Disclaimer: This article is just for educational purposes. I'm not claiming that I'm already good with the Korean language and I'm not even close to it. I've only been studying Hangeul for more than 1 month now so I'm not in the position to share such tips. However, I just want to share some of the tips I have learned from watching vlogs and videos on YouTube that teach the Korean language.
So without further ado, here are some of the tips to learn Korean faster.
1. Set a Goal: Know your "Why?"
Perhaps, some of you are also wanting to learn how to read and write in Hangeul and have a good conversation using the Korean language. Maybe, you also want to watch Korean dramas without having to read the subtitle anymore or you also want to listen to Korean pop songs and you want to sing with the song or you want to understand the lyrics. Probably, it's also one of your dreams to travel and work in South Korea.
Whatever the reason you want to learn Korean, you should always put it in mind so that you have a clear goal of why you want to do it. Also, so that you won't be discouraged when you are going to start studying already because learning the language is really confusing and challenging at the same time. Just like what a quote says, "When you feel like giving up, think about why you started."
At first, I only wanted to study Korean because I'm fond of watching K-dramas so I wanted to understand what the characters are saying without having to read the subtitle anymore. But then, I thought it's also a good skill to learn since it may lead me to great opportunities out there. Then as I was watching vlogs, I came across videos of OFWs in South Korea, and I thought I also want to work there. So now, I'm not just going to learn Korean for K-dramas, but also to fulfill living my Korean dream.
2. Learn the Korean Alphabet
Learning Hanguel or the Korean writing system is the foundation of learning the language. And it's a good thing because learning the characters or letters is just really easy, and you can memorize them in just a couple of hours or days, depending on your memorization skills.
In my 1-week of Learning Hangeul article, I have shared here the material I used to learn Hangeul letters faster. So if you still have no idea about the characters, you can also use that one.
3. Consume Korean Content
Watching Korean dramas is probably one of the best ways to learn Korean because they're all speaking in Korean. And just by watching and listening to their dialogues, you get to learn new Korean words. Perhaps, all of us learned Annyeonghaseyo (Hello), Gamsahamnida (Thank you), Joesonghamnida (I'm sorry), Ne/Ye (Yes), and Aniyo/Anyo (No) because of watching K-dramas. And when you listen closely to their conversations, you will expound your Korean vocabulary.
Listening to Korean pop songs will also help in learning Korean words and you will also get to familiarize yourself with the words and their pronunciation.
4. Watching Clips and Shadowing
I think this works really well if you want to improve your speaking skills in Korean because you get to follow how the words are spoken. So just like when you're watching Korean series and there's a particular scene that seems you need to learn it, you have to repeat saying the words after you hear it and do it over and over again until you memorize the word and learn the correct pronunciation.
5. Use Korean Learning Apps
Since you're just learning Korean on your own and you didn't enroll in a language center, the best thing to do to learn Korean faster is to take advantage of the available resources online. There is a lot of useful content online that will help you to learn the language faster. You can read articles on Google, watch videos on YouTube, listen to podcasts, and download Korean learning apps like Duolingo or social language apps like HelloTalk. You can even take advantage of your social media apps and follow Korean celebrities or accounts to get to read random words daily.
Studying a new language is a challenging journey but it is also fun if you really want to learn about it. It will probably take years before you can pull off having a good 3-minute Korean conversation with a local. However, if you are determined to do it, then nothing is impossible. Just remember, consistency is the key. So if you decide to start learning already, just keep going until you achieve your goal. νμ΄ν ! (Fighting!)
Follow My Korean Learning Journey:
Learning Hangeul: Korean Alphabet Writing System
Hahaha natuto lang din ako nung mga common words sa kakanood ng kdrama, maiksi kasi talaga pasensya ko pag nag aaral ng laguage nila hahaha hirap ako haha kaya idaan na lang sa kdrama haha.