Stop "Mugging Up" English – You're Learning a Language, Not a Menu

Ever felt this way?

You downloaded the hottest vocabulary apps, ploughed through thick grammar books, and saved countless study notes from 'English gurus.' But when a foreign friend stands in front of you, your mind goes blank, and after a long struggle, you can only manage an awkward "Hello, how are you?"

We always think that learning a language is like supermarket shopping – putting words, grammar, and sentence structures into our shopping cart one by one, and then at the checkout, we'll naturally possess the skill of 'fluency.'

But what's the outcome? Our shopping cart is overflowing, yet we still don't know how to use these ingredients to cook a decent meal.

A Different Approach: Learning a Language is More Like Learning to Cook

Let's forget the word 'learning' and replace it with 'experiencing.'

Imagine you're not 'learning' a language, but learning to prepare an exotic dish you've never tasted before.

Words and grammar are your ingredients and recipes. They're important, of course; you can't do anything without them. But just mugging up recipes till you know them inside out, or staring at ingredients all day, won't turn them into a delicious meal.
'Language sense' (or 'feel') is like the 'temperature control' or 'timing' in cooking. This is the most fascinating part. When should you stir-fry, when should you add seasoning, when should you turn off the heat? These aren't things cold, hard text in a recipe can fully teach you. You have to get into the kitchen yourself, feel the change in oil temperature, smell the aroma spreading, and even... mess up a few times.
Making mistakes is like burning the food. Every great chef has burnt food before; it's no big deal. The important thing isn't whether it got burnt, but whether you tasted it to figure out if the heat was too high or if you added salt too early? Every small 'failure' is helping you master the true 'timing' or 'temperature control'.

The problem many of us face when learning a language lies here: we're too focused on mugging up recipes, but forget to light the stove.

We're afraid of ruining the dish, wasting ingredients, or being laughed at for our cooking skills. So, we forever remain in the preparation phase. Our kitchen is filled with the freshest ingredients, but the stove remains cold.

True 'Fluency' is the Courage to Light the Stove

So, how do we light that stove?

The answer is simple: start by cooking the simplest dish.

Don't aim for a 'Manchu Han Imperial Feast' (having a perfect, deep conversation) right from the start. Begin with a 'Tomato Scrambled Egg' (a simple greeting).

Today's goal isn't 'reciting 100 words,' but 'using 3 words you just learned today to greet someone.'

Where is this 'someone'? This used to be the biggest challenge. We don't have many foreign friends around us, and flying abroad specifically is too expensive. We're like a chef wanting to cook Sichuan cuisine but unable to find Sichuan peppercorns and chillies.

But now, technology has given us a perfect 'global kitchen.'

Tools like Intent, for instance, it's like a 'smart stove' with built-in translation. You don't have to worry about whether you can speak it; AI will instantly turn your 'everyday talk' into authentic 'exotic dishes.' You just need to gather your courage and boldly start chatting with people on the other side of the world.

https://intent.app/

When you use it to chat with a French friend about their favourite movie, or discuss recently watched anime with a Japanese friend, you're no longer a 'learner.'

You're an experiencer, a communicator, a chef enjoying the pleasure of cooking.

The true charm of language isn't about how many perfect sentences you've mastered, but about how many interesting people it can help you meet, and how many different cultural 'flavours' you can experience.

So, stop clinging to recipes.

Step into the kitchen, light the stove, and boldly create, communicate, make mistakes, and taste. You'll find that the most beautiful part of language learning is precisely this bustling, heartwarming essence of life.