RushMandarin

Reflecting on how my partner, friends, and family are radically transforming my Mandarin learning journey <3 Recorded August 23, 2025 (Day 387 of learning Chinese)

I'm finally opening up to parts of myself I'd closed off all my life. Recorded August 22, 2025 (Day 386 of learning Chinese)

For Huishi and I, learning Mandarin is a bridge to learning other Chinese languages, Cantonese (广东话) and Wuhanese (武汉话) respectively, and connecting more deeply with family and relatives. Recorded August 22, 2025 (Day 386 of learning Chinese)

I was terrified to ask my friends if we could speak exclusively in Mandarin. I thought I'd be a burden, but it turns out I was wrong. It's deepened my relationships in new and unexpected ways. Recorded August 22, 2025 (Day 386 of learning Chinese)

(中文 first 33 sec, then English) Huishi, from Australia, shares her Malaysian Chinese family background and what learning Mandarin means to her and how it may serve as a bridge to learning Cantonese. Recorded August 22, 2025 (Day 386 of learning Chinese)

I used to have a scarcity mindset. Now, I have a growth mindset. Maybe because I always felt my Chinese just wasn't good enough. Thanks Tom for believing in me, and in all Chinese learners. I owe you one. Recorded August 22, 2025 (Day 386 of learning Chinese)

For me, Mandarin is more than just language learning, it is a door through which I can access culture, identity, connection, healing, and transformation. Are you part of the Chinese diaspora or are friends or partners with someone who is? And hope this episode offers you an opportunity to reflect for yourself, what Mandarin means to you? Thank you Jenny Wang for including international/inter-count...

(Warning: has some crying at 1:55) I didn't know this would happen, but this first week launching my podcast RushMandarin has opened a part of my heart, has allowed me to begin processing 9 months of being away from my friends and family and living in a language that I couldn't really express myself in or think or feel in beyond an elementary school level. In this episode I incidentally pr...

Reflecting on ways we can sustain our language learning journey in the long term. The difference might not be discipline or talent, but finding hidden treats along the way that continue to fuel our motivation. Recorded August 22, 2025 (Day 386 of learning Chinese)

I used to tell people that I came to Taiwan to continue learning and practicing Mandarin, but after talking to Tom, I realized what I am doing here is actually a lot more and a lot deeper than just language practice. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Tom changed my life. His story interweaves his love for learning Mandarin, Taiwanese culture, building a close-knit community, and finding romantic love himself. Tom helped remind me why I am learning Mandarin, so that I can access true depth in my relationships with others and with culture. It's not about some future level of fluency, it's about unlocking new depths of love and connection...

Tom is a fellow app builder who has been learning Chinese for 13 years. Nervous for this interview, let's see what happens. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

@studentmassey and RushMandarin are more similiar than they seem ~ Massey and I are both leveling up our commitments to improving our Mandarin. By taking to content creation in the public sphere, we force ourselves to use our Mandarin, communicate our ongoing Chinese goals, and merge work, play, and language learning. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Massey from Cincinnati, Ohio, live streams his beginner-intermediate Chinese to internet strangers for 2 hours a day. He's not fluent, but he shares why it's better than waiting for the (hypothetical) day you have perfect Mandarin. Find him on TikTok: @studentmassey Recorded August 17, 2025 (Day 381 of learning Chinese)

Think speaking Mandarin Chinese is terrifying? Well wait until you hear how Massey breaks out of his comfort zone. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Thank you Wujinda (武進達) for helping me live more of my life in Mandarin. I hope here on RushMandarin, we can interview more and more friends in Mandarin. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

(中文) Wujinda (武進達) shares how going out and living life in Mandarin helped him breakthrough more than enrolling in more Chinese classes. This is our first interview in Mandarin, and I was intentional to include the raw audio, errors and all. Recorded August 15, 2025 (Day 379 of learning Chinese)

Wujinda (武進達) pushed me outside my comfort zone, and thanks to him, we recorded our first interview in Mandarin. This just might be the start of RushMandarin becoming a bilingual podcast. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Human connection and language learning are tightly intertwined. I give myself permission to admit that immersing myself in a new language has be really, really tough and sometimes disconnecting. I started this podcast, in part because I wanted to stop learning Chinese in isolation, and start learning in community. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Speed isn't everything. Hearing Nicolas's story helped me remember that language learning is a lifelong journey, and protecting against burnout is critical to having fun and enjoying the ride. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Nicolas, a polyglot from France, learned Mandarin through handwriting Chinese characters. He shares how choosing failure over perfectionism can to protect against burnout, how to reach your language goals through a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) framework, and why maybe...you need to forget words 7 times to truly learn them. Recorded August 12, 2025 (Day 376 of...

Nicolas shares his polyglot story and how Mandarin is his current target. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

After interviewing Anliyang, I share deeper questions around conversational fluency and accessing advanced topics. I left this interview with more questions than answers. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)

Anliyang (安立洋) from Saint Vincent in the Caribbean, shares his 5+ years of experience studying Mandarin in Taiwan, how he got to proficient Mandarin, and what barriers exist to reaching full fluency. Recorded August 12, 2025 (Day 376 of learning Chinese)

Our first interview! Thank you Anliyang, for being my first guest on RushMandarin and introducing me to Taipei's vibrant language learning community. Recorded August 25, 2025 (Day 389 of learning Chinese)