With language learning, it does not matter how many languages you know or how efficient your study methods are if you don’t have enough time to apply your languages. Even if you knew 20+ languages, if all you do is engage in tourist conversations, you will have a lot of fun and meet new friends, but you are leaving much to be desired.

To make a lasting impact with your language learning, you must be able to produce new and interesting content. If you are a great speaker, you will be pleasant to converse with and if you are a great writer, your works will be read by people in the future. This may sound like an extremely high standard for many of you, but it is the challenge presented that separates the best from the average.

As technology improves and new methods are discovered, it may be possible to learn more languages within our lifetime. Already we have seen people learning languages faster now than they could 10 years ago. Entire communities are built to discuss various strategies. People challenge themselves to learn a language to a certain level by a certain date. New apps are being created to make acquiring grammar and vocabulary fun. No longer are people sitting in classrooms cramming vocabulary flashcards, memorizing entire declension tables, and practicing outdated language.

It is estimated that it takes 2-3 years to learn a language from a different language family and months for languages within the same language family, but if someone figured out a way to cut this number even in half, you could easily learn twice the number of languages in that time frame. It would be even better if someone figured out how to learn multiple languages simultaneously while maintaining the same efficiency as learning one language, but this is rarely the case.

However while people learn languages at a quicker rate, applying the language has not changed much over the years.

I do believe that a knowledge of enough languages so as to incidentally qualify as a polyglot is an essential aspect of an ideal education, for to me being educated means not so much knowing information, but rather knowing how to go about getting information and put it into a meaningful context.

One of the hardest challenges in enjoying native content is reading classics in the original language, often requiring a large passive vocabulary of 20,000 words. One way to process information quickly is through speed reading, however speed reading techniques were not designed for literature. People read classics to appreciate the depth of language, not necessarily for content, since there is almost always an English translation available. Being able to understand word play and cultural nuances shows that you have a finer understanding of the language, for the effort required to learn a language is still a large cost that pays back slowly over the years.

After a while, you may find that consuming content starts to get boring as there are diminishing returns at a higher level. It is at this time that you start producing value although at no point should you stop input.

When it comes to generating new content, creative writing is where the person can leverage the unique characteristics of their target language to produce ideas that no one even thought of before. The person who knows more languages at a higher level will have an advantage, for their creative capacity is greatly expanded with each additional language. The same story can be expressed differently depending on the language and while some nuances are lost in translation, other small details are added in.

The range, the breadth, the depth, the quality, and the quantity of 19th century scholarship measured against the output of contemporary scholars in the same field is incomparably greater. Obviously, linguistic range facilitated flexibility of mind while its absence narrows it. At any rate, if our great-grandfathers could do this, why can’t we?

The famous polyglot Mezzofanti, fluent in 38 languages, was able to write poems in multiple languages. Even among polyglots, creative writing is a a rare skill, as most polyglots are speaking polyglots not writing polyglots. He was also known for having perfect pronunciation in many languages just by listening to people reciting the Lord’s Prayer.

While you may know that each language uses a different subset of sounds, you might not be aware of words that sound like the thing they represent. You can easily craft sentences where you can literally hear the brook and the water flow as you speak the words. This is a great reason why pronunciation matters more than you think, as mastering pronunciation allows you to feel the soul of the language.

One of his favourite amusements consisted in improvising little scraps of verse in various languages, for the most part embodying some pious or moral sentiment, which he flung off with the rapidity of thought, and without the slightest effort.

It is an accomplishment even today, as most people would not be able to write creatively in multiple languages despite having superior technology such as Internet access to language learning resources and convenient communication with people around the world. For many people, it is challenging enough to compose poems or stories in their native language, even harder in their second language, and nearly impossible in multiple languages. Improvements in technology and learning methods don’t necessarily translate to better output if the individual does not know how to leverage their language skills for maximum gain.

Most language learners become fluent speakers but their impact is extremely minimal. This is because most language learners are more than satisfied with speaking multiple languages, as we live in an age where being multilingual is seen as having talent instead of indicating hard work. Further most people’s motivation derives from speaking.

This does not mean that using language for only daily communication is bad but if they wish to take full advantage of language learning, they are better off producing content of lasting value in addition to using the language frequently with other people. Many people become better learners but they are not as good at getting everything out of their investment.