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In high school, I was pretty lazy. I was plenty smart, and I’m not saying that as a brag, but I was lazy. For example, I took the ACT (SAT of the Western United states) without studying and got good enough score to get into a University. I never took it again, because of that. I also knew how many “easy A’s” I could get and their fore how many C’s to get so I would get B average.
When I went to University, something about paying for it myself, made me grow up and I got an A- average. The study habits a created in University has helped me as I now learn Spanish on my own. I learned how to “study everywhere” and to take advantage of the minutes of free time I find. It has been a fantastic experience to go to University, but one thing I learned there held me back for a while.
How could it hold you back?
When at University, I learned not to accept less than the best I could possible do. I never accepted just learning enough, I had to be one of the best. This slowed my growth when I started learning Spanish. How? Because I would stay and work on lessons and subjects until I felt I had “earned an A.”
One would think this would make my Spanish better, but it didn’t. I wasted time perfecting drills and memorizing phrases like “I used to go to the store on Sundays.” By waiting to go on, I was delaying what I could learn. Delaying practicing what I learned in other contexts. Delaying a deeper understanding than what the initial lesson taught me.
So how does one know when they are ready?
The mentality I had in high school is the best in this case. Go for a “B.” Anything less means you didn’t learn enough and anything more is a waste of time. Getting a “B,” ensures that you feel like you have done enough, but wont lose interest in what you are learning. Plus getting a B still gets you into College, right?
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