Why You Don't Sound Natural in Korean _ Jay

What matters is how Koreans express themselves not how I wish to express myself You still don't get it I cried alone in a boarding house over thoughts like these Hello this is Yoo Seung-hwan from TalktoMing Korean Today I'm with Jay who's visiting from the United States Hello Hi I'm Jay from the United States and I've been studying Korean for about eight years now I've been living in Korea for about five and a half years now what else is there to talk about But considering how the broadcast turned out my voice sounds way too Isn't that a bit too different When speaking Korean it seems there's a tendency to speak a bit more quietly I tend to speak a bit louder when I'm speaking English You can speak loudly if you'd like Like when I speak English I talk like this But when speaking Korean for some reason related to vocal production the voice tends to sound a bit quieter so feel free to speak louder How did you start learning Korean Well at first I was actually just someone who really liked anime I was really interested in Japanese culture when I was young so back then I loved Naruto and One Piece—One Piece is the best I used to like bridges anything related to bridges and I still do so I even had a dream of wanting to live in Japan I wanted to learn Japanese but it didn't go well mainly because I only watched anime I only learned strange words traitorkill I'll kill you Just learning words like these won't work in reality But I downloaded an app called HelloTalk and started chatting with all sorts of people Among them there was a friend who told me not to learn Japanese but to learn Korean instead—back then I had just casually started learning Hangul It's easy isn't it So it must be easy to learn Korean I thought and with that light-hearted mindset I began studying Korean It was harder than I thought but here I am still doing it after eight years straight Eight years You've certainly had your struggles but you're still going through them So before that you didn't know much about Korea My friends are actually the kind who really love K-dramas and K-pop So back then it was kind of like what was that shade It had that saturation right A lot of people don’ t really know I honestly didn’t either I keep hearing about this group called Big Bang—what exactly is Big Bang I'm serious I really meant it It was actually a bit more muted in tone since I liked Japan so much I think I ended up liking Korea less I think they might have seen me as a bit of a competitor which is probably why they did that but my friends also introduced me to Big Bang's music And the drama called Boys Over Flowers Boys Over Flowers Boys Over Flowers But wait the men here are more appealing than the flowers among the cast members appearing here I heard you said you first got into learning Korean because of that particular idol It seems like they've played a big role Really You're not trying to learn Korean just because you like dramas and K-POP are you I really wasn't planning to learn any language at all Since I had to learn Japanese I felt a bit of loyalty—like I was stepping in for it—so I was trying to study Japanese but then I’d drift back to Korean The feeling of being replaced by Luffy in One Piece So you have to understand what Zama City Luffy is saying But then Oh but I don't really know what it is—maybe a bit of charm I suppose I think there was something like that with Korean I started with a light heart so tell me the secret to how it turned out so well I think you really need to study systematically after all Korean and English are completely different languages Word order roots of words—everything felt unfamiliar so honestly at first I had no idea how or where to even begin That's right but I actually discovered Talk To Me In Korean a month after starting to study and I was really impressed by those grammar lessons 1 2 3 4 5 — I thought there were ten of them but when I found that out I was really really about to get furious Can I talk like this so quickly — A bit slower please — Is it okay if I do it like this — It's okay isn't it — Is it alright if I do it this way My Korean has improved incredibly fast From "Hello" to "Goodbye" and "Please stay well" You can't just pick up something like that easily anywhere Now I can study it systematically after seeing it I tried taking Korean language classes at a university and also attended a language institute— Seodang University's language institute—and I really put in a lot of effort using various methods That's right because I'm a bit of a perfectionist —I want to do better than native speakers So in fact I wasn't satisfied with just one approach—I kept searching for various other methods What kinds of things did you try So I first taught Korean language courses at a university in the U S and also gave private lessons and online tutoring I've done a lot of language learning through various methods like Korean university language institutes Korean language schools and language exchange apps And Dukjimin QM did it right from the start but in my view compared to the time I've invested it just seems After reflecting on the results it seems that Deokjimin QM was the most efficient because in reality grammar study is necessary Many people say you don't need to study grammar when learning a language but it takes much longer that way so if you want to learn efficiently If you want to study in a short amount of time just sign up for the Deokjimin QM glamour lesson for now signed up Seriously this isn't promotion—please just listen to what I'm saying If not the Deokjimin QM are there any other viable alternatives you'd recommend Listening is extremely important when it comes to language learning When I was learning Korean I listened as much as possible I even drove while listening And I worked at that cake shop I did a lot of icing but when I was doing the icing behind the scenes I listened to a lot of Korean podcasts doing lots of icing at the same time—heard them while going to the bathroom and when showering I heard it even while exercising so I guess because I was driving unconsciously I had the mental space to notice it Actually my girlfriend is also Korean You'really good at English so actually I could speak English instead of Korean if I wanted to but I keep practicing Korean because I want to improve You might feel like talking in English when you're tired but no matter how exhausted I am I still speak Korean because of that greed and because of that greed I keep going like this It feels like I'm learning the language by bumping into it I don't have time either Back when I was in school my major was completely different I didn't major in Korean language— I' m majoring in Information Systems— but I still made time to study Korean even though I can't do it during class Actually when doing assignments really Oh seriously the professor was lecturing in front and I heard it in Korean Occasionally She was truly crazy about it—so much so that despite needing to focus on class her interest in Korean was overwhelming Her friends went to a party but she stayed behind I watched variety shows all alone in that dorm and even tried imitating them and when watching variety shows subtitles pop up like this If there's something like that I translated it thinking it might be an important word I couldn't help but realize how many words I actually know There's a word that suddenly comes to mind— words like that which you don't even remember learning or where you picked them up probably because you consciously learned them It feels like I studied a lot naturally in that way—just listening during lectures as if it were all wrapped up in that single phrase I get it now So you mentioned you watch a lot of dramas and variety shows do you have any recommendations alk show talk shows there's You Quiz on the Block right You Quiz What's truly valuable is that there are many different people appearing offering a chance to hear a wide variety of speech patterns and vocabulary Vocabulary used across various fields can appear frequently that's correct and feel free to ask about anything—just take a look at it Lots of worries People with worries show up Everyone has their own concerns don't they That's right So when I share my worries The way You explain my concerns listening to and copying them language learning isn't about creating something myself I think that's the kind of process I need to follow Saying you're a native English speaker but want to create Korean is really just saying you want to make Korean in an English way in truth What matters is how Koreans choose to express themselves not how I might want to express myself That actually does seem like a true statement you know— I'm not the one making up the sentences the sentences and answers are already all there I just copy and follow it exactly—yeah because language itself has established standards doesn't it You need to clearly understand what that standard is How can you possibly achieve that You have to gain extensive experience That's what I want to talk about Living in Korea Or are there any other fun things that happened while you were learning Korean I really love that drama "The Goblin " It's a truly famous drama overseas and the first time I watched it I saw it with English subtitles The second time I watched it with Korean subtitles the third time I watched it without subtitles But the second time I saw it I thought I already knew enough Korean to understand it yet I couldn't make sense of anything I've been going for two and a half years now—back then it had only been two and a half years—now I've been doing it for eight years I've studied for two and a half years and you're saying I still don't get it That's what makes me so sad So I ended up crying alone in the examination hall Really You actually cried You really cried You actually cried over your own expectations That's all I can do it seems like I'm not capable of much more I wonder what I'm even doing— back then I was actually in Korea I was studying Korean more diligently having come all the way to Korea to attend a language school and even then I once It's a drama I've seen before and even though I already know everything you still don't get it Am I just wasting my time So I just cried alone in the dormitory So how did you overcome this That's the key So everyone So first of all The reason I think I cried back then is because I felt such a heavy burden from myself—what kind of burden I thought I was so overwhelmed that I cried just because I felt I had to study every single day that I had to study for this amount of time each day stuck in that mindset So how did it turn out back then It got hectic I didn't study at all I was attending a language school but didn't do any homework Anyway I stopped going to school altogether That's when I realized this isn't how you study just reading books like that isn't really studying Learning while enjoying something fun feels more like learning than studying so that's why language learning is necessary Don't just study—learn instead That's the mindset I adopt Once you learn the burden simply disappears In fact Korean has become my everyday language my phone is currently set to Korean and everything I look at is always in Korean It feels like I've been naturally improving my Korean through consistent practice so the last thing I studied was from a book I think it was around 2019 It feels like I studied back in the old days So what goals do you want to achieve in Korea Do you have dreams like that I kind of feel like working a bit in Korean I'd like to do a bit of YouTube stuff in Korean How great it is to earn money while doing my hobbies So I thought it might be a good idea if I could do it that way You seem to be putting in so much effort If you have a YouTube channel or something like Instagram could you please introduce it once Follow J Funk I'll be sharing a lot about my life in Korea so if you have any questions about Korea Please do come visit us soon Did you practice a lot It sounds like you're just naturally good at it I just did it casually How come you're speaking so well When promoting Thank you for the wonderful words Oh my god Were you struggling I was actually quite looking forward to getting out of here Because I've been a fan since before I wanted to show off a bit and brag about how well I speak Korean but I guess I got a little nervous It feels a bit strange that I talked so much huh Oh dear You're disappointed It seems a bit regrettable Well then we'll see you again in three years Yes in three years I' ll be back showing you a skill far superior to what I have today Then I'll give you a gift Do you have a gift Yes Oh my god If you pick one here Just a moment just a mome I'm already wearing it Already wearing it I already have it How to sound like a native Korean speaker I've never seen this before Just a mome You can take your time looking at it Oh it's about pronunciation palm fee bread fish grass quickly pizza I already did it the pronunciation is perfect Chinese characters Oh Chinese characters Chinese characters Oh my god Wow that's great Thank you Wow it's amazing Your expression just lit up so much I'm truly happy Yeah that's right I bought so many of those Tokimans cakes already so I figured I'd get this one too—it's really useful I was about to say it's pointless This is Mariel after all So go ahead and seize the opportunity Yes That's a nice thing to say Do I know a Mariel I know a person named Mariel Could be someone I know Yes She's a friend of mine Oh really Hey older sister Thank you sister One animal per day um so even if it's hard studying at least one animal is a good thing if you do it every single day then I wonder if I'll ever achieve my goal someday Thank you so much I truly appreciate this interview today You've worked hard I need to do better next time Oh dear It's fine you did well You did superbly Thanks for having me Bye