Are you using your time effectively?

One of the most frequently heard reasons for not learning a new language is “I haven’t got the time”.

That’s something I’ve been saying recently, as the combination of work, work-related activities, personal life and keeping up with family and friends has left me with little free time. But then I started thinking about how I use my time and realised that I can fit in language learning after all.

For example, many of us commute to and from work. My commute can take anywhere between 30 minutes and an hour, depending on traffic. I used to spend this time on a bus doing nothing. Then I noticed a man on the bus studying a notebook that had Arabic writing next to English words. I realised he was revising vocabulary on his commute, and thought I could do the same.

So, the next day I started listening to a Spanish podcast on my MP3 player. The podcast is around 20 minutes long, so I can easily fit it in during my bus ride, and get to work a little bit smarter!

It’s not just on your commute that you can study though – how about while you’re at the gym? Or during your lunch break? You could even put on a podcast while you’re doing the washing up!

Do you have any tips for using your language-learning time more effectively?