David Stirling is a Thailand-based English teacher from the UK and the founder of ⁠Go-Interview.com⁠, which helps English learners build the language skills they need to get their dream job.

In the interview, we discuss:

• How David fell in love with Thailand
• Why he got into English teaching
• The different types of teaching jobs available in Thailand
• How to break through the "intermediate plateau"
• The pros and cons of group classes and online one-on-one tutoring
• The importance of choosing a narrow niche in online teaching & business
• Why David chose business English and interviewing as his niche
• The power of having sufficiently high stakes in language learning
• David's best tips for learning Thai
• The importance of mastering sounds first
• Why you need to get corrected early and often

📝 For show notes, visit ⁠⁠LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/david-stirling. 

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Daniel Rusteen is an author, full-time traveler, digital nomad, short-term rental expert, and former Airbnb employee. He is best known for his books Optimize Your BnB and Profitable Properties, but he has also written a book on learning languages: Zilch to Conversational.

In our conversation, Danny shares why he failed to learn a foreign language his first two attempts, the methods he used to finally reach conversational fluency in Spanish, how to choose the right language teacher, why and how to use Anki spaced repetition flashcards, why you should learn the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet), and why you should go from "sounds to sentences" in your target language.

📝 For show notes, visit ⁠LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/daniel-rusteen. 

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👉🏼 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LanguageMastery.com/newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Ian Fritz is the author of What the Taliban Told Me, a nuanced look at what it was like to undertake intensive language training at The Defense Language Institute (DLI) in not one, but two languages (Dari and Pashto), serve as an "Airborne Cryptologic Linguist" (ACL) in the United States Air Force (USAF), and spy on the Taliban from low-flying gunships.

During his two tours in Afghanistan, he eavesdropped on the Taliban for hundreds of hours, shared intelligence with various Special Forces units on the ground, and—according to official records—totaled 123 "insurgents EKIA" ("enemies killed in action").

But the more conversations he heard below, the more conflicted he became about his job, the war, the killing, and even his desire to continue living. His increasing linguistic fluency and cultural familiarity had humanized the enemy. It created a "moral injury" that Ian feared would never heal...

In the interview, we talk about Ian's experience learning languages at DLI, his experience as an Airborne Cryptologic Linguist, what he would do differently if he started a new language from scratch, and his best tips for beginner and intermediate language learners.

📝 For show notes, visit LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/ian-fritz.

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Coach Stéphane Angeles is a language coach who helps expats speak better Spanish through expert habit formation strategies, accountability, and one-on-one guidance via Zoom and audio check-ins.

In the interview, we discuss:

• Why you should use a walkie talkie app to practice listening and speaking.
• Why you should practice writing daily (and how it can help you speak better).
• How to use the strategies of "Time," "Place," and "Target."
• The critical importance of mindset and psychology in language learning.
• Why TV shows are such an ideal language learning tool.
• Why children's books and TV shows are NOT ideal for adult learners.
• How to get repetition without boredom.
• The most common mistakes language learners make.
• Why you don't need to memorize grammar rules to speak a language well.
• Why you need to practice ALL 4 skills: listening, speaking, reading & writing.
• Why the language itself is not the hard part of learning a language.
• Why you should avoid the "comparison trap" with polyglots on YouTube.
• Why you shouldn't believe everything you think.
• Why there is no such thing as a "perfect" language resource or method.
• How to use the "Barbie Method" to practice multiple languages.

To learn more about Steph and her Spanish coaching, check out her Spanish Speaking Academy.

For show notes and links to resources mentioned, visit LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/coach-steph.

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Gordon Smith and Cynthia Durán are the dynamic duo behind LightSpeed Spanish, where they teach people Spanish through courses, books, and online lessons.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• How Gordon fell in love with Spanish, how Cynthia fell in love with English, and how they fell in love with each
• How to choose which Spanish accent to learn and tips for mastering Spanish pronunciation
• The most common mistakes that English speakers make when learning the Spanish language
• How to overcome the fear of making mistakes and get more speaking practice anywhere in the world
• Their favorite Spanish language learning resources, including TV shows, Netflix series, etc.

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Elena Mutonono is a business coach, author, and former English teacher who helps overwhelmed online language teachers work less but make more while better serving students along the way.

In her words:

"I help overwhelmed and exhausted online language teachers change their teaching format so they can work less and make more. As a former ESL teacher myself, I know your struggles, fears and anxieties."

In this conversation, we discuss:

• How Elena first fell in love with languages growing up in Ukraine.
• Why she stopped doing 1-on-1 classes.
• The most common mistakes language teachers make.
• How to create a profitable, sustainable, and rewarding teaching business.

To learn more about Elena's coaching, books, Smart Teacher's Library community, and annual Online Teacher Summit, visit her website at ElenaMutonono.com.

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Despite doing well in other school subjects, Andrew Barr failed French in secondary school. Upon hearing this news, his supportive father assured him:

"The Barrs don't do languages. We do maths and sciences. You will never have to speak of a word of French again!"

It turns out that this prediction was a bit of the mark. Today, Andrew speaks multiple languages and has built a successful business teaching languages at Real Fast Spanish.

In this deep dive into Andrew's language learning journey and philosophy, you will learn:

• How a multilingual climb up Mount Kilimanjaro inspired him to learn languages (and led to befriending a French actress).
• The importance of high-quality language input (high-yield listening and reading content).
• The power of learning with other people (teachers, tutors, and exchange partners) and why you need to avoid the input-only trap.
• Why motivation, consistency, and discipline are the essential 3 essential ingredients of successful language learning.
• Why Andrew decided to start learning Polish (his first non-Romance language) and the surprising origins of his family name.
• The ideal order of operations for learning a new language from scratch and why you should master sounds first.
• The 24-hour rule for new vocabulary and the simple $5 language-learning tool you should carry with you everywhere you go.
• The language-learning advice Andrew would give to his younger self to break through his earlier stories and self-limiting beliefs.
• Why learning a language is akin to learning to play the guitar (you have to learn by doing, not watching).
• Why your feelings about a language-learning method are more important than the method itself.
• Why pursuing pleasure in language learning is not always the answer and why Andrew studies flashcards in Anki even though he doesn't enjoy it.
• The most common mistakes that native English speakers make in Spanish (and how to sound less like a "gringo" by changing just one sound).
• Why correctly pronouncing vowels is more important in Spanish than getting consonants right.
• The critical difference between "accent" and "pronunciation" and why the latter matter much more.
• Andrew's 2 essential language-learning principles: 1) readiness to learn, and 2) high-quality practice.
• How to build early confidence by setting the bar low and having specific goals in each conversation.

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Cara Leopold is the founder of Leo Listening, where she helps "intrepid travellers and adventurous expats improve their English listening skills so they can better understand and better connect with fast-talking native speakers through their love of films." In the interview, we talk about how she learned French and the best way to learn languages through TV shows and movies.

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Steve Kaufmann is a hyperpolyglot who has learned more than 20 languages (!!!) and the co-founder of LingQ, an online language learning platform that helps you acquire languages using content you love. He was my second guest on the Language Mastery Show way back in 2009, and returns 13 years later to offer new insights and encouragement for independent language learners.

For show notes, visit LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/steve-kaufmann

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Jim and May describe themselves as a "gringo/Mexican international couple" on a mission to connect English speakers to the Spanish-speaking world. Their excellent podcast, YouTube channel, blog, and Spanish immersion retreats in Mexico help learners bridge the gap between learning and actually living in Spanish.  

In the interview, they share what they have each learned in their own language learning journeys, their best tips for learning Spanish, and favorite resources for immersing yourself in Spanish right at home.  

For more about Jim and May and tips for learning Spanish, visit SpanishAndGo.com.  

📝 See show notes here LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/spanish-and-go.

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Mikkel Thorup is a seasoned world traveler, entrepreneur, consultant, author, and the host of the Expat Money Show. Since he left Canada in his teens, he has circumnavigated the globe over 400 times, visited more than 100 countries, and lived in 9. In our conversation, he shares his best tips for traveling or moving abroad, learning languages, and making the best of the expat life. For more about Mikkel and tips for transitioning abroad, visit ExpatMoneyShow.com.

📝 Get show notes here LanguageMastery.com/blog/post/mikkel-thorup.

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👉🏼 ⁠⁠LanguageMastery.com/newsletter⁠