Stop Wasting Your Time with English

Vanessa: Are you wasting your time learning English?  

You probably are. Today I want to talk to you  about five common ways that English-learners waste  

their time learning English, and it takes way  longer than they want to actually achieve fluency.

But I also have some good news. I'm going to be  giving you some solutions to help you fix these  

problems so that you can learn English faster  and smoother, and you stop wasting your time.

Hi, I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com.  And like always, I have created a free PDF  

worksheet for you with all of these five  time-wasters that we're going to talk about in  

today's lesson. And the solution so that you stop  wasting your time. This PDF is my gift for you,  

so make sure that you click on the link  below this video to download the free  

PDF worksheet today. Stop wasting your  time, and start progressing in English.

Let's get started by talking about the first time  waster. It is learning English without a plan.

This is the number one time waster when you're  learning anything new. If you are just randomly  

learning some vocabulary here, phrasal verbs here  and, oh, I forgot about pronunciation here. Well,  

you are going to be wasting your  time because you don't have a plan.

But you might think, Vanessa, making  

a plan is hard. How do I do that?  I don't even know where to start.  

Well, that's why I'm here. You can follow  my proven plan for learning English,  

leveling up your vocabulary, grammar, phrasal  verbs, pronunciation, and speaking skills.

You'll be able to track your progress as you  build your English level, and I will tell you  

about that plan in just a moment. You'll have to  be on the edge of your seat waiting to find out.

The number two most common mistake that English  learners make and waste their time is they just  

memorize instead of truly learning. I  think we all experienced this in school,  

where we knew we had a test coming up, so  you just studied, and studied, and studied,  

and memorized. And after the test, did you  remember what you studied? Absolutely not.  

You just completely let it fly out of your  brain, and you didn't retain that information.

But that's no good when you're learning  English. You want to be able to learn  

something, learn some new vocabulary,  learn the correct pronunciation. And  

when you have a conversation, you  need to be able to remember it. So,  

how can you learn something and not just  memorize it? Well, I have some ideas for you.

The best way to learn instead of memorize is  to have a context. Not just simply remembering,  

where's the bathroom? Where's the bathroom?  Where's the bathroom? Where's the bathroom? Okay,  

where's the bathroom? No. Instead, you  need a context where you're able to use  

that in a conversation, know when it is  used and how it's used in daily life.

So I have something I'd like to present to you.  I'd like to present to you the English Worksheet  

Library. Thousands of students have joined the  English Worksheet Library with over 100 English  

worksheets to help you learn in context, instead  of just memorizing. This will help you to be able  

to confidently speak and think in English. Because  you've truly learned English, not just memorized.

Each worksheet is linked to one of my YouTube  videos here on this channel so that you can  

learn in context. You'll learn the real  context of each vocabulary expression,  

grammar concept, pronunciation point, and  speaking tip, not just a list of definitions.

Don't waste your time signing up for  every single worksheet here on YouTube.  

With over 100 worksheets, this would  take you hours, maybe days to do this,  

and you would waste so much time that you  could be using to level up your English skills.

When you join the English Worksheet Library,  you get access immediately to all 100 past  

worksheets that I've made, plus every  future worksheet that I make for this  

YouTube channel. It is all yours. Plus, I have  a special deal for you. Usually the full English  

Worksheet Library is $99. But for this week  only, it is discounted to $27. This is a 70%  

discount to help you learn real vocabulary,  daily grammar, and clear pronunciation.

Whether or not you have downloaded a free  worksheet here on YouTube, the English Worksheet  

Library is for you. Because you will stop wasting  time downloading every single worksheet. Instead,  

you get everything immediate access, and you  can start leveling up your English skills today.

You can click on the link below  this video to get instant access  

to the full English Worksheet Library  for the 70% off discounted price of  

only $27. I can't wait to help you  start learning, not just memorizing.

All right, let's go on to the third way that  English learners waste their time when they  

learn English, and it is that they don't take  notes or use worksheets as they're learning.

Scientific studies have proven that when you  write something down, specifically on paper,  

but you can take notes on a device as well,  this helps to connect those concepts to your  

brain so that you can remember them more  easily. So I highly recommend taking notes  

as you watch my YouTube lessons. Or you can  join the full English Worksheet Library,  

download those worksheets and take notes.  As you're watching my YouTube videos.

The goal is to be able to remember everything  that you've learned. Not just mindlessly watch  

English lessons, but to really remember it.  And taking notes can help you to do that.

I remember that when I was first learning  French, I would go to my French professor's  

office for about 30 minutes a couple times a  week. And she would ask me simple questions like,  

"What did you do this weekend?" Or, "What  are you going to do tomorrow?" And I didn't  

have much vocabulary to explain what  I wanted to do or what I had done.

But when she gave me some vocabulary that I  could use, I wrote it down. I had so many pages  

of notes, and this was extremely helpful.  Sometimes I went back and reviewed them,  

sometimes I didn't. But the act  of writing it down helped it to  

not just go in one ear and out the other.  Instead, it went in one ear and it stuck.

So I highly recommend taking  notes and using the worksheets  

for my English lessons can help you have  an outline that you can take notes with.

The fourth way that English learners waste  their time while they're learning english is  

a really big one. I have a question  for you. Are you a perfectionist?  

A perfectionist is someone who  cannot stand, they can't handle,  

when things are not perfect. It has to be  perfect before you take that first step.

Maybe you're trying to do something new, and you  can't take that first step because you know that  

you're probably going to make a mistake. You  can't have a conversation in English because  

you're so worried about making a mistake. What if  I don't have the right word? What if they don't  

understand me? What if I can't understand them?  And then you decide to just not do anything.

Being a perfectionist can be a huge roadblock  for your English-learning. And this will really  

make you waste time. Because really, the faster  that you get started, the better it will be.

So what's the solution if you are a perfectionist?  Well, my tip for you is to just take a simple  

step. You don't need to just jump in and give  a huge presentation in English. Instead, start  

slowly. Look around your room and see if there's  a way that you can describe what you see. I see a  

computer monitor. I see a couch. Out the window,  the birds are, what's that word? Oh, I don't know  

the word for what sound birds make. I'm going  to look it up. Chirping. The birds are chirping.

Okay, here you are making mistakes in a safe  and environment, you are learning new words,  

and we can use the previous  tip. You can write down,  

"The birds are chirping." So  that you can remember that.

But starting slow. Don't jump into a  scary scenario where you're giving a  

presentation that will trigger every  bit of perfectionism in you. Instead,  

start slow. Talk about the things you see  around you and build up that confidence.

The fifth and final way that English learners  often waste their time while they're learning  

English, is that they wait until they think  their English is good enough to begin speaking.

Maybe you started learning English  when you were in elementary school,  

and oftentimes in these classes, the  teachers will ask students to repeat  

things. Where's the bathroom? Where's the  bathroom? I have a pencil. I have a pencil.

So you repeated things with the teacher,  but were you really speaking and having a  

conversation? Not really. So if you  can understand my YouTube videos,  

your English level is high enough to  start having English conversations.

A great way to start doing this is just  to take a little step, and you can use  

one of the videos in my series, Speak With Me.  Where I will ask you a question in the video,  

and then I'll pause and you'll have  a chance to be able to speak back.  

I'm not going to tell you the exact words  you need to say, you need to create them  

from your brain. But this will be a safe  environment for you to start speaking.

So the next time that you see someone who's  an English speaker, maybe your coworker says,  

"Hey, how was your weekend?" Oh,  you feel much better because you've  

already practiced speaking in that safe  environment. I highly recommend that all  

of my English students speak English in a  conversation setting at least once a week.

This is a great way to have a deadline.  So that you know, okay, Tuesday's coming.  

I'm going to be speaking in English on  Tuesday. I need to listen to some podcasts,  

I need to watch some of Vanessa's videos.  I need to prepare my mind a little bit for  

English. And then on Tuesday, you  got it. You can speak in English.

And guess what? In the English Worksheet  Library, you will find many speaking  

worksheets. These worksheets will guide you  through English conversation to help you make  

that first step. Because oftentimes, the first  step is the most difficult, right? But you can  

use these speaking worksheets all from the  comfort of your own home, in your own time.

Don't waste time downloading over 100  worksheets here on YouTube. Instead,  

get instant access so that you can start  leveling up your English fluency skills  

today. And if you join this week you can get the  70% off discount, where the total price is $27.

Instant access for over 100 English  worksheets that I have made in the past,  

and all of the worksheets that I will  continue to make in the future, so that  

you don't waste any time downloading, clicking,  figuring out where to save these files. Nope,  

you've got them right at your fingertips in  the full English Worksheet Library. You can  

click on the link below this video to join  the full English Worksheet Library today.

And now I have a question for you. Are  you a perfectionist? Do you wait until  

everything is perfect before you take that  first step? Let us know in the comments,  

and I think that you'll find other English  learners struggle with the same thing as you.  

But we are all here in the same boat, with  the same goal of achieving English fluency.

Well, thank you so much for  learning English with me,  

and I'll see you again next Friday for a  new lesson here on my YouTube channel. Bye.

But wait, do you want more? I recommend  watching this video next, where you will  

get a chance to speak with me. This video will  help you to speak about your weekend plans,  

one of the most common conversation topics.  And you will be able to master it and feel  

confident. Forget about perfectionism. This  video is for you. And I'll see you there.