Sometimes, it can feel like learning a language is its own full-time job. But can you really learn Spanish with a full-time job?
It won’t be as easy as if you were in school. But there are some things you can do to learn the language when you work 40 hours a week.
In this article, I’m sharing my best tips to help you learn Spanish while working.
1. Know Yourself
One of the best tips I can give you is to know yourself. Consider when you can focus the most throughout your day.
Personally, I’m more of a morning bird, so I’m most alert in the mornings. I like to spend my mornings doing tough tasks.
But maybe you’re more of a night owl, and you can focus better after work. You don’t need a ton of time if you can truly focus and buckle down for a short period.
2. Set Realistic Goals
When you’re learning Spanish while working full-time, you’ll only have so much time. Not only do you have work, but you also have personal obligations.
That means you need to be more realistic about how much you can learn in a week/month/year. If you don’t know what’s realistic, spend a couple of weeks learning what you can.
From there, set goals for each week or month on what you want to learn. Do your best to reach them, and adjust your goals if necessary.
You won’t become fluent in a year, and that’s okay!
3. Test Different Learning Methods
I first learned Spanish in a middle school class, so I had no control over the methods we used. But if you’re an adult, you have total control over how you learn.
Some of us learn well with grammar workbooks and vocab lists. Others prefer to use comprehensible input and immerse ourselves in the language.
Spend your first month or two trying different language learning methods. Pick one or two methods that work the best for you and your needs.
4. Utilize Your Commute
I know, we all dread the daily commute to work. But you want to know what it’s perfect for? Listening to Spanish!
You can listen to Spanish learner podcasts or other audio sources. My favorite thing is to listen to some of my favorite Spanish language songs.
And this method isn’t only for your drive to and from work. You can use it when running errands or going on long road trips.
Just make sure you follow up with more study so that you can retain what you learned in the car.
5. Consume Media in Spanish
Another one of my favorite ways to study Spanish with a full-time job is to watch shows in Spanish.
You can watch native Spanish shows. But I love watching some of my favorite English language shows but dubbed in Spanish.
As a beginner, you can do this with kids’ shows and cartoons. The vocabulary is small enough that you won’t have to use a dictionary as much.
If you want to watch Spanish media, consider using Spanish subtitles. I know if I have English subtitles, my brain will focus more on that and not learn as much.
6. Follow Spanish Accounts on Social Media
If you find yourself scrolling social media, consider searching for accounts to follow in Spanish. You can do this in a couple of ways.
First, maybe you follow a few accounts that teach you Spanish. So in Spanish is on Instagram and has educational content to help you!
I also like to follow a few creators who speak Spanish. But they talk about anything that you would find in the English language.
7. Listen to Music in Spanish
I’ve mentioned this before, but I love listening to music in Spanish. When listening to a new song, I like to read the lyrics while listening to the song at least once.
Now, I do consider this more of a supplementary method to learning. The flow of the language in a song is different from that of normal speech.
So if you only ever listen to music and not regular speech, you might not get the right rhythm when you go to speak the language.
But if you listen to the same songs on repeat, you can start to really get to know the words. And you can even learn a bit of slang, depending on the artist.
8. Join a Conversation Group
One thing I wish I did sooner in my Spanish learning journey was join a conversation group. I started going in the spring of 2024, and it’s been great.
You get to speak with other people in your second language. The group I attend has speakers of various levels, so everyone can learn a little bit.
More advanced speakers can reinforce their vocabulary by answering questions of less advanced speakers. And of course, newer speakers can learn more vocab.
9. Avoid the Comparison Game
As you learn Spanish, try to avoid comparing yourself to other students and speakers. This is particularly important in the context of a group.
For example, you may attend a speaking group with college students. They have more time than you, so they might progress faster.
Or maybe there are people who started learning when they were in school. So even though you’re around the same age, you might feel behind.
The only person you should be comparing yourself to is yourself.
Final Thoughts
It can be hard to learn Spanish with a full-time job, but don’t let that get you down. I work full-time and squeeze in Spanish study when I can.
Be sure to try a few different things to see what works for you and your schedule.
And don’t hesitate to check out our Spanish flashcards for some more study.