If there is anything that makes me happier than knowing I could sleep in or that the latest season of one of my favourite TV shows is out (Suits, anyone? I know. I’m generally very easy to please), it’s having a goal to work towards.
Now, the goals I’m going to talk about are stuff that are almost completely outside of work. I see them as hobbies to fill my time with. If they so happen to assist me in my career, all the better.
I’m just the sort of person who has to have a hobby, and as it turns out, learning is one of them 😀
Achieve fluency in Japanese
The same goes for Mandarin, but I have a greater love for Japanese. It’s amazing how much the language is tied to the culture, and honestly, achieving a native or even advanced level of fluency in it would be incredible. Of course, I’m aware that I’ve yet to tackle the toughest hurdle -the oh-so-dreaded Kanji– but that has yet to deter me. It’s intimidating, but… best to think positively about it.
It’s just one of the many obstacles standing in the way to fluency.
And really, I’ve never been happier than when I’m in class or when I’m studying the language on my own. Â The sense of achievement I get whenever I successfully complete a stage is something I’d like to keep pursuing. So yeah, come on, Kanji.
To make things even better, I’ll be receiving my first Japanese certificate after next week! I’ll have to take an exam, of course, but it’s a step towards realising my dream. Guess I’ll be hard at work studying till this coming Saturday then!
Learn more languages
I’ve always known that I love studying English. What I didn’t know is that that love can extend to other languages as well. So long as I find the culture interesting or there is plenty of good quality media to go around, it’s very likely I’d be drawn to it.
For example, with English, I actually taught myself the language before I entered school. I received next to no help from my parents, and that was fine with me. I was happy to hole myself up in my room with piles of Peter and Jane and Enid Blyton books, haha.
Now that I’m older, I’ve discovered that this isn’t limited to English. In fact, I have a list of languages I’d like to learn after settling my Japanese and Mandarin.
First one is Korean. After that, it’s hard to say, but I have an interest in learning Thai, Portuguese, Spanish and Cantonese. Which ones I’ll definitely take is a mystery due to time constraints, but yeah, those would be cool.
We’ll see what happens in a couple of years.
Participate in a language exchange program
This isn’t as huge of a deal as it sounds. It’s essentially a program available on certain language learning apps where people are able to find native speakers of the language they’re studying and practice what they’ve learned thus far through conversation. This can be done via text messages, audio messages and video calls.
Of course, they have to teach a language in return. Hence the term “language exchange program”.
Hone my photography skills
This one might seem a bit random, but I’ve thought about it and I think it’s a good skill to have, especially considering the field that I’m in.
It’s not something I’d like to solely dedicate myself to, but again, it would be good to have. Plus it also means I can pretty up my blog with much better pictures, haha.
That being said, I’ve already looked up a class I can sign myself up for. Just gotta wait for the next batch to start, and hopefully, it’ll work out with my schedule.
Travel to Japan
This one’s a no-brainer. Japan is such a beautiful country that is rich in culture. How could I not want to go?
Thankfully enough, this one seems to be pretty much in reach. My family and I are planning to visit the country once my brother and I are more fluent in the language. Earliest would be sometime at the end of next year or one of the following years, if all goes well. Goodness knows it’s hard enough for us to find time when we’re all free, so who even knows when it’ll happen.
Improve my drawing skills
This one’s been up there for a long while now, and because it’s more of an idle side interest than anything else, I wonder if it’ll even happen. But yeah, when I was younger, I used to want to become a comic book artist.
It seems very silly when I think about it now, how I used to draw pages and pages of comics to sell and how I was successful at it too. Parents even called in to complain because their kids were buying too many of it! HAHAHA. That was a funny time.
Even though I’ve lost interest in becoming an artist, drawing still remains a small hobby of mine. It would be nice to have it taken to the next level.
Insert more skill acquisition here
Graphic design, more in depth Adobe Photoshop skills, more and more certificates… Even thinking about these things makes me wonder if I’ll even have the time or energy for the majority of them. It’s not as though I’m a student anymore, but that’s alright. At least this means I have stuff to look forward to after work.
Ah, well. I think that’s about it for now. There are more things I could add to this list, but right now, my Japanese textbooks are waiting for me.
Till next!
