Anubhav Jain

 

Written 3 books on Life, living and motivation.

1. Immediately stop all comparisons with other human beings.
2. Take good sleep every night.
3. Chat with your loved ones for a few minutes every day without fail.
4. Talk to yourself in stress. Ask questions, answer questions, find a solution.
5. Whatever you do, take tiny breaks after an hour or so, and relax for a few minutes. Take a few days off after every quarter and travel away from the place.
6. Acceptance is the key to a calm mind. ‘What happened was your fate. What you can do is your deeds.’
7. When you feel outburst of emotions, wash your face, or go to the roof and shout, or do some exercise, or take a break and do some shopping or eat something. Don't let it overwhelm you.
8. Dedicate your time in helping human and animals. It boosts self-esteem and makes you calmer.
9. Try to live a minimalistic lifestyle, higher the aspirations and materialism; more will be complexities.
10. Do your deeds because you have to do them, don't expect anything in return.
11. If you are not atheist, visit any religious shrine and talk to God, narrate your miseries and hand them over your fate and walk outside free and light.
12. Other people's expectations are their business and not your business; your business is to do what you can and enjoy your life.
13. Eat dinner a bit early, and have a mild walk after that, so that your stomach gets to relax before you sleep.
14. Every night, remember your luxuries and thank God for them.
15. Have your goals in the back of the mind and focus on your routine in normal life, do your chores well.
16. Fill your time gaps with hobbies, so that there isn't any scope of overthinking.
17. Try, and do some of your chores sometimes, like cooking, making your bed, cleaning your cupboard, ironing your clothes, it gives you a sense of importance of everything.
18. In stressful situations, remember the love of your parents and respect your fate, and simply give your best.
19. Respect failures and miseries, as they give you free tuition of wisdom and strength for the future.
20. Don't engage too much with society, like social media, gossiping, having countless friends. Be connected and simultaneously be indifferent; make a balance.
21. Past is dead; you are not, don't keep digging its grave, the dead body will only stink and not do any good.
22. Future is uncertain, no matter how much you plan, or stay stressed, or worry, there is always a major chance that something altogether unexpected may happen, so respect uncertainty and stay calm.

What should I know before learning the German language?

 

Sandeep Kho

Before learning German (Deutsch) language, you should know that

• After English, Spanish and French, German ranked 4th most commonly taught language worldwide.
• German is spoken by almost 95 millions native speakers (ranked 11th worldwide). That makes it, German as the most widely spoken native language in European Union.
• It is official language in Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland (1 of 4) and Luxembourg (1 of 3)
• German is a Germanic language - branch of the Indo-European language family - including English, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Icelandic, Norwegian,..etc.
• German and English have 60% common words like Kindergarten, Angst, Poltergeist etc. But be careful some may look English and have totally different meaning, e.g. Gift means poison! Some German words have no English equivalents like Schadenfreude.
• Even though it is closely related to English, German is considered to be difficult to learn (especially for English speakers) - mainly due to German grammar like genders, Adjective endings (decline Adjectives) according to different cases, tenses, long words, difficult pronunciations, etc.

• The language is full of exceptions. To learn effectively, for every grammatical rule, you should first learn the exceptions. Like gender for a girl is neutral (das Mädchen), the names/make of car are Masculine like der Audi, der VW, der Porsche ; but a car is neutral - das Auto. Most nouns ending in -e are feminine, but der Name, das Ende,..
• German has many long compound words like Donau­dampfschiffahrts­elektrizitäten­hauptbetriebswerk­bauunterbeamten­gesellschaft (79 letters), Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz (63 letters, now dropped)
• The standard German is called Hochdeutsch.
• According to regions, there are different dialects and accents like Bavarian, Swiss, Austrian, etc.

• Time is counted with respect to next hour like 1:30 is half two hours in German (halb Zwei)
• The first printed book Gutenberg Bible was in Germany (1455) and the first printed book in German language was Der Ackermann aus Böhmen (1461).
• Until Second World War, German was written (Calligraphy) in Fraktur Script.

• They say “German is the language of Machines” - thanks to robust DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung) standards, being manufacturing and automobile hub and exporter, n number of technical books written since centuries etc.
• Sometimes “thank you” (German Danke) means “No”
• please (German bitte) is universal word for please, you are welcome, go ahead, pardon? One more universal word I know is “tja”

All the best! (Alles Gute!)

How do German idioms reflect the culture's values and history?

German is famous for philosophical words like Zeitgeist, but its everyday idioms reveal a grittier history. When someone narrowly escapes disaster, they don't get lucky—they “have a pig.”

These phrases are deeply rooted in the practical realities of medieval agriculture, dense forests, brewing, and a profound appreciation for pork.

Culinary Realism
The most famous German idiom of all is delightfully pragmatic: “Alles hat ein Ende, nur die Wurst hat zwei” (Everything has an end, only the sausage has two). Where an English speaker might note that all good things must end, a German leans on the butcher. This reflects a culture that values grounded observation over lofty metaphor. Similarly, when a German wants to say "Not my circus, not my monkeys," they simply say: “Das ist nicht mein Bier” (That is not my beer). Beer and sausages served as fundamental pillars of survival, trade, and daily caloric intake in German history.

The Deep Forest
Germany is a nation heavily defined by its Mittelgebirge (low mountain ranges) and ancient woods. This deep geographic connection bleeds into the language. If someone is completely on the wrong track, Germans say they are “auf dem Holzweg sein” (to be on the wood path). Historically, a Holzweg was a temporary dirt track cut by loggers into the forest to extract timber. If you followed one expecting it to lead to the next village, you would eventually find yourself deep in the woods at a dead end.

Directness over Diplomacy
Germans are culturally famous for valuing directness, efficiency, and honesty over superficial politeness. This is captured in how they describe someone who is beating around the bush: “Um den heißen Brei herumreden” (To talk around the hot porridge). The imagery is brilliant: someone delicately skimming the edges of a bowl of scalding porridge because they are too timid to dive into the center. In German culture, "talking around the porridge" is a flaw; you are expected to blow on it and take a bite.

Medieval Survival
That bizarre declaration of luck—“Schwein haben” (To have a pig)—does not sound particularly fortunate to modern ears. But in the agrarian economy of the Middle Ages, a pig was the ultimate safety net. It was cheap to feed on scraps and yielded a massive amount of high-calorie meat that could be salted or smoked to keep a peasant family alive through the brutal Central European winters. Having a pig meant you survived.

A variety of grilled bratwurst on a stall at the Hauptmarkt in Nuremberg. German culture's historical reliance on preserved meats and brewing is heavily reflected in its everyday language. Photo by Gerbis 

Is German one of the toughest languages to learn?

 

Sanda Golcea

Worked at Hipcooks Seattle

German is normally a hard language to master as you might have heard: because of the grammar.

Depending on your background, this might be easier or harder:

If your mother tongue is of Asian origin (Chinese, Korean, Japanese) and you make no difference between "a cat" and "the cat", then the fact that "the" and "a" in German each have around 3 forms depending on the usage/case (dem, der, den / einem, einer, einen)
(..and that happens for each of the 3 genders (neuter, masc, fem) )
..this fact might prove to be more of a challenge for you than for someone that is used to conjugations in his language.

If your language is a Romance language (except French maybe), then the reading part will prove to be very easy. Pronunciation is quite easy in German; that won't be your problem. Most letters are read as they are written, some exceptions apply for certain groups of letters - however! - once they have a reading rule it always applies so no headache there.
I think this applies for Slavic languages as well (right?).

If you have a Dutch/English background, many words will sound similar; and you'll think: "Oh, wait a minuuute now, I know that word!"

E.g.:
I want to swim
Ich will schwimmen
or:
Gute Nacht
Good night
(sounds familiar, right?)

And the 3 verbal forms from English - so similar in German!

see - saw - seen
sehen - sah - gesehen

to sing - sang - sung
singen - sang - gesungen

proves my point, right? :)

The good news is there are a lot of movies to watch in German (mostly about Jews and Hitler and war, but still); the German TV channels usually have all shows in German (they even show American movies in German, yes! ). pro7, sat1, rtl, rtl2 - you can also find them online
(e.g. : www.rtl.de )

There are a lot of German musicians that you can listen to: Bushido, Rammstein, Ich und Ich, Revolverheld, Silbermond, Söhne Mannheims, Juli
are just a few of my personal favorites.

So there are a LOT of resources out there on the internet to help you, which is absolutely great and will help you like nothing else!

The bad news is that as a German speaker I found it hard to find people with whom I can talk in German in the USA and there is no Goethe-Institut in my city either - although if you live in SF or NY that might not be a problem for you.
So if you have a Goethe-Institut in your city: cherish it deeply!

To resume everything:

The Good:
- lots of movies in German
- great music in German
- many words similar to English
- easy pronunciation

The Bad
- articles are a killer, prepositions, etc.
- grammar is a pain

The Ugly
- sometimes it's hard to find German speakers
- at times there are no centers for German language learning

Now ..that it is one of the hardest languages to learn.. that is quite arguable.. I've tried to tackle Mandarin, Arabic, saw a bit of Hebrew, Korean..
I'd say it's a harder language to master as in speak correctly, but as they say in German :
"Übung macht den Meister"

And if you need motivation, just think Oktoberfest:

What are your top 7 rules of life?

 

Andrew Ferebee

 ·

Rule #1: Be Selfish

You are the only person that you have to spend the rest of your life with.

So be selfish and prioritize yourself.

Tell your friends, family, and co workers “No” when you need to so that you can prioritize your life and your goals.

Accept that being selfish isn’t a bad thing.

You’re SUPPOSED to think that you’re more important than other people.

Because, to you, you are.

This doesn’t mean you can go out and be a complete jackass.

But it does mean that you should feel no shame about taking time for yourself, investing in yourself, and telling other people “no” so that you can focus on yourself.

Rule #2: Never Do With More What Can Be Done With Less

If a project can be finished in one hour, don’t spend two trying to perfect it.

Doing more than is necessary is the ultimate form of laziness.

Learn to maximize your time and energy by putting in the least amount of effort possible to achieve the results that you want.

Rule #3: Your Health is Your Wealth

Never sacrifice your health for anything.

Exercise daily, eat a clean diet, and sleep 8 hours a night.

Money will always be out there. But you’ll never be able to earn that money if you’re chronically sick, injured, or fatigued.

Take care of your health because it is the gateway to a life of abundance.

Rule #4: Live Below Your Means so That You Can Live Any Way You Please

Live below your means and spend less than you earn.

The more diligently that you can save money and build lasting wealth for yourself, the better your life will be in the long term.

As Gary Vee says: Eat sh*t for 2 years so that you can eat caviar for life.

Rule #5: Lifestyle Before Money… But Money Too

Life is meant to be lived, not worked away.

Prioritize your lifestyle over money.

Spend more time enjoying your life, experiencing the world, and building relationships and less time slaving away at the office.

Money IS important and you should try and earn as much of it as possible.

But don’t let your quest to make a living interfere with your ability to have a life.

Rule #6: Love and Laugh without Holding Back

Because life is too short to be serious and closed off to love.

Laugh until it hurts everyday and love without fear of loss.

Those are the two greatest keys to a happy life.

Rule #7: Choose Happiness Now

Choose happiness now. No matter how terrible your life may be, there is always a way to find meaning and happiness even in the midst of terrible suffering.

Choose happiness now and forever and you have achieved success.

What method do polyglots favor for learning a new language?

 

Judith Meyer

 

Worked at Specific Languages

There are significant differences between the methods favoured by the most well-known internet polyglots. For example they cannot agree on:

• how much grammar study is necessary
• whether accent practice is important
• whether to have a silent absorption period at the beginning or to speak from day one
• whether exposure to foreign TV (even with subtitles) or radio is worthwhile at all if you don't understand much
• whether the ultimate goal is a) to be mistaken for a native speaker or b) to be able to discuss academic subjects or c) to be able to read literature
• whether old materials or modern materials are the best

The only thing they have in common is that they all spend a LOT of time on languages, which is why I said that time spent is the most important factor of all; more important than method.

That being said, you are right to observe that polyglots tend to dislike Pimsleur. Pimsleur is inefficient time-wise, because it only teaches 5-6 words per 30 minute lesson. For comparison: Pod101 generally teaches 10-12 words per 15 minute lesson. Michel Thomas also uses a faster pace, though harder to compare because Michel Thomas focuses almost entirely on grammar / neat expressions that you can plug words into. The only polyglots I heard recommend Pimsleur said that they like to use a few lessons of it in the beginning in order to develop their accent and comfort level in a new language. Michel Thomas has more fans among polyglots, but not as many as Assimil. I definitely wouldn't put him in the same category as Pimsleur.

Assimil is popular because there's a lot of meat to eat: almost every one of their books contains 100 lessons and claims to lead you up to B2 (upper intermediate) level. Whether it's really B2 is debated on polyglot forums, but there's no doubt that Assimil courses cover a whole lot more words and grammar and idioms than most other courses which leave you well within beginner territory (or tourist territory). Also, Assimil neatly straddles the divide between older-is-better and newer-is-better polyglots: many of the older-is-better crowd like Assimil's "without toil" courses dating back to the 50s and 60s, while a good share of the modernists like the new Assimil courses. The courses have adapted a bit over time.

Apart from Assimil, polyglots also tend to use Teach Yourself or Colloquial or Langenscheidt or any courses of the same structure, though you'll find less fanatics for these. The exact choice often depends not just on the brand but also the language you want to learn, because all the good publishers give their writers significant freedom in designing the courses, resulting in some that are much better than others. Even Assimil has a few fluke courses that even Assimil fans won't touch.

Then of course there are all the indie courses that only exist for one language - in my experience, these are usually very good, because there is no company trying to fit a one-size-fits-all approach on them. The internet in particular has many free non-branded language courses that are of exceptional quality (esp. if you're a modernist), usually created by universities or national radio stations. I wrote entire books about the abundance of high-quality free online language courses/materials.

Then there are people who don't use anything like a textbook. For example, they might start by studying a phrasebook and then learn anything else in conversation with a teacher. Or they use the Listening-Reading Method of reading literature in parallel texts with audio, right from the start. Steve Kaufman, the LingQ guy, also starts out by reading.

So one can't say that someone is a newbie just based on his favourite courses. Except if they're LiveMocha or Rosetta Stone. Rosetta Stone spends almost its entire budget on marketing, leaving little money to develop good courses, while also succeeding in convincing all non-learners that their courses are amazing. I can't count the number of times someone who hasn't learned any language in the past decade(s) has told me "Oh, you love learning languages? You should check out Rosetta Stone, they're really good!". LiveMocha was an attempt to create a free open-source clone of Rosetta Stone, using crowdsourcing, which unsurprisingly resulted in an even worse product than the original (too many cooks).

So there's really no one answer to this. If you have a particular polyglot in mind, google him and you should be able to find what his preferred method is.