Language & Travel Hacking

Enthusiastic learner, New York resident, musician, and polyglot, Fiel Sahir, joins Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy to talk about finding mentors, learning heritage languages, studying Chinese with the Language Hacking Mandarin book, and using languages in a non-language-related field. Fiel, in his own words, says one of his greatest strengths is his endless curiosity. It’s led to him making incred...

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge participant and Dutch learner, Corentin, chats with Benny and Shannon about “redefining” yourself as a language learner and finding success in your new identity. We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge will have a 15-minute conversation in their new language after 90 days of learning. You can find out more here . Featured Resources Fluen...

Benny shares the reasons he learned Esperanto and why it's so useful, despite it not being an officially recognized language. The international Esperanto community is one that Benny loves being a part of, not least because they know how to throw a good party! And learning this as one of your first languages has been shown to have significant benefits for learning subsequent languages, giving you m...

Linguistics expert and language enthusiast, Simon Ager, talks with Benny and Elizabeth about creating one of the internet’s biggest (and first) encyclopedias of languages and writing systems. On his website, omniglot.com , Simon has cataloged over 340 writing systems and collated information about more than 1,600 languages. Simon has studied a wide range of languages including Chinese, Japanese, F...

Professor, polyglot and all-round language expert, Alexander Argüelles, talks with Benny and Elizabeth about his routines, methods, favourite activities and language learning interests. Professor Argüelles employs his vast experience to help people learn languages through a variety of methods, including reading circles and videos on his YouTube channel, and he shares a lot of advice and inspiratio...

This week Benny shares some exciting news in a special Ask Benny episode. Benny is heading back out on the road, to live the nomadic life he loves. This means new language challenges and lots of interesting updates from his travels.  Things are also changing for the podcast, as this week we launch the option to support us on Patreon. The podcast is still continuing as normal on the usual channels,...

World traveler, tour coordinator, and language learner, Scott Brills, joins Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy to chat about “faking” comprehension, deep-diving into cultural experiences, and cross-country adventures around the world. Scott has an impressive travel résumé having taken part in the Mongol Rally, traversing India in a rickshaw, and building a business that provides travelers with rich c...

Our first ever Language Hacking Podcast guest, author, and course creator, Scott Young, revisits the show to catch up with Benny and Shannon and share what’s changed for him over the last two years with his language learning and projects. Scott is an expert on learning and how to work better. He’s a best-selling author who took on the MIT Challenge, A Year Without English, and many more intensive...

Language Hacking Podcast co-hosts, Shannon Kennedy and Elizabeth Bruckner catch up and talk about how this last year has been a time of learning, and building self-compassion and resilience in both language learning and life. Mentioned in this Episode Fluent in 3 Months Challenge Pimsleur Shannon’s Spotify French Sunnyside Language Conqueror: Mindfulness Power of Now When Good Things Happen to Bad...

This new episode is all about language islands. Benny explains how creating these specific areas of language knowledge, based on your personal needs or interests, is a solid way to build confidence and get speaking when you start learning a language. And using these topics as a focus will help you reach fluency quicker, as you're able to talk about your islands in depth, and with confidence. To as...

Language Hacking Podcast co-hosts Benny Lewis and Shannon Kennedy catch up and share what their own recent language learning projects, takeaways, and milestones have been, as they approach the 100th episode of the podcast. Mentioned in this Episode Fluent in 3 Months Challenge Benny’s Instagram Benny’s Facebook Benny’s Twitter Shannon’s Instagram Shannon’s Website Episode Overview Some of the topi...

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge participant and Italian learner, Louisa, speaks to Benny and Shannon about how she learned as much about herself, as she did about languages, while taking part in the Challenge. Louisa found as many opportunities to personally develop in the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge as she did as learned Italian. We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in 3 Months Challen...

Benny shares how he uses the "Pomodoro Technique" in his language missions,, and explains how you can use it to work or study for longer periods of time. The Pomodoro Technique is a very accessible system of working that requires nothing more than a timer and a little bit of self discipline (but not that much!). Benny has found it really helps him to manage his ADHD, maintain focus, and not give i...

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge winner, Fiona, joins Benny and Elizabeth to talk about her progress learning Italian, the myth of “natural talent”, and how excited she is to speak to family, friends and Italian locals without the need of a translator. This episode features Fiona, who made significant progress with Italian in just 90 days with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge . We guarantee that anyon...

Business coach and self-proclaimed “VietNomad”, Jeremy Ginsbury, talks with Benny Lewis about his experiences living in Israel, Ghana and Vietnam, and being on reality TV in another language. Ready to get back into more serious language learning, Jeremy reflects on the bits and pieces of different languages he has picked up throughout his life, and how the positive feedback he has received by loca...

In this episode, Benny talks about why, after many years of using it, Anki is still his favourite app for language learning. Anki is a free flashcard app that utilises spaced repetition theory to help you learn vocabulary that you input yourself. While some people may find Anki a bit bland, Benny explains how the simplicity of the software not only makes learning more efficient and focussed, but a...

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge participant, Sam, joins Shannon and Benny to talk about how the Challenge changed the way he learned languages and helped him find consistency and discover new language learning methods. This episode features Sam, who made significant progress in many languages in just 90 days with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge . We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in...

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge coach, Laetitia, joins Benny and Elizabeth to talk about her varied experience learning or dabbling in many languages: English, German, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Dutch and Vietnamese. This episode features Laetitia, who made significant progress with several language in just 90 days with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge . We guarantee that anyone who completes the Flu...

For this episode, Benny shares his opinions and experience of the Duolingo app. Getting points and maintaining a streak may be great motivators, but does it really work if you want to speak the language? Benny explains how gamified apps can be a valuable part of your language learning, but to be successful, there is another important element that should be central to your practise. To ask Benny a...

Fluent in 3 Months Challenge participant and coach, Tom, joins Shannon and Benny to talk about his building confidence and courage as an introverted language learner as a part of the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge. This episode features Tom, who made significant progress in many languages in just 90 days with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge . We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in 3 M...

Long-time participant in the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge, Manish, joins Shannon and Benny to talk about his experience learning a wide variety of languages through many different methods. This episode features Manish, who made significant progress in many languages in just 90 days with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge . We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge will...

This week’s Ask Benny is a celebration of the Irish language. Benny talks about some of his favourite websites for learning Irish, including dictionaries, media sites, and other useful resources. This special episode is essential listening for anyone learning, or wanting to learn, Gaeilge (the Irish language). Links to all of the resources Benny mentions in this episode can be found below. To ask...

In this week’s special St. Patrick’s Day episode, Community Coach for the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge, Sadelle Wiltshire, talks with Elizabeth and Benny about learning Irish and joining the Challenge at an upper-beginner level. This episode features Sadelle, who made significant progress with her Irish speaking abilities in just 90 days with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge . We guarantee that an...

Language dabbler and native Spanish speaker, Elena Guillén, speaks with Benny and Shannon about learning Hindi during the pandemic, as a part of the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge. This episode features Elena, who found the routine and structure of the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge helped her make significant progress with Hindi in just 90 days. We guarantee that anyone who completes the Fluent in 3...

In this episode Benny gives a pep-talk to help you find motivation and courage to start a conversation in your target language. It can be so tempting to avoid speaking, whether it's because you're shy, embarrassed, or scared of making mistakes. But if you can bite the bullet and take the leap, you'll be surprised by just how much you can achieve. Listen to this episode if you need a bit of a confi...