So, I didn’t do any reviews yesterday. Actually, I might have done 1. I logged into the app several times, but just couldn’t process anything. I think I burned a vocab word, but I just couldn’t. And for the last few weeks, I’ve gone done from 3 review sessions a day, to 2, or even 1.
So, I guess the thing is, I’m OK with that. I was on a 9 day a level pace, and now I’m not. But maybe I’ll get there again. Big life changes happening, and stability might be just around the corner.
Because WaniKani is a journey, that at BEST will take a year, it’s been really helpful for me to see people persist through all sorts of different circumstances.
So I get it now. 7 days a level doesn’t mean you’re smart, and 14-21 days a level doesn’t mean you’re dumb. It is almost certainly what’s going on in your non-WaniKani life that drives your pace.
So if you’re going fast, please, in between patting yourself on the back (which there’s nothing wrong with, you are awesome), take a moment to be grateful for everything in your life that’s supporting you and making that possible.
And if you’re going slow (and your accuracy is suffering), don’t wonder what’s wrong with you, but pay attention to what in your life is making it hard / impossible to do your reviews 3 or 4 times a day. Those things are real, and give compassion to them. Because you’re awesome too.
I would say that this applies to learning Japanese in general. Some people get too wrapped in the mentality of going quickly through things or treat it as some sort of competition to prove their intellectual superiority but learning a language isn’t a contest. There are lots of factors that go into how much time and energy you can spend on Japanese and that’s ok. As long as you’re doing whatever works for you, then you are doing great
Another thing to keep in mind is that people are more likely to post about an extraordinary achievement than about being totally average. For every person that boasts a 99% answer rate there are another 20 or so that keep quiet about their less than perfect review sessions. Never feel inferior, just showing up everyday to do your reviews is more than most people will ever achieve regardless of pace or percentage.
This was the perfect thing to read for me right now. My time for WK has definitely slowed down, but I’m also ok with one session a day too. Life is life.
There is a difference between being awesome and being full of yourself. Please consider just kindly appreciating this topic, instead of being smug about it. It doesn’t really add positivity to this community which is intended to be civil and kind. Just wanted to give you a heads-up in case you weren’t aware you were doing this.
I was worried that would happen, but since PMs are disabled I can’t really give a heads-up without detracting from the sentiment of a specific thread. The best I can do is make a “Details” section.
Level 21 (which is what I reset from) no longer shows the 164 days that I wasn’t here because of everything going on with my life.
Real life has a way of majorly getting in the way of your goals and dragging you down in the process, making you feel inadequate or just bad in general. Dealing with personal issues should always take priority. Just the fact that you’re here at all, doing what you can, is proof enough that you’re not dumb or not as good as the ones going full speed ahead.
Take your time and feel good about it! The journey may be full of bumps and pot holes, but you’ll get there in the end as long as you try.
It probably applies for much more in life… Actually it reminds me the words of my iaido/kendo teacher. An old (70+), wise man that did budo his entire life, (incl. 15 years in Japan). Well I had a seminar (= 6h training) last Sunday with him, and he basically said something like:
“The budoka seeks to improve their aura, self-confidence and charisma. In the end, this is what enables them to gain respect from both people caring for them and their opponents, not their technique or physical strength. This way, the budoka will not be impressed by their opponent and will be able to give their best, which is ultimately the goal of the training. If you go with all what you have and give your maximum, nobody can ask for more and then it does not matter that you win or you lose. This is much applicable to everything in life.”
Aye, the point of this place is to learn the kanji, not to reach level 60 and win the game. If you hit level 60 but don’t remember anything, you haven’t accomplished anything.
@novakac I really like what you are saying and I agree with you. But, also the exact opposite can be true. Some people may only be able to go that fast, because their life is really bad and WaniKani (or language learning in general) offers a distraction from all that.
And yes, while this is a fun game and all, I also think that the real achievement isn’t measured in the level you show, but your actual language progress, the progress that you know and feel. Even if you don’t progress for a while, just knowing that you do the best you can and don’t give up is an achievement as well.
I’m sure the holy Crabigator sees all and will reward its loyal followers regardless of their speed.
Really bad? Maybe. But you can still be grateful for the home and computer and internet connection and financial resources for the subscription. Not to mention the memory and intelligence and mental health it takes to succeed.
I don’t think gratitude and compassion for the tough spots in your life are incompatible.
I’m not trying to be a pollyanna here, it’s just that all these things are under threat for me and/or a loved one right now.
And I’m grateful for this supportive and encouraging community. We’re awesome. Not all online communities are.
