I worked in a state-run company

The time I worked in a state-run company in ShangHai, I was not busy at all, so I had plenty of free time.

Most of the time, when I tried to learn English, a few ladies entered into my office with sarcastic voice: “ Wow, you studied so hard, I have never studied as hard as you, what's for? You wanna leave the company?"

I knew one girl whose Dad had very close relationship with the manager so that she’s got the chance to take 2 days off with paid salary and  attended a course which was paid by the company as well.

But she’s trying to mock me who was not fortunate enough to get 2 days’ free lessons.

The other ladies would be more than happy if I gossipped with them all day except I couldn't do my own study.

Smart kids

I used to hear stories regarding some super smart students who only spent time doing assignments at home.

Conversely, they pretended not study at all in the school because they wanna show off that they were born of genius, they could still get the best results in the class without putting any effort, how smart they were!!!

I used to be fooled by those smart ones, I told myself: why I was so stupid, how clever they were, I was hopeless.

What a pity, no one ever told me that I could become better by spending more time on what I was learning.

Completed Uni degree in Australia

After many years, when I was the only one in the class who received study excellent scholarship from Latrobe Uni and after I completed Uni degree in Australia, I confirmed myself: No, absolutely, I was not as stupid as what I supposed to be.

I am excellent!! I can do anything as long as I have interests in it.

We all have talents and strengths in some way, which is better than anyone else.

If we put huge efforts on what we really really like, we will be the outstanding ones one day.

Anthony Robbins 

Anthony Robbins, who hasn’t got life coach certification with only high school education background, but he’s the most successful one in the world for writing best-selling self-help books and being the most sought after life coach in the US.

Yes, we can’t deny he’s a gifted public speaker, a bestselling author and an outstanding life coach.

His associates admired him very much: “How lucky you are, you are a genius with such an ‘innate’ talent.”

Anthony Robbins replied to them that he didn't get a life coach certificate, but he has read over 700 books, he has been to as many seminars as he could and he also listened to the tapes at home.

In his seminar, when students asked him how long did it take to become an excellent public speaker, the following was what Anthony Robbins said:

In my organization, someone can have 48 public speaking a year, I can finish it within 2 weeks, so within 2 months, I will have 2 years’ experience. Within 1 year, I will have a decade’s experience.

-- Anthony Robbins

My Experience in learning English

Some people asked me how to improve English as a second language, then I would like to ask the same question as what Anthony did.

How many hours you have been spending on learning English per day?

At the end of 1990s, after 10 years' struggling, finally, I quit the job in a state- run company.

While I was taking care of my daughter and doing housework, I almost spent more than 10 hours a day in looking up dictionaries for heaps of unfamiliar words from the textbooks and then memorizing the vocabularies and phrases, listening to the tape record in the library, practicing speaking English with friends until one day I lost my voice in an oral English exam.

Obtained an English Diploma in Shanghai

Eventually, I gained self-confidence as I passed the self-taught English exams and obtained an English diploma from Shanghai Foreign Language Uni in 3  years’ time.

I have got through from the darkest moment, after that, eveything went very well and good luck came to me.

For the past 30 years, my life was very tough, how many times I have failed, without making a big decision and keeping persistency and determine, probably, I will still work in that state-run company the whole of my life like most of the others in my age.

I don’t think I will be qualified to be an overseas student in my 30s without spending 10 years in learning English by myself and studied really really hard.

You can achieve your dream

Therefore, please don’t let me know that you are not as smart as someone else.

If you wanna reach a certain level, please let me know how many hours per day you have been spending.

If a dumb student like me can achieve a 10-year dream, I can’t tell why you can’t do it?