Having been an advisor for Ray Dalio’s and at Bridgewater Associates, Dennis John Olmstead served as the company's head of tax and shareholder relations. Familiar with French, Dutch, and German, Dennis John Olmstead is an aspiring polyglot from Belgium.
Learning multiple languages risks mixing them up, particularly when they are similar, such as the romance languages of French and Spanish. Generally, if you are learning multiple languages, start with the language that is easiest for you. This gets you used to speaking a new language faster and hastens the learning process for additional languages.
Another pointer is learning only one language at a time. Learning two or more languages at once makes it much more likely that you’ll mix them up. Instead, focus on one of your target languages until you become fluent in it. Then, add in a second target language and continue the process. Since you already speak the first foreign language, you don’t have to worry about practicing it at the same time as you learn another one.
Since learning languages from the same language family, like the romance languages, makes learning easier, you must compartmentalize the languages, so you don’t mix them up. You’ll also start seeing significant differences between the two languages, despite having the same base.
As with learning any language, though, the main key is practice. Speak your target language slowly and deliberately. Think about each word you are saying and make sure you find plenty of time to talk in your target language. When learning multiple languages, this process is much longer than normal. Assuming you practice speaking each language enough, you can seamlessly switch between languages without mixing them up.
Learning multiple languages risks mixing them up, particularly when they are similar, such as the romance languages of French and Spanish. Generally, if you are learning multiple languages, start with the language that is easiest for you. This gets you used to speaking a new language faster and hastens the learning process for additional languages.
Another pointer is learning only one language at a time. Learning two or more languages at once makes it much more likely that you’ll mix them up. Instead, focus on one of your target languages until you become fluent in it. Then, add in a second target language and continue the process. Since you already speak the first foreign language, you don’t have to worry about practicing it at the same time as you learn another one.
Since learning languages from the same language family, like the romance languages, makes learning easier, you must compartmentalize the languages, so you don’t mix them up. You’ll also start seeing significant differences between the two languages, despite having the same base.
As with learning any language, though, the main key is practice. Speak your target language slowly and deliberately. Think about each word you are saying and make sure you find plenty of time to talk in your target language. When learning multiple languages, this process is much longer than normal. Assuming you practice speaking each language enough, you can seamlessly switch between languages without mixing them up.
