『Learning Kanji + Motivation』

We all have our reasons when it comes to why we are learning Japanese, and to be able to learn Japanese effectively you need to have motivation and enough discipline.
Wanikani specifically requires a lot of motivation to be able to power through your reviews and sometimes you may feel that you aren’t coming anywhere when you are done with your reviews, but trust me all of the dedication you put into learning kanji & Japanese will pay off.

I started learning kanji the summer of 2020 and I was pushing the reviews until I was burned out on Halloween.
If you look at my current level on Wanikani it will display that I am level 6, even though I started 6 months I’ve only managed to get myself up to level 6 out of 60.
The reason behind why I am only level 6 is because I lost motivation too and my will for learning kanji.

If you compare me with other people who have been pushing for 6 months then It will look like I haven’t done my reviews at all.

New Year came around and my sister wanted to watch an anime called “Demon Slayer (鬼滅の刃)” and just because I was hearing Japanese around me and recognizing some vocabulary words in the anime it really sparked some motivation in me because I noticed that all of the effort I put into Wanikani paid off, even though I hadn’t studied Japanese for a minute I could still translate just a little bit.

I recommend for those people who can’t do all of their reviews at once (no shame!) that they do them slowly instead, if you have 400 reviews for example, then split them up and do them at your own pace!

If you feel like you might quit learning Kanji because of motivation reasons.
Just remember that you are closer to the finish line then where you started.
I’ve also been there, wanting to learn Japanese but lost my motivation.

Today I managed to burn my first 17 items in the review queue. It gave me motivation because I saw myself that all of them reviews didn’t go to waste and that I was getting the hang of things.

But most importantly when learning Japanese is that you enjoy it.
I learned English from the internet so if I can, then you can learn Japanese (or atleast kanji) from Wanikani!

Hope to see you at Level 60 someday :slightly_smiling_face:
Feel free to post about things that got you motivated to learn Japanese and your journey so far on Wanikani!

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I’ve always said that it’s important you find and focus on the things that motivate you in the long run, as opposed to spur of the moment motivators, but it’s amazing how such a seemingly small thing like encountering a word you just learned out in the wild can completely change your perspective on learning the language.

While I personally don’t have any major motivation issues, you did just motivate me to do the whole 3 reviews I had that I was planning on leaving until tomorrow morning, so thanks!

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I noticed the same thing with Haikyuu!! It was really motivational to be able to understand a lot of the sentences (they are often quite simple), and even pick up new vocabulary from time to time! I love to analyze grammar whenever I’m studying a language, and while watching Haikyuu I could simultaniously focus on the plot and break down sentence structures in my head! I really recommend it, it really helped me regain my motivation, and now I find studying Japanese really fun and fulfilling!

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Its good to hear you’re interested in studying again! I, too, stopped at the beginning of the year so I completely understand how tough it gets. I really slowed down in the last 3 months as well but hey, as long as you’re doing something everyday, you’re progressing.

I remember watching a Nintendo mini direct and understanding the release date of a game mentioned in japanese (冬休み). First time understanding kanji in the wild and it was a great indicator that I was progressing even though I may not feel like that sometimes.
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If you’re interested, take a look at the Level 7 Leaderboard group. There’s a lot of people at different levels just working at their own pace. We just have each other on leaderboards to see progress, encourage each other or just relax and talk! Might help to see a lot of us just struggling alongside you lol

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Sure! I added you :slight_smile:

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Added you as well!

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