Can you *really* learn a language in a LAZY way without studying?

okay be honest how many times have you wished you could just wake up one day fluent in a new language without ever opening a textbook like wouldn't it be amazing if learning English or Spanish could happen while binge watching your favorite Netflix series or scrolling on Tik Tok if that sounds like a dream come true stick around because today we're diving into whether you can actually learn a new language in this super easy no steady required way so what exactly do I mean by lazy learning it's honestly all about those methods that don't feel like

studying at all for some people it might be watching a specific TV show for others it might be listening to a very catchy very trendy song and for even more people it might be using a fun app like dual lingo I know what a lot of you guys are probably thinking it's not possible to learn a new language in a lazy way you do have to put in the work yes but at the same time lazy language learning is rooted in science and there is the term incidental learning that a lot of people use when

they say oh I learned English because I watched a lot of American YouTube my case here incidental learning happens when we pick up new information actively without trying to do so it's like when you're listening to a song in a foreign language let's say in English and you can pick up a new vocabulary you can pick up on some interesting phrases and then a few minutes later you're singing along long and it can even work with languages that we can barely understand if you're familiar with this Tik Tok Trend that is is going around right

now it goes something like Star like really the only word I know is star star star cuz it sounds like star in English but that's exactly how incidental learning works I'm not learning Japanese or Korean or whatever language this video is in but I can still pick up on some interesting words here and I know a lot of people have even made videos on t to explaining what all of these words mean just because so many people walk around singing the song even without knowing all of this vocabulary me included and this approach really works

because our brain is amazing at picking up patterns and making connections even when we don't want to put in a lot of effort and plus when we're doing something that's enjoyable and a lot of people love using Tik Tok you know it actually helps them learn better they hear it trendy song they want to see what all of these words actually mean and they memorize them faster this way and so yes if you make all of these little changes to your daily routine to include a foreign language effortlessly okay let's call it effortlessly like switching

your phone to English or watching Tik toks only in your foreign language or maybe only listening to music in your target language you are creating this incidental learning and that's why a lot of people use this example to show that yes for them it was possible to learn a language in a lazy way now that we're on the topic of making your life a little bit easier I have to share something with you that has made my travel experiences easier and better my level eight luggage and I want to say a huge thank you to

them for sponsoring a portion of this video whether I'm going on a quick weekend getaway or a longer trip their suitcases have become my absolute favorite travel companions this is the Luminous texture two-piece set and just look at how sleek and sophisticated these two suitcases look and beyond that it's all about functionality honestly I'm a huge fan of the wheels because they spin 360° and it makes packing and finding your stuff so much easier I love how level eight combined Style with smart design if you're ready to travel with comfort you absolutely have to check

out level eights I've linked the suitcases I have from them in the description down below and you can use my code Veronica 10 for 10% off your purchase trust me once you try it you won't want to travel with anything else now let's talk about the role of immersion and how important it is when we talk about lazy language learning you have probably already heard the idea that if you want to learn a language you should just immerse yourself in it you know immersion immersion immersion so many people talk about it online especially on YouTube

but what does it really mean and most importantly how does it work so immersion is pretty much surrounding yourself with a language in your everyday life and it can really help your language acquisition it can be through watching TV or listening to music or even just hearing conversations in your target language and it works because when you're immersed in the language you're constantly exposing your brain to new vocabulary new grammar some interesting phrases even if you're not actively studying them but here is where it gets super interesting and where a lot of people make mistakes

there is a theory called the comprehensible input hypothesis and it suggests that we learn languages best when we're exposed to material that is slightly above our current level and the mistake that a lot of people make especially beginners and immor Learners is they choose something that is way too difficult for them and then they wonder why the learning is not happening because the level of understanding is just way too high it is not comprehensible enough for them for their current level obviously in the process of learning a new language you will be increasing your level

and So eventually you will be able to understand more and more and choose more difficult things like more difficult movies or more difficult podcasts and that's why the approach I personally always take at the beginning is I only use resources for language Learners at the very beginning when I'm a beginner maybe when I'm like an early intermediate student only only for language Learners because I know that my level is just not high enough to understand everything that was created for native speakers so if you start watching a movie in English and you realize that it's

just way too hard for you click off it does mean that it is way too hard for you choose something else maybe it's going to be a cartoon I remember when I was in college and I was studying Chinese the cartoon that I was watching a lot was Peppa Pig just because it was the only thing that I could understand and the only thing that I could use to learn all the useful vocabulary I have a lot of friends who are trying to learn Spanish and they always tell me Veronica I tried to watch this

T Nolla and it was just way too hard for me and I'm like yeah it is going to be way too hard for you because it was created for native speakers if you're Upper Intermediate if you're Advanced amazing great you should use this material but please be very careful if you're a beginner and you already want to read Harry Potter in the original format believe me it's going to be very hard for you to do so okay okay now let's talk about consistency over intensity because I know a lot of people when it comes to

language learning they realize that they haven't been really consistent and then they decide to do a 3our Power study session and then they take a break for another month or two let's be real when it comes to learning anything new consistency beats intensity every time it's like going to the gym and working out it's a lot better to do it regularly right than and you know deciding to buy new workout clothes and then go to the gym once in a blue moon the same goes for language learning a technique that is connected to consistency over

intensity and that helps me a lot here is spaced repetition our brains are wired to forget things all the time especially the things that we don't need or don't use and that's why when you guys tell me in the comments I forget the words that I learn what can I do how can I memorize vocabulary in a better way unfortunately it's natural that we forget certain words over time but if you review information at spaced intervals just before you're about to forget it you're more likely to retain all of this vocabulary in the long run

and that's how I personally memorize all of my vocabulary and all of the grammar structures to use this lazy way of learning instead of sitting with you know an open textbook and trying to cram all of this information in my brain and literally suffering as I do so I use the up Onkey and honestly every single time I visit the world it really helps it stick in my memory better and because again consistency beats intensity I review anky every single day and before you tell me oh I don't have enough time to do it every

single time you do because it literally takes me 5 minutes there is a timer in the app and shows you how much time it takes you to do the full review and it never takes me over 10 minutes to review my ankey cards every single day and even if if you're so extremely busy for this lazy language learning method what you can do is have it stack let's say you are at the office and you have a lunch break and you're waiting for your coffee to be made so while you're waiting you can review your

ankey cards because sometimes it takes 5 minutes for them to prepare your coffee so 5 minutes later you will have all of your ankey cards done and you will have your coffee so there are no excuses just action I think a very important thing I absolutely have to mention in this video are the limits of this lazy language learning unfortunately when people hear lazy learning they start thinking about you know laying on the couch and bench watching their favorite TV show without really paying a lot of attention because they're also Doom scrolling on Tik Tok

at the same time and obviously it doesn't really work this way you're not going to magically become fluent if you're not paying attention to the language you're learning and as I said before one common mistake that I see time and time again is choosing material that is way above your comprehension level starting with a show that your friend recommended but your friend's English is Advanced and your English is at the beginner stage I mean you're not going to get a lot of value from watching the show and most likely what's going to happen is you're

going to start feeling demotivated because there going to be so many words you don't know so many grammatical structures that are not your level at all and it's going to make you feel like you're not improving fast enough and that you just want to become advanced in 2 days just like that remember for learning to happen the material should just be a little bit challenging a little bit a little bit challenging think about it plus one right this Theory suggests that the material that we choose should be your current level plus one only one level

up not five levels up and not 10 levels up so just a bit challenging but mostly understandable another misconception is thinking that lazy means that you can go days weeks months without practicing the language and still somehow become Advanced guys believe me I did not become advanced in English because I wasn't doing anything I did not become fluent in English because one day I decided to lay on the couch and watch the office for 10 hours I wish it worked this way consistency is absolutely key and I know a lot of you might not like

the traditional methods of studying but you do have to engage with the language actively to learn it well and then there is another issue of not really doing all of those little things that make a huge difference once you start reading a new book you see all of the vocabulary that you really like and you would like to learn and then you read another book and the same thing happens you forget to transfer all of these words to Ani so you didn't memorize them so you didn't use them in your next conversation with a native

speaker and so the whole process starts again I get it it can be tedious sometimes to create all of those ankey cards and then revise all of them but it makes such a huge difference you're choosing the pictures that make it easier for you to learn this word you're picking example sentences that work for your level and for your situation a big part of how I memorize a lot of words in English and in Spanish is the way I create my ankey cards they're all extremely personalized nothing is boring everything is tailor it to me

to my needs and my goals so here's the bottom line while lazy learning can be a great supplement to your language learning Journey it shouldn't be the main part of it I'm a True Believer of intentional effort and taking action because those two things have always worked for me thank you guys so much for clicking on this video and watching it up until the very end if you liked it please don't forget to give it a thumbs up and subscribe to my YouTube channel if you want to learn more about the strategy of of lazy

language learning I highly recommend checking out this video right here there I talk about additional strategies that you will find extremely beneficial so just click right here and keep on watching