That’s one of the first questions people might ask when considering learning a new language.

Some would say it takes a couple of years; others will affirm that three months is enough; others might go with “an entire life”. So, who’s right?

The thing is, language learning is not an exact science. It’s a process. The only one who can tell you how long this process will take is YOU.

You are the only one who truly knows yourself. You know your strengths and your weaknesses. You know what you like and what you dislike. And you know how you want to learn and what makes it efficient, because that’s what you have been doing most of your life.

Of course, there are many ways of learning; there are hundreds of methods, thousands of resources, good schools with great teachers, and yes, all of that is important for an effective learning process, but at the end of the day, it depends on you. Because it doesn’t matter if you have the “best” teacher with the “best” method and “best” material. If your target language does not become part of your life, then you’re choosing not to embrace the language. It will just keep being a stranger to you, and you will end up with a painful, more prolonged process.

And it shouldn’t be that way.
Maybe today you need to learn a new language for professional reasons, maybe for an exam, maybe because someone told you you should. Either way, if you choose to begin this journey, make the best out of it. Make it an adventure. Language learning can be a wild, fun ride. But only if you choose to view it from a different perspective.

Speaking more than one language does far more than offer better work opportunities; it unlocks doors and breaks barriers. It provides you with scenarios you would never dream of, and knowing people and cultures you would never consider doing so.
If you think less about time and enjoy the process while focusing on living and owning the language, you will achieve your goals.

So, if today your question is: “how long does it take to learn a language?”, turn that into “what will it take for me to learn this language?”. And make sure you do whatever it takes.