'Don’t be afraid of being afraid' #SOC119 #LearningSpanish #Learning #BeingAfraid #Fear

Sam shares a story where when he lost the fear of being wrong, offensive, or made fun of, his life opened up in ways he didn't know possible.

Joins us live on Tuesdays and Thursdays! Right here on YouTube!

Full Lecture Here!

Class Reflection Videos:

Spring 2023 Semester, Class 7

[SOC]

Sam shares a story where when he lost the fear of being wrong, offensive, or made fun of, his life opened up in ways he didn't know possible.

Joins us live on Tuesdays and Thursdays! Right here on YouTube!

Full Lecture Here!

Class Reflection Videos:

[johnnnyboyp]

I wish I had you as a professor, you are doing so much good for our country by forcing discussion on these "forbidden " topics

[CaliforniaGirl]

Language CAN be a barrier to meeting people BUT you can learn it! Great talking point professor

[edwardbraddock]

I am an American healthcare worker and, beyond "restaurant" Spanish, I knew almost none, but my patients and their families taught me a fair bit. Often, when I would first come in and ask if they spoke English, it was "No habla English", so I would do my best to communicate in my bad Spanish, so they would respond in their bad English and between us, we would figure out what was going on and what could be done, to help their loved one. They just didn't want to look foolish and if I was ok looking a little foolish, they were OK with also sounding ignorant. They usually spoke more and better English than I did Spanish and were ALWAYS very gracious about my poor Spanish, telling me what I did speak, I did very well. Most people just desperately want your acceptance, so offer grace freely and never be afraid of looking a little (or a lot) silly, when you do. Kindness is always good.

[niakoch]

Europe' s such an awesome place. You meet so many different people. Its so much fun. I speak 4 languages. And I can understand 2 more. I love learning languages.

[starlinmanzueta]

As someone who has to learn English I agree that the only thing to hold you back from learning is just fear.

[jenniferbreidenbach]

Has something similar when I worked as a medical assistant at a low cost clinic. I just listened and learned a lot, very quickly. Most of the people were gracious and politely corrected me. After that, I would ask a question or two. I was always thankful for that. I stopped being afraid of looking like an idiot

[leoniea]

Nice to have a specific goal in life . I decided to study as much as possible and different areas so i could know a lot about a lot of different subjects and topics . Spent 40 years studying and working very hard . ❤

[adityaj]

This is why I’ve always loved your classes Sam. I’m speaking multiple languages now without the fear, just because I want to travel and talk to people and learn about this world.

[PhilipHema-tdvd]

I was visiting New Caledonia once and a concierge asked me if I needed help, in French. With 5 yrs study in school I couldn't believe I understood him! From then on I became comfortable using my conversational French finally becoming a flight attendant. Friends hv asked me if I am afraid of making mistakes but I had realised mistakes are opportunities to engage people - and learn.
Now, I am mastering conversational Japanese and all with the international language of the smile.

[MakeitaGrday]

Great message! This guy is part of solution, not a part of the problem. You can sense he is fully vested, and tested, just by his demeanor….yet, there is a humility about him that captivates…..

[annarosen]

Yes :) I did Spanish stuff/traveling bc of that boost- HS thru grad school. And then beyond. & I miss school.. learning like that👩‍🎓 💕. (Always learning, but, ya knooow)

[wanfu]

I think the vast majority of people are very patient when they figure out someone else is trying to learn their language. My dad was stationed in Italy and constantly told me how forgiving they were in helping him learn Italian.

[_hurm_]

I used to be a line cook and most of the people I worked with spoke Spanish. This one time I was trying to learn a new phrase to help call for food and the girl next to me was helping teach me it. The first time I called it out I got stage fright and butchered it and the whole line started laughing. Now red in the face, I tried a second time and I got it. I turned to her and said I was embarrassed but she replied “don’t worry about it, they’re happy that youre even trying!”
I think we forget that others want us to succeed.
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My mom is from El Salvador and being around people who predominantly spoke Spanish made me realize how hard it was for my mom to have to learn English while dealing with the fear of making inevitable mistakes and looking “dumb” especially when you know you’re not.

[ernaherlina]

I used to live in Buenos Aires more than a decade ago. I haven't spoken Spanish in 10 years when suddenly I was in the same van from the airport to the hotel (in my country) with two guys speaking Spanish with Argentinean accent. So I started to ask them in Spanish, and I was surprised I could have conversations in full Spanish with them without any problem for about 1 hour. When they had problem understanding the hotel's receptionist English, they asked me to translate it to Spanish.

[dotconnector]

Same thing happened to me when I wanted to learn ASL
American Sign Language.
Like they say silence is golden!

[duchesstyra]

I love what he said at the end I just want to travel and meet people ❤😊

[ohyeahjt]

I’m going for an education bachelors right now and the type of teaching style you have with not pushing a stance for any side is how I want to teach

[Kinjo]

This guy seems like a pretty chill professor

[StMiBll]

That was my life for bear 16 years. There is nothing like it and I miss it terribly.