WHY YOU FORGET ENGLISH WORDS And HOW TO FINALLY REMEMBER THEM

- Hey, when I was studying Korean,

I forgot words all the time.

Now, don't get me wrong.

I could memorize hundreds and hundreds of words in Korean,

but I would still forget them.

Maybe you've experienced the same challenge,

the same difficulty, forgetting words all the time.

Well, today, I wanna tell you the five reasons

why you keep forgetting words,

and I also wanna give you the five solutions.

I'm Teacher Tiffani.

Let's jump right in.

(upbeat rock music)

All right, reason number one, connections.

When you learn a word,

you don't provide your brain with enough connections,

visual, audible, and mental.

This is what happens, when you're studying a word,

and again, I remember when I was studying Korean,

you probably look in the dictionary,

and you see the breakdown of the word.

You see how the word is explained.

You see the meaning,

but you don't make any other connections.

For example, I remember when I was younger,

this is something I do remember.

I remember when I was about three years old.

That's right, three years old.

I remember literally like it was yesterday,

sitting in the kitchen,

watching my mom take out the banana nut bread,

one of my favorite desserts, out of the oven.

I remember the aroma that was, whoo,

going throughout the entire kitchen.

I remember her slicing the bread

and putting it on a plate for me

and then taking a fork and putting it in my mouth.

I was three years old when that happened,

but I still remember it now, why?

Because there was a visual connection.

I also remember hearing my mom take it out of the oven.

I remember what it tasted like.

So all of these connections that are in my brain,

in my memory, make it easy for me to remember what happened,

even though I was three years old.

The connections are important.

But when it comes to remembering words,

a lot of times we don't make those connections,

and you probably struggle with that.

Again, when I was studying Korean,

I remember when I took my graduate exam.

I was trying to graduate from a really prestigious

Korean university, and my exam was all in Korean.

Very difficult.

There were so many words that I had to know.

Now, when I was preparing for the test,

I was just reading the information

and writing it down and trying to memorize it.

I wasn't making any connections.

Unfortunately, I did not pass the first time.

Fast forward to the third time I took the exam.

Now, in preparation for the exam the third time,

I changed the way I studied.

I realized that the reason I forgot so much information

the first time was because I hadn't made connections.

So, in preparation for the third exam, you know what I did?

I got a notebook, I got a sketchbook,

and I would write things down and then draw pictures.

Then I would visualize the information.

It took a little bit longer,

but when I got to the exam, I passed.

I was able to see everything I studied

because I started making connections in my brain

to what I was learning, what was happening in my life,

and how I could use it in real life.

So the test was a lot easier than the first time.

The same is true when you're trying to remember words.

You have to make connections.

So, how do you do this?

Here we go.

Whenever you learn a new word,

make sure to find three personal connections.

In other words, you need to document where you learned it,

how it applies to your life, and when you can use it.

This is going to be a game changer for you

as you study English words.

The thing is, when you learn a new word, for example,

when you're watching one of my video lessons on YouTube,

I'm so happy to be your teacher,

I use words that maybe you don't know sometimes.

So when you watch my videos, if you hear a word,

"Oh, (Tiffani snaps)

"Teacher Tiffani used a word that I don't know."

Write it down.

Then write where you learned it.

"I learned it while watching Teacher Tiffani's

"YouTube video lesson," and then write the title.

Then, how it applies to your life.

Think about your life.

Make a connection.

Think about the word or expression, and then your life.

How does this word relate to my life?

How does this expression relate to my life?

You're literally creating connections in your brain.

Your brain is amazing, and now you're gonna be able

to remember words because you're making the effort

to create those connections.

Then think about when you can use it.

This is also very important.

Think about when you can kind of put your skills to the test

and show off a little bit and explain it to your friends.

So again, the first reason you forget

is because there are no connections,

so the solution, start making those connections.

Now, reason number two, interests.

You see, you aren't learning words

that are interesting to you.

Remember that even in your own language,

there are certain words you like to use.

This is something that I mentioned to my students

a few weeks ago when we were in class.

I explained to them that, hey,

first of all, you are intelligent.

Second of all, even in your own language,

there are words you know, but you don't use them.

You kind of have a database of words

that you enjoy using already.

Well, that's the same thing for English.

If you learn words that are connected to your interests,

you will remember them a lot faster.

I remember when I was studying Korean.

So, I told you all before

that I love to exercise and I love sports.

I've played basketball my entire life.

So when I was studying Korean,

I realized that I could learn faster

by learning the words that were connected to what I liked.

So I remember literally in class one day,

the teacher was teaching us vocabulary words,

and she said "nong-gu."

And I was like, "Oh, what's that?"

She's like, "Oh, that means basketball in English."

(Tiffani snaps) I remember that word, why?

Because in my brain,

I already have a section for basketball.

I'm connected; I love the game.

I love to play.

I have so many memories.

So when I just add this word that is already connected here,

it's easier for me to remember it.

So I'll never forget "nong-gu" when I'm trying to think

of a Korean word, because it means basketball.

However, when I was learning random Korean vocabulary words

for an exam, again, I told you all before.

I was getting up at 4:00 a.m.,

studying hundreds of vocabulary words

in preparation for our vocabulary tests.

I can't tell you half the words I was studying, why?

Because there was no connection.

I wasn't interested in what I was studying.

Again, the words were important, but they were not connected

to anything going on in my life at that time.

So it's very important to learn words

that are connected to your interests.

So let me show you how you can do this.

Here's what you have to do.

Whenever you learn a new word,

make sure to add it to a database.

Now, I mention this, for those of you that joined

a few days ago, I actually had a live class where I talked

about the English database, the database method

that I came up with after studying Korean.

So for those of you that weren't able to attend the class,

you guys can join weeklyenglishwords.com

Coupon is "LEARN."

You can join for a dollar for the first month

if you wanna check it out.

But I taught this database method,

and this method actually shows you

how to create your own database in your mind,

and I have vocabulary words

every single week in that membership.

So here's the thing.

In other words, you need to add the word

to a specific category based on your interests.

For example, food words, art words,

exercise words, et cetera.

So think about your interests.

Again, you guys know I love food, I love sports,

I love spending time with family, I love art,

so I can have these categories in my notebook.

So when I learn a new word,

I add it to the category that it belongs to.

You can do the same thing as you learn English.

So, think about your interests,

and then figure out which interest the word relates to.

All right, number three, the third reason is usage.

Now, you don't use the words enough

so that they can go into your permanent memory.

In other words, if you don't use them, you will lose them.

So when I was studying Korean,

now, when I first started studying Korean,

it was around 2009 or '10, but I was studying alone.

Now, at that time, I was really a beginner.

I really couldn't have a conversation.

I could only say basic things,

but I still remember the first two words I learned,

not including "hello,"

(Tiffani speaking in foreign language)

not including that.

The first two words I learned were "jinjja" and "jeongmal,"

"jinjja" and "jeongmal."

Now, these two words just mean "really, for real?"

And I'll show them to you real quick.

Look right here on the screen.

You'll see "jeongmal" and "jinjja."

So, I learned these words.

I will never forget these two words, and do you know why?

I used them every single day,

probably about 10 to 15 times a day,

so much so that my Korean friends were like,

"Yo Tiff, your favorite word is jinjja

"or your favorite word is jeongmal."

Again, I was just learning, and I really wanted

to engross myself and dive right into the language,

but I only knew those words at that time,

so I used them over and over and over again.

But what happened?

Those words are now lodged in my permanent memory.

It's almost impossible for me to forget them,

because I use them so often.

Now, on the other hand, there are other words

that I learned in Korean that since I've been back

in America, I haven't used them in a long time.

So when I have conversations with my Korean friends

and we're speaking, there are moments

more often than in the past (Tiffani laughs)

where I'll say, (Tiffani snapping)

"Ah, what's the word again?"

I'll forget a word because I haven't used it in a long time,

but I'll never forget "jinjja" or "jeongmal"

because I used it so much.

So the same is true for you.

Usage is one of the reasons why you're forgetting words.

So what's the solution?

Here we go.

Whenever you learn a new word,

make sure to use it three times within the first 24 hours.

I cannot stress this enough.

Within the first 24 hours of learning a word,

you must use it three times.

Figure out how to use it three times,

and you'll be amazed how much easier it is

for you to remember words moving forward.

So in other words, you can use it in a comment

under a video like this video.

Go ahead and comment if you learn a new word.

Next, explain the word to a friend,

and finally, write a sentence about your day using it.

Here's the deal: the more you use something,

the easier it will be for you to remember it

and use it in a real conversation later.

So if you feel like you're always forgetting words

in English, try this solution right here.

Use the word three times in 24 hours

right after you learn it.

Now, the fourth reason why you're forgetting words often

is right here, interference.

Real quick, pronunciation.

"Inter," good, "ference," good.

That F sound, "inter-ference," excellent.

All together, "interference."

Good, last time, "interference."

Good, now interference, here's the breakdown.

Sometimes you learn something else

before you use what you already learned.

This interferes with your brain's ability

to store and remember things.

So let me explain what I mean.

"Interfere" just means to interrupt

or to halt the progress of something.

So again, when I was studying Korean,

when I started, I was working and studying at the same time.

Now, for the beginner level, it was hard, but it was okay.

I was learning and working and everything was okay.

I was able to remember the information.

But as I progressed to the intermediate level,

I started realizing

that we were learning a lot more in class.

We were learning a lot more difficult topics, words,

expressions, and grammar rules.

So what was happening was I was learning

all of this information in class, coming home,

(Tiffani snaps) and immediately going to work.

Then I'd come home late at night,

try to review a little bit, get up the next morning,

review a little bit, and go right to class and learn more.

So this is what was happening to me:

Lots of information, lots of information,

and I was getting overwhelmed,

because I was never getting the opportunity

to learn the information and use the information.

So there was interference.

All of the information had gone into my brain,

but it was being pushed out by the next information,

and that was being pushed out

by the next group of information topics

the teacher would give us each day in class.

Maybe that's happening to you as well.

You're learning so much and not giving yourself

the opportunity to use what you're learning.

So here's what you need to do.

Whenever you learn a new word,

make sure you understand it before adding new words.

In other words, you need to make sure you understand

the meaning, understand the usage,

and understand how to use it in your own life.

Remember, it's not about the number of words you know.

It's about the number of words you know, and can use,

because if you can't use them,

then nobody knows you actually know them.

So interference is one of the main reasons

that I realized I was forgetting words in Korean,

and maybe for you, one of the main reasons

why you forget English words is because of interference.

So you must start using this solution

and understanding before you move on.

Now, the next reason why you're experiencing

this challenge of forgetting words is stress.

You are too stressed to retain information.

When I was studying Korean, I told you I was working

and studying at the same time when I first started,

and when I got to that intermediate level

where I was not able to retain information

or hold the information in because of interference

and a lot of information coming in,

I realized that I was getting stressed.

I would go to work, and in my mind, I would say,

"Man, I have a test tomorrow.

"Man, the teacher taught us 30 new words today,

"and I can't remember them,"

when I was in the middle of my class trying to teach,

so there was stress upon stress upon stress.

So then when I did try to go study,

I wasn't able to retain the information.

I kept forgetting, because I was so stressed.

It was like a lock was on my brain.

So in response to that, fast forward a year or two.

I actually went back to America.

I'm in America now, and I stayed here America

for six months because I wanted to focus on my test.

This is when I was studying for graduate school.

For six months, I didn't work at all; I only studied.

Praise God for good parents.

They let me stay at their house.

They let me stay here, and everything was okay.

But for six months, I only focused on learning,

and what happened?

The stress went away.

Now, I'm not telling you to quit your job.

Don't do that.

I'm not telling you to stop everything and just study.

The point I'm trying to make is when I removed

the element of stress away, I was able to retain

the information I needed to pass my Korean exam.

I was able to remember words, ideas, and concepts in Korean.

The same is true for you.

The reason, one of the reasons why you keep forgetting words

is you're probably stressed.

Maybe you're preparing for an English exam.

Maybe you wanna get a job,

and you have an English interview.

Maybe there's something pressing that you have to do

and English is necessary.

So there's a stress element,

and that's causing you to forget words.

So what's the solution?

Here we go, how to stop feeling stressed.

Change your focus.

Focus on how the words will help you reach your goal.

Don't focus on failing.

Again, for me, when I was working and studying,

I kept thinking, "Oh my goodness,

"I'm not gonna be able to get the information.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so tired, I'm so stressed."

I was focused on failing.

You have to stop focusing on failing.

Change your focus.

Next, take periodic breaks.

This can help you relax and give your brain

an opportunity to process the words you just learned.

And finally, remember that people want to listen to you.

The words you are learning

will help others understand you more.

The fact of the matter is, you are awesome; you are amazing.

Stress can actually hurt you.

Let the stress go.

Realize that you can learn lots of words.

Realize that people do want to listen to you.

Even if you are preparing for a test

or preparing for an interview, focus on success.

Focus on the fact that, "Wait a minute,

"I am actually studying another language.

"I can do this," and your brain will relax as well

and let the words come in and sink in.

These are the reasons why you're forgetting words.

I hope this lesson helped you.

I hope these solutions help you just like they helped me.

Again, if you really are trying to improve your vocabulary,

like I mentioned earlier,

I talked about this English database that I've created

with another teacher, weeklyenglishwords.com

I'd love for you to check it out.

The coupon is "LEARN,"

and you can get the first month for one dollar.

Again, if you're focused on improving your vocabulary words

and you're tired of forgetting words,

this database will help you a lot.

Well, guys, I hope you enjoy today's lesson.

Thank you so much for joining.

Remember to like, share, subscribe.

I will see you next week,

but as always, remember to speak English.

(upbeat rock music)

You still there?

You know what time it is.

It's story time! (Tiffani snaps)

♪ Hey, I said it's story time ♪

All right guys, so for today's story, again,

we're talking about forgetting words and remembering words.

So this is a story that happened.

I was in Korea, and there are two words,

two other words in Korean.

I mentioned earlier "jinjja" and "jeongmal,"

but there are two other words, "ung" and "ne."

They both mean "yes" or "yeah."

So when I first got to Korea,

I learned "ung," and I learned "ne."

Now in English, if you say, "Nay,"

you're basically saying "no."

However, in Korean, and I know my Korean students watching,

you know what I mean, "ne" means "yes."

Like, it's the polite way of saying "yes,"

and "ung" is more of the, not impolite,

but more than the casual way of saying "yes,"

more like, "Yeah, that's cool, okay."

So I had to learn those two words,

and because "ne" is so opposite of English,

the English meaning, I made it a point to use it often.

Remember, I taught you.

I realized that I have to use this often,

or I will forget, and that's what happened.

In the very beginning,

I was saying, "ne" when I meant "yes" or "no,"

and it was getting confusing when I was in Korea.

But, I eventually mastered it.

I know "ne," and I know "ung."

So fast forward now.

I've learned to speak Korean fluently,

and I was living in Korea still, and I called home.

I called a business, a company,

because I was still paying bills in America.

And it was, was it a credit card company?

I don't remember the exact company.

But anyways, I called,

and the representative got on the phone and she was like,

"Hello, Ms. Claiborne, how can I help you?"

So I explained what was going on,

and then she proceeded to tell me what I needed to do.

And then she asked me, "Ms. Claiborne,

"would you like me to do this for you?"

And I said, "Ne."

Without even thinking about it, it naturally just came out.

Like, I literally wasn't even thinking.

I was mixing English and Korean.

So she said, "Oh, okay,

"so you don't want me to do it for you?"

And I was like, "No, no, no, ne, ne, ne."

She was like, "But you keep saying no."

(Tiffani laughs)

And that's when I realized, "Oh my goodness,

"I'm speaking Korean to this lady."

I didn't even realize

that I was saying "ne" over and over again.

So I explained, I said, "No, ma'am, I'm so sorry.

"Ne means yes in Korean, and I was trying to say yes."

She was like, "Oh, okay."

So it was funny, but I never forgot that,

because I did it unconsciously.

I really didn't realize that I was mixing the two languages,

but because I had used "ne" so much over and over

trying to improve my Korean skills,

it naturally came out before "yes."

Interesting, right?

English is my first language, but because I used "ne"

so much, it came out first when I was on the phone.

Now fast forward even more to today.

I say "ne" and I say "ung" all the time,

so much so that I don't even realize it,

but my friends just understand and they accept it.

If I'm on the phone with one of my friends

and she's telling me a story,

I'm like, "Ung, ung, uh-huh, ung, ung."

The thing is in English, in American culture, that's rude.

It's kind of like you're interrupting someone.

But my friends know that I lived in Korea

and that I was in the Korean culture and I learned Korean,

so they understand that I'm not being rude.

But again, because I used it so much,

it became a part of me, to the point that I do it

even when I'm speaking in English.

Part of the Korean comes out.

So it's funny, but it's like, I can't change it.

It's just naturally how it happens.

So, hopefully this encourages you.

The more you use English, the more you practice,

it will start to come out naturally.

Don't stress.

Use it often.

Remember to let it set in.

Use the words, expressions three times in 24 hours,

and I guarantee you will stop forgetting words.

Remember, guys, if you are interested in learning more words

every single week, you wanna improve your vocabulary,

please go to weeklyenglishwords.com.

Use the coupon code "LEARN," L-E-A-R-N,

and get the first month for a dollar.

I want you guys to try it out and see how you can improve

your vocabulary by watching English conversations,

looking at vocabulary explanation videos,

and getting a print out of all the words

you learn in the conversation videos.

All right, guys, I will see you next week.

Thank you so much.

I love you all.

Have a good one.