Whatever your reasons, mine was because I wanted to learn Japanese for my upcoming move to Tokyo.  Considering I was going to be living there for 3 months I felt that I should try and communicate effectively in their language.  I am often asked whether I can speak Japanese fluently and am not sure what to tell them.

If you want my opinion, I believe that even though I think I can now communicate well now in Japanese, I still don’t think I know that much.  I doubt whether I will ever know it all to be honest.  No matter what you learn there’s always more.  For me, a big test of how far I’ve got is when I sit and watch a Japanese cartoon or movie and can understand what’s going on.  It’s easy in English so why shouldn’t it be in another language as well with practise?

There is still a way to go in my learning but I’m getting there.  You are probably wondering how I went from knowing nothing to being able to speak Japanese and watch movies etc.  I won’t lie, it took a lot of perspiration and many hours of effort.  I am not going to lie to you and say that the journey was an easy one.  If you want to learn a language like I have then you will need to fully committed to be able to succeed.  But the important thing is that anyone can actually do it they want to.

Making enough time in your busy schedule mixed in with other things is pretty hard to do.  However, with a bit of effort you can study while working out at the gym, for example, or going to work.

It’s important to overcome your anxiety if you want teach yourself Japanese.  Anxiety is a problem in the mind that affects the abilities of many that are trying to speak Japanese.  Motivate yourself and overcome this fear and you will get on much quicker.

It is a common feeling that the older you are the harder it will be to learn a new language like Japanese.  Learning a new language might not be as hard as you think though even if you are older.

Techniques used by children are not bad as they have not fully learnt how to fall into these traps.  As they are still open to anything, they will also be prone to change.  Bad techniques can still be broken as an adult.

Many people have to imagine themselves speaking a new language in a situation to believe they really can.

The majority of people don’t think they are good enough or mentally able to learn a second language.  To be able to speak another language fluently like Japanese, ensure that you have faith in your own abilities.

Almost anyone can learn a new language by looking at sites and TV.  You are able to become used to the style of the language by watching and listening to the language.  This means anything from the speed of talking to pronunciation.  You will be able to find out about trends etc.

It’s certainly worth thinking about getting a dictionary and tally up which words you hear.  When you hear a word over an over again you should look it up in the dictionary and see what it means.  If you stick with it every day it won’t take long before  you are forming complete sentences.  If you want you should also use a Japanese class or online learning package to aid your studies.

It’s important that you have a good self image when learning Japanese.  Motivating yourself is of great importance because of the amount of daily tasks to do.  It is imperative to attempt to build up your self image as soon as you can.

The Blocks of Pronunciation There are two main aspects to pronunciation  The first thing is to make the sound and then you must see how the sound is heard  Our abilities to hear and speak a sound diminish as time goes on and becomes tougher.  We can’t be put off from learning different languages, but just have to rely on extra help to succeed.  Here are some tips on how to learn Japanese.  Ensure that you are speaking the language right  Speak the letters  Check how your mouth is functioning. If you are unaware of how a word sounds then you will find it extremely tough to say it.

Sounds seem similar sometimes  There are some sounds between Japanese and English that are the same.  English sounds are often used to compare with in dictionaries for a new language.  Some sounds are very similar and a good dictionary will educate you on this  Learn which sounds are tough to speak

Mark down which words are more difficult for you to master.  Ensure that you should give these closer attention.  Try and physically make the sound and see how your mouth works.  Anything written in the English alphabet is not necessarily spoken that way.

Ensure that you read this out loud  Read from a course book or another to aid you.  This will give you two main advantages.  Letters and words can be spoken first and foremost.  The second thing is that you can learn how to teach yourself sounds that you will hear and become accustomed to other sounds.

Do I need to be pretty good?  This has been discussed for along time.  Some of us just get by in a language and that’s enough.  Normally for most of us it’s enough to make people understand what we are saying.  After that we have a decision to make.  For some of us, however, we attain good levels of pronunciation.  There are not too many of us that are that good, but we can still try and get by with some simple words and phrases.

1. Make Mistakes. Sounds odd but that’s the best way to learn easy Japanese. So, give yourself permission to err, and you automatically give yourself permission to learn in a way you never would’ve realized. When you discover a weakness, you can figure out a way to strengthen it. So, it’s very important to fail often!

2. Learn Katakana. Every language ends up borrowing words from other languages, Katakana is a writing system the Japanese use to express those borrowed words, most of them English. Learning Katakana will help you sound out words that are very familiar to you, only they will be written in Japanese. There’s a confidence-booster for you from the get-go.

3. Take Chances. Even in your own language, you can run the risk of being misunderstood. But taking that risk is a good way to learn Japanese easily. Consider the fact that sometimes it’s important to do something and fail, than to do nothing all. No matter how awkward your Japanese may be, your efforts will be appreciated in a magnanimous way. No matter how much you bone up on your phrases and customs, you’re going to be recognized as a tourist and you’re going to make some gaffes. Realize you are what you are – a tourist; don’t be so afraid of making mistakes that you don’t have a good time.

4. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat. Repetition helps you ease into the language and the culture and lessens the chances for mistakes. The more time you spend honing your skills, especially with language, the quicker it becomes second nature.

If it happens to rain on the day you were going to the beach or go shopping, use the time to read up on culture or news and practice your phrases or language lessons. You’re commute time can double as your learning time. Put some lessons on your iPod to listen to as you walk to work, or while you’re riding the bus or train. Play CD’s in your car.

Japanese is an intriguing language to learn, being well-spoken in it can advance your career, earn yourself foreign friends, or ease your travels in the Land of the Rising Sun.

* Kanji
* Hiragana
* Katakana

Chinese characters, called Kanji, have been borrowed and incorporated into the language.

More like Western alphabets, but based on Chinese characters, Katakana and Hiragana are syllabic scripts. Kanji and Hiragana, in combination, are the most used writing systems in modern Japanese. Katakana is used chiefly to depict the sounds of borrowed foreign words, or when there is a need to depict other sounds, like the howl of a wolf.

A running joke is that Asians do things backwards; well, Japanese scripts is written vertically, as opposed to the Western horizontal, and from right to left, as opposed to the Western left to right. The Western style has been adapted to scientific writing and for computer display, but the familiar method remains in use in practically all other Japanese publications.

The Japanese language incorporates different manners of speaking depending on the class of who is speaking or spoken to, and there are different levels of politeness used as well. Going even further, the language used within Japanese can indicate the gender of the speaker as well as the gender of the listener, this is done through the use of vocabulary, grammar, and even the pitch or tone of voice.

As expected, the sort of teaching and learning available from certain language schools is always promoted as the easiest and quickest way to pick up another language. Budget, interest level, time you have, these are three important considerations when you set about to determine how and where you’ll take up your language lessons. To learn Japanese now, you have to determine whether or not the curriculum or method of teaching is suitable for your needs. What do you want or need to do? Do you want good reading and writing skills? Will you need it facilitate your ease of travel and communication with native speakers? If your interests are academic, involving a lot of reading and writing, your needs are a lot different than those necessary for getting around, eating, getting hotel rooms, or enjoying the life of the locals.

Anyway, if you want to learn Japanese now, your first goal should be to engage the spoken language, it’s much easier than the reading or writing. Pronunciation and choice of wording is paramount when learning a new language, get audio files that employ native speakers to help you with this task. (Even if your focus will be on reading and writing, most books teaching those skills also contain CD-ROMs.) A subtle language, Japanese depends on various intonations, listening carefully and imitating them is very important.

Grammar and vocabulary are two important considerations – how much do you need of each? Practice words and phrases that you will use most often so they are easy to recall, you can flesh out your vocabulary as you proceed from there. As with vocabulary, learn more as you go along but master the basics of grammar enough to set yourself at ease as you tackle the necessities of getting around and getting along.

Of course, as with any language, make sure patience and perseverance are both in your learning toolbox. Textbooks, teachers, and drill exercises are important, but what you bring to the process is most important. Personal study is very convenient, your classroom can be anywhere, open at any hour, and conducted with a curriculum set to your own pace.

Tactic #1: Ignore the old learning order

To step into the Japanese learning world, you should first study the 100 to 200 most commonly used kanji.  But the next step will be getting to know the difficult words the moment you see them, no matter how rarely they are used.  At the very start, it will feel hard, but this approach will actually save you time and energy in the long run because you won’t constantly be deferring certain Kanji into the elusive “future.”

Tactic #2: Notice the small things:

Learn 20 or 30 radicals which occur most frequently in Kanji with a simple Kanji dictionary, and put the rest of the 214 radicals aside temporarily, then you will have a solid understanding of a good part of Kanji.  Then, identifying new kanji will not be that hard.  You can sort of figure out what a Kanji means by looking at the radicals.  You can call it chunking, and you will find learning 3-5 radicals takes less effort then memorizing 15 Kanji.  The next thing you should do is just to put the radicals together.

Tactic #3: Get the tough stuff out of the way first

I’m talking about written Kanji here.  If you really want to get a good understanding of Japanese, take the time to try reading something in Japanese each and every day.  Getting familiar with the way Japanese printed writing works will help you understand common applications of each Kanji you see.  You should be able to get a decent understanding of Japanese on your own after you’ve been doing this for awhile.

Tactic #4: Speak Japanese out loud :

Three main things you should bear in mind in learning Kanji: identifying the figure, its meaning, and pronouncing it correctly.  As long as you aren’t studying in the library, go ahead and practice reading out loud. Reading Kanji aloud is a great way to kill three birds (learning structure/shape, meaning, and sound) with one, big, noisy stone.

If you want to learn Kanji, things are going to be tough, but you can manage it with some determination.  Follow my advice, and your learning speed will increase.

People really do not worry about how long it will take to learn Japanese.  In most cases, they really want to know how hard they will have to work. And clearly, there is no clear-cut way to tell someone exactly how long or how much effort it will take to master the language. The most important aspect though, is how badly you want to learn Japanese.

You can realistically learn spoken Japanese pretty quickly if you are serious about it. With the right drive and motivation, there are people that will master Japanese in under a year, while there are also people that actually move to Japan and live there for quite some time that can barely say the word sushi.

Though often quite expense, you’ll find that the best way to learn Japanese is with personal instruction or language classes. Most people can’t afford classes, though, and so the next best step is to get some instructional books or software programs that will show you how to speak Japanese. These are all excellent ways to get a good understanding of the Japanese language and kick-start your studying.

The best way to become conversationally fluent very fast is to apply what you learn at every opportunity.  It’s an excellent strategy to practice your Japanese with native speakers and friends from your Japanese classes too. When you start putting the Japanese you learn in the classroom into action, you will be shocked at how quickly you can take your Japanese to a higher level. Talking to native speakers gives you the opportunity to learn some useful slang that you won’t learn in the textbooks.

A lot of people think that it is extremely hard to learn to speak Japanese, however this is just a misconception.  I mean, how difficult can it be?  You barely have to conjugate any verbs at all (unlike Spanish). However, I must confess, that learning to read and write Japanese, is probably going to be more of a task.

Learning all those new characters is going to be tricky at first if you’ve only ever used the English alphabet. Hiragana and Katakana probably won’t take you more than a few weeks to learn, but things start getting hairy when you dive into the Kanji.  Are you ready to confront your fears and memorize nearly two thousand characters?

Before you get frustrated and give up, though, remind yourself that this is the same as learning to speak the language. It simply requires continual practice and application. Avoid relying on Romaji when you’re learning to make things even faster. Try to come up with little strategies to remembering what each character means. For example, the Kanji character for “me” (meaning “eye”) looks like an eye with two eyelids. Let the creativity flow and you’ll find that it is pretty simple to create ways to memorize the Kanji.

So how much time is it going to take to learn Japanese? It is going to take you just as long as you need. Of course some people will needless to say learn faster than others, but the most important factor to consider is your level of commitment. Don’t give up and take things one day at a time.

Should you be considering learning Japanese online quickly, do not despair.  Achieving this couldn’t be less painless these days.  Despite the fact that there are lots of Japanese resources on the web that take ages to complete, you can find an alternative number of speedy tutorials which you can make the most of.

Many times you just flat-out don’t have time to enroll in boring foreign language lessons.  You may need to take a last minute vacation to Japan or you might well have an urgent corporate meeting with a Japanese business partner in the Tokyo office.  If you’re looking for a way to learn Japanese really fast and you frankly don’t have time for the traditional methods, learning Japanese online can be a great alternative.  However, is it truly possible to learn Japanese over the internet?  Isn’t the internet just a place to go to watch videos and check your e-mail?

If you get started with Japanese on the web, you should weigh a few things over first.  A key factor to consider is if these classes tell you the way to pronounce the words.  Be sure the check and make sure that the course you use will show you how to actually pronounce the words.  This will make things much easier for you in the long run.  You’ll want to make sure that the lessons you use will give you a detailed and interactive experience of mastering pronunciation.  The best way I know of to learn a new language is to find a way that incorporates both spoken conversation with visual images so tht you can start to make mental associations in your mind.

If you’ve done any shopping around at all, you probably know just how expensive those Japanese classes can get!  If you’re not independently wealthy, learning Japanese online can be a much more reasonable means.  If you put in some effort to your search, you can even find totally free ways to learn how to speak Japanese.  One of the cool things about the internet is that you can find pretty much anything if you look hard enough (even free Japanese lessons).  But, when everything is said and done, are the free lessons really as good as the paid instruction you’d get elsewhere?

Free Japanese Lessons versus Paid Japanese Lessons

It is definitely probable, if you search around enough, to find top-notch free Japanese lessons online.  But when it comes to free stuff online, you really need to be careful because there is a huge range of quality.  Somethings will be complete garbage, while others are hidden gems.  So you see, you can find some great Japanese resources online for free, but you need to wade through all the…um…”less than desirable” things out there.  So if you really want to learn the Japanese language, you should really take the time and commit yourself to learning the language from a paid resource.  The quality is much better and you’ll learn significantly more.

So to cut to the chase, if you’re serious about learning Japanese and you’re ready to take the plunge, why not just cough up the extra couple of bucks and get some high-quality lessons?  Often times you’ll even get a personal Japanese instructor online so that you can have your questions answered and receive personal feedback that will help you with your specific challenges.  A lot of times, the paid courses will have valuable extra resources to help you master Japanese faster than ever.    Paid lessons are generally of a much higher quality that the free garbage you find on the internet.  You really get what you pay for, so ask yourself if you’re willing to compromise quality for price.