How to learn ANY language in 6-12 months 

It took me 10 years but today I'm finally revealing The Ikenna Method! Hope you like the video! 🎥 🚨MY NEW VIDEO COURSE (50% off) ⇢ ikenna.com

First video of year, let’s hope we all do well in our language(s) this year.

I'm learning Spanish for my New Year's resolution. I'm putting it here so I can comment at the end of the year if I procrastinated, or if I actually learned the language! (Edit: See further down my post to see an update!) Anyways, best wishes to all of you on your language learning goals and thank you Ikenna for these awesome videos! They're very motivating. 🙂 Edit: Happy final day of 2022! I decided to clean things up a bit because it got too wordy. How did it go? Well... I'm able to understand and talk about basic things in the present and future tense. While I slowed down a bit with the busy school year (yup, I'm a teacher!), I did practice a lot with my Spanish-speaking students. I would have phrases memorized (and written down in case I forget), then I would repeat the phrase to them. Many times, certain words would keep popping up, which would help with memorization. The students would cheer when I make up a sentence on the spot or pronounce a Spanish phrase perfectly. I can understand a lot of children's shows when I watch them slowly, and much of it when it's in regular speed. Reading children's books, and short Spanish stories are much easier. A good test was during parent-teacher report card pickup. We would have Spanish-speaking parents come in. They would ask me if I speak Spanish while speaking slowly, and I could actually have a small conversation with them! Only problem is that I'm still awful with the past tense (so a goal for next year!), but the parents understood by context if I was speaking in the past (I had a Spanish-speaking teacher with me in case I mess up terribly.) And for those wondering how I learned, it's: Duolingo, lots of short Spanish-speaking videos (I don't have much patience watching long videos), I play movies I already know in Spanish as background noise as I clean the house, I listen to Pimsleur (my favorite app!), read short Spanish stories (Dr. Seuss in Spanish is fun, Olly Richards' books are nice, and you can always find stuff online), read a bunch of RU-vid comments on Spanish videos (to keep myself current with the "hip" phrases, LOL, even though I have no idea what most are because people tend to shorten words), took a Spanish class online for a couple of lessons, and speaking with other Spanish-speaking friends, students, and shops/restaurants. Oh yeah, a side note... I studied French years ago, so I would often accidentally mix French into my Spanish. Anyways, thanks everyone for keeping me in check! I had no idea many people would be interested in my journey. Maybe I'll do another update next year. Best wishes to all of you in 2023!

I'm learning Korean. I feel off track in 2020, but back on track now. This information is most helpful. Thank you.

Ikenna inspired me to start learning Japanese so that I can move to Japan some day. I have been watching him for the past year and he is what inspired me to get this far. I lost my motivation after I asked a college professor that taught languages if it was possible to self study Japanese. This is what he told me “It is impossible for you to self study a language especially one as difficult as Japanese. You need a classroom and a teacher to learn, you yourself is not enough to learn a new language”. I just sat in the car and watched a video of Ikenna talking to native speakers and impressing them and getting to interact with others on other sides of the world all by self studying languages. Ikenna in the small chance that you will actually read this, ありがとうございます、イケーナさん！ Update: It’s been a few months and I hit my goal in May 2022! Of course I revisit Japanese and review but I’ve started on my next language: Korean! It’s going pretty well and my notebook is filling up. Thank you all so much for your support and I am still working towards my goal of living abroad!

You have seriously helped so much along my own language journey as both a guide and an inspiration. From when I first discovered this channel I went from a 13 year old who spoke barely passing French and a few niceties in Spanish through school to 15 year old conversationally fluent in both and fully prepared to tackle German! Thank you so much Ikenna for what you do. I hope the new year brings sucess in German and Korean and I hope you feel better throughout man. Tu y arriveras. C'est dans la poche!

Thanks for this, Ikenna. Good luck on the course!

Notes: Ikenna's definition of conversational fluency: ♡ Easily have long conversations with native speakers ♡ Sometimes watch TV without subtitles ♡ Connecting with people ♡ Flirting Conversational fluency does not mean perfection by any means! You'll still make mistakes but you will be able to connect with people which is the most important part of language learning. The Ikenna Method: Level 0 - Preparation Level 1 - Beginner Level 2 - Intermediate Level 3 - Advanced We will not be going into level 0 and level 3 for the sake of time ~ Level 1 - Consume (Typically lasts 4-9 months) Level one is broken into 2 parts or stages 🤍 Stage 1: ♡ Soft landing ♡ Dry but effective ♡ A way to review ♡ A way to have fun to stay motivation 🤍 What is a soft landing? Using a beginner course/resource that will softly introduce you to the language without scaring you away: ♡ Pimsleur ♡ Michelle Thomas ♡ Language Transfer ♡ Beginner textbook These gently guide you into the language, however, in tandem you want to be using something that is dry but effective 🤍 Dry but effective: Start learning from a list of the most common 1000 - 1500 words in your target language and jot down 5 - 10 words everyday. Do this as you are going through the beginner program. Something dry and a little boring in bite sized chunks everyday is sustainable. Soft + dry = win 🤍 A way to review everything You want to use a tool like Anki or another Space Repetition System (SRS) to store words you are learning 🤍 Fun - Consuming the language in its natural form You want to be listening to media and immersing yourself in your target language. Get as much of it in your ears as possible ♡ Watching TV shows (can use subtitles) ♡ Podcasts ♡ RU-vid ♡ Music • When does Stage 2 begin? After you have 1. Learned the most common 1000 - 1500 words 2. Finished a beginner course or two 🌸 Stage 2: 🌸 Look for easy reading materials: ♡ Graded Readers ♡ Webtoons Translate Read as much as you can, pictures in comics make them easier to get through 🌸 Find some resources that help you learn the basics of grammar in your target language ♡ RU-vid ♡ Small Grammar Course ♡ Grammar textbook 🌸 Continue to store new words you learn in Anki or whichever SRS you are utilizing ~ Level 2 - Output (6 - 12 months to Years) 🌷 Practicing your speaking skills for atleast 1-3 months ♡ italki ♡ HelloTalk ♡ Preply ♡ Tandem ♡ Interpals Find tutors and penpals to practice your speaking with. You cannot get conversational if you never practice speaking 🌷 Continue watching TV shows in your target language with subtitles in your target language as a main activity ♡ Jot down and save words every 10 minutes The coolest part about reaching level two, aka conversational fluency, is that the language will stick with you for the rest of your life at this level. You are never going to forget it. Level 2 is the point where you can decide to keep advancing and push past conversational fluency or you can decide to start learning another language. ~ The Ikenna Method video course explains all 4 levels in detail and includes access to a community of other language learners

Ikenna you're my role model. I have lupus and I have been bed ridden for some moments of my life. I can't even begin to tell you how said it was for me to think I might never travel (I've always been in Chile, my country) and language learning kept me there, hanging, giving me something to cope with. Thanks for everything you share.

Yasss you’re back bro are you fellin ok

Bro. You’re a legend. I don’t always follow your channel but have seen many random videos, watched this in full and loved it. Much respect for your commitment and determination whilst fighting against illness.

Ikenna, hope this year your health improves a lot! 🙏🏼 This year I'll refine at least 3 of the languages I'm learning (CN, IT, JP). I'll commit fully to this, starting with Mandarin and Italian. 🙏🏼

Thank you so much for recording this video for us!

One of my new years resolutions is to start with learning a 3rd language. I really want to speak more languages because it is fun and useful. To everyone that has the same new years resolution as me, I wish everyone the best of luck!

I’ve already decided to take my Korean learning to the next level in 2022. I’ve been learning for half a year and am still a beginner because I haven’t been consistent. You are such an inspiration and I appreciate how you broke this down! Looking forward to seeing more from you in 2022! 새해 복 많이 받으세요!

Currently learning Japanese on and off and all im missing is dedication. Now that I've found your channel I think this will way easier.

The hardest part for me was to choose which language I wanted to start learning first. I decided to learn Spanish because my grandfather, even though he’s lived in the US for years, still speaks fluently and still has a very thick accent so I figured it would be easier to speak to him in his mother language and it would also make him happy. I’ve been learning Spanish for a while before this video but your methods have been working really well for me. Some other languages I want to learn are French, German, Japanese, and Korean. Sorry for the long comment but learning languages is just something I am very passionate about and dedicated to. Happy learning everyone!

This was so inspiring to watch. Despite all the hardships Ikenna has been through, he’s going to single-handedly revolutionize language learning for the whole world. I’ve leaned Spanish and Portuguese on my own, and started on Japanese today! I wouldn’t be where I am today without Ikenna

Look. I already bought your book about a year ago (and your course a few days ago) It started me on my language learning journey. I ended up over time found my own personal method for studying that works for me (still based on the foundation in your book). You, Olly Richards, MattvsJapan, Steve Kaufman have all stumbled onto amazing ways to learn languages and the community is lucky to have you guys.

You're terrific on several levels: Your pronunciation in various languages is great, and your explanation is clear!

Thank you so much this is super helpful. I have been stumbling along with my language learning. Moving forward has felt more like luck than systematic. This really helped me outline what to do when and when to move on to the next steps. Will definitely try this.

Love the video man! You have no idea how much of a smile it brings to my face seeing you here again. I just wanted to say man you were the final thing that pushed me to learn a language. I bought the first edition of FME Method and used it to get to upper B1 in Dutch and now I'm A2/B1 Norwegian in just over a month and a half and it's all because of you. In fact you inspired me so much I went to Norway (A place i'd always wanted to go), made some Norwegian friends and fell in love with the Language. I want to push myself this year to really get it down and try to get B2 at some point and keep it with me over the years to push up to C1. You're an absolute hero of mine and I'm so glad you do what you do. Keep it up dude, looking forward to the app and I'll be supporting on patreon as soon as I get more work!

I like the updated visuals with the green screen in the background. Videos have gotten more visually intriguing lately. Keep it up!

I found your videos only a few days ago but I love them already. They give the kind of motivation I need. I talk about doing my Englisch certificate for years now, that I want to get my French on that level as well and start Russian, but I never sticked to that plan well enough. I probably won't make it in 6 months, veterinary medicine takes up quite a lot of time and will always be the main goal, but a few minutes every day should be possible! Keep up that awesome work! :)

This video is so precise, unlike so many language videos on youtube which never really make a point. Thank you for this video

YES!!! The king is back

I'm wanting to continue learning German this year- I studied it in late 2020 and 2021. I also want to study Cornish, the language of some of my ancestors (they also spoke German, Danish, Gaelic, etc.) Ikenna's always good inspiration and stuff, seeing how far he gets in them and seeing him speak the languages.

Hey Ikenna! I just wanted to say that your technique is very helpful! This year I'm starting Japanese and it has been only a few days, but I've learnt so much! I just wish you the best of luck and to have a good year!

It's fun that I've been learning English and I came here to check how to do so and I can understand what you said without subtitles... I feel happy and proud, I'll keep the hard work ✨ I don't know wich level I am but i keep trying to memorize new words every once in a while 🌸

For those of you who found this video because of a New Year's Resolution, Ikenna is the real deal! I've gotten so much value from his channel, so it's definitely worth a sub!

Happy New Year from Australia, Ikenna!

Ikenna, you’re a jewel to the language learner. To the community of course, but to each individual that wants and needs this. YOU ARE THE BEST. And you’re gonna get through everything!

Ahhhh this is so nice to watch. A perfect blend of fun and challenging

Hopefully we’ll learn all our languages this year

I think that now with your discord server, it makes it even more easier to practice any language, for real, you can literally find any language available there, and there's always someone nice to practice, you're about to create an entire polyglot army!

I love how the video is made graphically! So fun to watch

Thank you for the clear, actionable steps. This helps me a lot!

When you upload we're so happy man

Little late for the New Years resolution but I will be back and overcome the challenge of procrastination. I’m going to learn Spanish come back and be proud of my self when I finally become conversational in Spanish. I wish you all good look in your journey!

Thank you, Ikenna! Your advice has helped me take such large leaps in my language learning journey. Mine looks just a tad different from your method but it's basically following the same track. Rock on, man! Thank you!!!!

Yes soooo exited for your method!

I have been learning english for 1 year, and I still learning more. When I watched this video, I thought and noticed how advenced I am in english right now, and that's because I watched the full video without any subtitles!! it makes me feel great and motivated to learn even more this language. I'm also trying to learn russian, and I came to this video to find tips that can help me with my studies

Overall quite decent method, there are a few things here and there I don’t really agree with, but it’s still good. Something I should note to you learners out there, you should do tons of input (watching TV shows, etc.), even when starting to output, make sure to keeping doing tons of input, and make sure that input overweighs output.

I think this really is the best method! Adapt where necessary to your own style, but that's the core. Thank you Ikenna for making this video, so helpful!

omgggg thank you for this video. it clears a lot

Thank you bbno$ for enlightening me on how to learn a new language quickly, it's nice to see you taking time out from your rap career to help out us little people

I'm learning French for my New Year's resolution. I'm putting it here so I can comment at the end of the year if I procrastinated, or if I actually learned the language! Anyways, best wishes to all of yo on your language learning goals and thank you Ikenna for these awesome videos! They very motivating.

Props for the quality of these videos. the editing style is sick

This was really useful for me, Ikenna! Can't wait for your new app release.

This is the first time I’ve paid to learn a language, or learn how to learn a language, but it’s something so big and worthy and Ikenna, you’ve proved that you love to do this and your mind is full of the most valuable information so I used my first payment of the year for this!

I'm the sort of person that tries learning a language and then gets bored quickly but honestly this has made me very motivated to restart learning Japanese once again lol, thank you

I am learning Korean and Spanish to connect more with my friends and students! I'm excited to start using your method

Es genial que también hablas español. Was great to watch/hear you speaking my native language

A year ago I started learning Japanese because of your videos and while i don’t consider myself fluent at all what matters is I stuck with it and now I can comfortably listen, read, and write (however im not confident in speaking at all lol) with more vocab (mostly just nouns) I could easily become very fluent in many subjects. Im predicting that in maybe the next 5 months Of using the language more I’ll become much more fluent and maybe even be able to read my highschool level novel with less pain and constantly having to highlight unknown words

I’m READY to stop putting learning Spanish on pause and finally GO FOR IT. 2022 is the year I’m dedicating myself to learning it for good. Just got your course and I’m beyond excited. Thank you so much Ikenna. I know that this is the turning point for me❕

huge thanks for inspiring me, ikenna! i am committing myself in learning dutch for the next months :)

I appreciate your information and hard work Ikenna.

I’m visiting my family in Brazil. I already know a bit of Portuguese but I find it very difficult to talk to my grandmother, who speaks no English. I think that’s a very great motivator, and I’m going to try my absolute best. Thank you for the video 😘

I will need this

Thank you so much for this!!! Wanted to learn Spanish after visiting Mexico and was super overwhelmed. Feels great to know I’m on the right track!

watched a lot good videos about how to learn any language. This is the best one.

Thanks!!

Been learning Italian over the past few months, going to Italy in March!

Your AWSOME. This makes me feel a bit more confident to attempt learning another language. I think maybe there is hope for me yet.

This was incredibly helpful, thank you

honestly so far I followed your method just naturally, and I feel like I am 50% on my way to being able to have a good 1hour conversation in Korean. I'm really hustling to get there, but what definitely makes a enormous difference; living in the environment where everything is written and spoken in your new language.

in brief: In this video, the speaker presents the Akena method, a language learning method developed by the speaker himself after learning seven languages over ten years. The method aims to help learners achieve conversational fluency in any language within 6 to 12 months. It consists of four levels: preparation, beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Level 1 (Beginner) focuses on consuming the language and typically lasts for 4-9 months. This level is divided into two stages. Stage 1 involves a soft landing using beginner programs, learning common words, reviewing with spaced repetition systems, and watching TV shows in the target language. Stage 2 starts after learners have acquired 1,000-1,500 common words and finished a beginner program or two. In this stage, learners engage in easy reading, learn basic grammar, and use Anki or a similar program to store and review words. Level 2 (Intermediate) starts when learners know around 2,000 words and understand half of what they hear in TV shows. This level emphasizes output, with learners practicing speaking through websites like iTalki, HelloTalk, or Tandem. Additionally, learners should watch TV shows in the target language with subtitles in the same language. The speaker also announces the launch of the Akena Method video course, which offers a more detailed step-by-step guide to reach conversational fluency. The course covers mindset, important language learning questions, special techniques, and a customizable approach depending on the learner's personality type. The course also grants exclusive access to the creator's Discord server and a discount on his upcoming app.

I'm so glad you're back Ikenna. I pray you make a full recovery bro.

This is very encouraging and helpful, thank you ! ❤

This is definitely a sign that I need to take my Spanish learning seriously😅 Only relying on Duo Lingo ain’t it, I do watch Spanish web series frequently tho. Love that you’ve incorporated the Myers & Briggs personality types to suit peoples learning styles. That’s unheard of.👏🏾

Wow I can’t believe I’m watching this video for free. 😂 bro it’s top notch job! The edits are amazing and I love this kind of videos but most of them are clickbaits except for this one ☝️ I feel like I found a gold mine finding this channel! 👏👏

Thank you so much Ikenna, you gave me the will to learn hard.

This is awesome sounds like fun🙏🏾

this is my new year's resolution i am trying to learn Japanese and next year (2024) hope i have this down i already know 3 languages and hoping to my Japanese one of them, I will update yall next year.

The comments make me so happy. Just to know that I'm not alone in my language learning journey, I really appreciate you strangers. Luck to all on their journey.

Nice to hear someone compliment Language Transfer.

This is actually pretty realistic and fun, I will try it!

I thought he was bbno$

I can only speak English rn and have been intimidated by language learning ever since I became interested in the hobby, having no clear path on something this foreign is definitely off putting. For a beginner jumping in the deep end (with Japanese) this course is exactly what I needed. Now that I think about it the direction is probably the most difficult part of learning a language, with all of the varying courses and methods. With so little progress being made as beginner learners sometimes we forget that our brains are pattern recognition *machines* capable of amazing things if we figure out how to let it work. I don't think I will be learning 20 languages or anything but I hope in a few years I will at least be bilingual, which is more than I could have said when I was 17. I wish I could thank Ikenna lol but this comment will probably get buried.

Damn your editing is so good! Really enjoyed

Much thanks from Korea. I just started learning español and ur method would be very helpful to me! Thank you very much. Hope I can emerge in the language learning environment.

Wow! casi no puedo distinguir un acento americano en tu español. Me llena de excesiva sorpresa tu habilidad increible para aprender idiomas.

I’m learning the Croatian Language, my dad was born in Yugoslavia in 1972 and he’s fluent in Croatian but I’m fluent in English only and did my research and apparently the “Croatian Language” is one of the hardest too learn out of any Language if your fluent in English. That’s not gonna stop me though I’m gonna be consistent and stick to my routine. I’m actually excited too see how my progress will be over the weeks/months I’m in no rush to see results just going to take it day by day. I’ve never been to Croatia which adds to my motivation of wanting to speak fluent Croatian. If anyone has any tips for me I’m all ears and would love to take in your feedback! Good luck to everyone who is studying a language

Hi Ikenna. I wanted to pick your brain regarding an issue I started having in my early 20’s. My first language was Spanish and I have parents that were born/raised in a Hispanic country. As the years have passed by, I felt my skills slipping. At first it wasn’t too serious but I knew that I had to start to formally teach myself Spanish if I wanted to maintain a flowing conversational level. I never buckled down and did that. The more I matured, the more I’d get in my head and second guess my intuitive Spanish-speaking. Now I can’t get across anything without stuttering or pausing. It’s embarrassing. I try to form a study plan but I always get discouraged. It’s beginner’s grammar that I need to start with but these books always include a huge chunk of info I already know, such as vocab, and I get bored. I understand Spanish very well in person. Sometimes I miss a word here or there watching tv. My accent is still spot on. Do you have any tips for me on what to focus on? Edit: I can also read Spanish. I write it at a 5th grade level with grammar mistakes.

the consuming part is so important I've discovered as a beginner! I've been doing Duolingo for Finnish for a bit mostly just as a way of doing something on my phone that isn't doomscrolling Twitter. but in the new year i decided i wanted to really try and focus on improving my Finnish. I've started watching RU-vidrs - some with the goal of teaching language to non native speakers but some are just regular videos but in Finnish - and it has been so helpful! some don't have subtitles and i def don't understand but I've started have dreams in (probably gibberish) Finnish but i can see/feel my brain is really starting to work thru some things and it's really encouraging.

In the future Ikenna could you see yourself posting courses on individual languages in particular? I like your structural idea but i feel as though the procedural process to French is way different than to Mandarin seeing how they have different alphabets

I really want to become a polyglot just like ikenna. Right now I’ve got English as the main language and Russian on the side which I’m both fluent at. My next goal is Japanese, this video really inspired me, so excited to begin my journey.

this video was so helpful to me! thank you so much :) I can't wait for your app to come out

I can not believe your consistency and drive that you have. Makes me not want to make excuses for myself. You're a champ fr💪 love from the Netherlands🇳🇱🦋

I really like learning new languages. My first language is German and I speak conversationally fluent English (I still want to improve it though) but I want to learn so many other languages as well. My main focus is on Korean but I'm also learning Dutch now and then. In a few years I want to be able to speak Swedish and Spanish and maybe Arabic. Thank you for the tips . I think it will really help me reach the level I want to reach ^-^ I'm afraid of talking to native speakers but I guess I just have to overcome this fear and just do it :)

Because of your videos i have decided to learn my friends first language (Norwegian) so i just wanted to thank you for giving me such motivation

This is the most helpful video I’ve seen

you're amazing! thanks for sharing!

Going to come into a bunch of cash in a few days. Most of it for opening my own small business in August but I’ll have some breathing money to spend on necessities. Your method is a necessity to me. I think between your method and the app (when it’s ready) I’m absolutely going to have the best tools possible for learning Korean (and everything else). My goal after that is Ukrainian which won’t be that difficult for me at all as I was fluent as a child and can still speak a little. And after that, Spanish (I already know some). I’ll be a polyglot thanks to you! After Spanish it’s French and after French it’s Italian. Then Japanese and then Portuguese. Seriously. I’m not stopping. I might do Polish and Russian to top it off. Russia bastardized the Ukrainian language so it won’t be that hard.

Yaa new vid

Great Video fam ! Keep it rocking !

U actually kinda got me inspired to learn Thai and get my English to a better level, nice content!

My main language is persian and i learned english just by speaking and the exact same ways u said , thank you sooo much you helped me to learn japanese so much easier ありがとうございました。❤️

My girlfriend is Italian and is spending the next 8 months in Italy while I'm in the United States. I want to surprise her by learning Italian. So thank you, Ikenna.

your editing has gotten so d*mn good over time man!!