Hi Language Buddy!

In this post, I want to discuss another amazing experience you can have when learning a language: bootstrapping. The term "bootstrapping" comes from computer science and is also used in the context of starting a company. In the realm of language learning, bootstrapping refers to the process of starting one way until you can reach the stage where you're able to continue in the desired way.

When you begin learning a language, you often can't speak it conversationally, so you rely on another language (such as English) to communicate with your language teacher and access learning materials. As you progress, you'll eventually reach a point where you can conduct the entire lesson in the target language. This is the moment when you've successfully "bootstrapped" your language learning.

Experiencing this moment, where you can confidently conduct your language instruction entirely in your target language, is a gratifying and wonderful experience. It's different from the "losing your language virginity" experience I shared in a previous post, but it's still an important milestone in your language learning journey.

I've achieved this milestone in eight of the languages I speak, but I'm still working on reaching this point in Russian. The frustration of not being able to express myself fully in Russian, and consequently not being able to conduct my entire lesson in the language, inspired me to reflect on this topic and share it with you.

If you haven't reached this milestone in your language learning, I encourage you to keep working towards it. It's a truly rewarding and fulfilling experience to have under your belt.

Happy language learning!