150 Hrs update

Hola chicos,

I finally hit 150 hours!!!! I definitely now notice a big difference. I feel like around 70hrs I felt a big shift then from there every 10-15hrs was another big change in comprehension. Then from 100-150hrs is almost night and day. Ive been able to consistently watch about 1hr everyday, im hoping to expand that to 90min and hopefully 2hr a day in the future. Im trying to avoid burnout so I feel like in the long run less time per day but consistently every day is better. Speaking of long run I now understand this is a long game, its totally opposite our "Want it right now" culture. Id like to point out a few things for someone just starting out.

  1. This is a long game so dont get frustrated seeing everyone at 500hr or 1200hrs. You have to start somewhere. There were times I was discouraged and wondered if it was even worth going on, but a little everyday starts to add up over time.

  2. Dont try to understand every word or translate each word. Just sit back turn your brain "off" and get the over all meaning or picture. It makes it way more enjoyable and you will be able to watch more that way.

  3. I think it helps to think of learning spanish as a hobby. You have to learn to enjoy this process or you wont make it past 50hr. This gets easier as more content opens up.

Some notes and take aways:

  1. At first I could not understand Pablo or Andres at all, around 120hr that changed and now they are the easiest to understand for some reason. I really like their content.

  2. i took a trip to Puerto Rico at around 100Hr and I was able to hold some simple conversations in Spanish with Uber drivers, so I consider that a major win.

  3. Im amazed how much I have an ear for the language now. I have a lot of radio stations in spanish where I live and I have them on most of the day in the back ground. At first it all sounded like a jumbled mess, but now I can pick out almost ever word. Granted I still dont know the meanings but its still interesting. Side note I do not count this as input.

Over all Im very impressed with the DS method. This is probably the best spanish learning platform ever created. Much thanks to the DS team for their hard work.

I cant wait to keep going with this and see where I am in another 150hr.