Spanish, the other 2 were spent working out my method, which was a real time eater. So many suggestions for audiobooks/language courses, so many tips on starting points etc. My head was in a bit of a spin most of the time and I ended the day with 'The Fear'. I'm still not 100% sure if my plan of attack will work but I'm going with it and will adapt quickly if I'm not progressing.

So here are my first thoughts on how I'm going to approach learning Spanish in 100 hours.

1. Go for a walk.

At the start of May I started going for some early morning walks. I hoped to blow the sleepy cobwebs from my brain, to start my work day feeling fresh, positive and match fit, so to speak. I'm a month in and wish I'd started doing it 10 years ago. Apart from the obvious physical benefits I can consume huge amounts of knowledge via audiobooks. In May I got though 6 books during my morning strolls. That's a huge increase on my previous rate of 1 book per month. On an average 75 minute walk I can cover 5 miles, burn 500 calories and consume 1/4 of a 5 hour audiobook. That's immense. A huge learning opportunity that I wasn't making use of. So, the audio accompaniment to my morning walks will be Learn Spanish with Michel Thomas, a highly recommended audioboook course.

2. Learn only what you enjoy

Despite being a complete failure on the field I love football. More importantly I love chatting about football and listening to football chatter. So, in theory, if I learn spanish words and phrases relevant to football then it should be a much more rewarding exercise. By reading Spanish game reports, listening to Spanish football podcasts and watching the occasional game with Spanish commentary I should be able to pick up phrases that transfer easily to other situations. Pass, run, crowd, card, argue, result, fans, send, off, throw, joy, anger, manager, buy, sell, fee... you get my drift. With the World Cup only a matter of days away there couldn't be a better time. Spain are definitely my second favourite team for the competition now.

3. Learn only what you need

The Pareto Principle dictates that we reap 80% reward from just 20% of our efforts. Looking at that from another angle you could say 80% of what we do is largely ineffective compared to the good 20%... So unless you are striving for perfection why bother. I'm not looking for perfection, just looking to see how far I can get. I need to work out what that important 20% is and focus on that. Do I really need to know 'the way to the train station' or what the Spanish is for 'elephant' when common football phrases will be more interesting and useful?

I heard a statistic yesterday that said the average newspaper only uses 600 unique words per issue (sounds a bit off the mark but if anyone can confirm I'd love to know). I also found a list of 100 most commonly used English words, the first 25 of which make 1/3 of all printed material. By nailing those 25 I give myself a pretty good base to work from.

By dropping the URL of online match reports in this little tool http://googlerankings.com I should be able to workout the most common used phrases around football. It gives you the frequency of words and phrases and could be very handy.

4. Use the right side of the brain too

The left side of the brain tends to work in a linear and sequential manner; it responds well to lists, sequences and repetition in a rigid way. The right side of the brain is the more creative side responding to images, colour and sounds. Most of the methods I've come across so far involves the left side... a lot of repetition and lists. I want to maximise both sides rather than being over reliant on 50% of my brain power so I need to find a learning process that uses the right side too. To start i'm going to try using mind-maps, music and movies. 

5. Britain hasn't got talent

Clay Shirky has been talking about the cognitive surplus for some time and his book on the subject will hit the shelves soon. Should be a great read. Anyway, the cognitive surplus is what TV used to mask, but now people are using it to do interesting thing like creating Wikipedia. An hour of my life was saved last night. I avoided dancing dogs and Britain's Got Talent and spent that hour using social media to develop a new language. I used to be a TV addict but now I have something much more interesting to do in what I now call the 'Britain's Not Got Talent Hour'.

This process will naturally evolve and develop over the next 6 weeks. I'll keep adding tips and suggestions I collect as I go. Thanks to everyone on twitter for your suggestions. They've been great. If you've just stumbled on this blog you can follow me as @huey on Twitter.

100 Hours Project

You may recall me prattling on about becoming an expert recently. Inspired by Gladwell's theory that it takes 10,000 hours to reach the top of your game and Tim Ferriss' life hacking antics I'm about to embark on a series of projects based around 100 hours of learning. I say a series, that's 'optimistic me' speaking. It could easily become a series of '1' if the first project goes horribly wrong. The idea is to choose a project, set a target, deconstruct the learning process around the subject then reassemble it to work around my personal learning needs. By doing so I hope to achieve a reasonable level of 'expertise' in the subject in just 100 hours.

The Project: Learn Spanish in 100 Hours

I was shocking at languages in school. Completely hopeless. Partly down to apathy and partly down to bad teaching, the desire just never took hold. Since failing miserably at French I've ran a mile from the idea of learning a new language. So now, starting from scratch, I'm going to try and learn Spanish. The target is to be conversational with 100 hours of learning. If I can master enough of the language to be able to hold my own in a conversation then the project will be a success. 

Based on 3 hours study a day, 5 days a week, I hope to finish mid-July. Having said all that my 30 Days of Music project is heading into it's 3rd month.

From tomorrow I'll document my learning techniques and share my progress. If you have any tips please share them in the comments.