I see lots of post people get upset when realizing they gave their phone number to strangers. Buy some temporary SIM cards and use them (for example when buying new home, when buying something online, whatever, etc.). You can always throw this SIM card away.

I spent a year and a half learning Spanish with different apps every day: Praktika, Anki, Memrise, and Duolingo. Felt like I was making progress.

After a while, I hit a wall. None of the apps told me when I made a mistake. For two months, I kept making the same error without knowing it. Apps help you practice, but they don’t catch the mistakes you overlook. I ended up getting really good at repeating my own errors.

So I decided to book a 45 min lesson each week with a real teacher. In the first ten minutes, she noticed mistakes that the four apps had missed for months. That one lesson helped me more than all the apps put together.

This happens with other skills too. If you use an app to learn an instrument or to code, you face the same problem. Apps give you practice, but teachers give you feedback. You need both. Many people avoid correction because it costs money and can feel uncomfortable. But getting feedback is what really helps you move forward when you’re stuck.

Keep using your apps, but also try to spend an hour each week with a teacher who can point out your mistakes. And start sooner than I did.

More words do not always create more understanding.