At the start of the year, I added “Take the JLPT N5 exam” to my language project board. My reasoning was simple. Since I was already planning to take the DELF B2 exam in French, why not make 2025 the year of language proficiency tests?
Now that I’ve taken the French B2 exam, I realize it’s probably time to start studying Japanese.
Switching from a language I can speak and understand to one I barely know is humbling. I felt this same discomfort 2.5 years ago when I began French after reaching an intermediate level in Mandarin.
A few months later, I was immersed in a French working environment, despite my French being non-existent.
Thankfully, no one expects me to use Japanese right now. But without any external pressure, I need to rediscover the kind of discipline, excitement and curiosity I had when I was learning Mandarin.
Japanese is often called a “difficult” language, especially for Romance language speakers. But the usual reasons like characters, syntax and grammar aren’t what I’m s…
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