Self-Studying Korean

I am just a student, and I am broke. Yes, I cannot afford Korean classes, that's why I decided to self-study. I tried studying Korean before but I had difficulties on understanding it. Then I found out that finding your own techniques on learning is the key! The following are based on my experience.

PREPARATION

1. Find a very peaceful place for you. You don't want to be distracted while studying. Make sure you clean your area first so it will make you feel comfortable too.
2. Prepare all the materials you need. It's easier if you can access your things right away. It's disturbing when you keep on standing up to find something because you didn't prepare your materials, it may also waste your time.
3. These are optional, but you can also prepare a snack and drinks. Studying while feeling hungry will not help you, it will get you out of focus. But also, note that eating too much will not help you either. Your body may focus on digesting the food and that makes you tired easily.
4. Another optional but recommended tip. Listen to relaxing music! It sets positive mood while studying.

MATERIALS

1. References. Of course you need references. If you have books, then it's much better. But for those who cannot afford Korean learning books, our friend Google is just here to offer you books. I recommend this file Basic Korean: A Grammar and Workbook by Andrew Byon, because aside from lessons, they also included exercises in here to practice your skills. Also, download a vocabulary list, or use a Korean dictionary for vocabulary.
2. Pencils and erasers. It is not required to use pencils, but based on my experience, it's much better than using pens so you could erase the mistakes. I only use pens when summarizing the lessons.
3. Highlight pens. Very optional because highlighting is not really effective on everyone. I just use highlight pens on important points so I could see them easily.
4. Notebooks. Some of you may be too lazy to write, but trust me, writing will help you the most. Just use the notebooks for answering exercises and to summarize lessons to make it easier for you to review.

LEARNING

1. Take your time reading references. Accept that learning Korean or any language is not easy. It will really take a long time before you can totally master it. Like what I had said on my introduction, I attempted to learn Korean before but I didn't understand it well before because I keep on rushing. Don't worry about the long lessons, that's the reason why I included notebooks on materials you'll need, summarize what you learned.
2. Learn systematically. Learning little-by-little is actually the most effective way of learning Korean. There's nothing wrong if you're curious about the basic phrases, but if you want to really learn Korean then start from the very beginning, just like how we learned our own language.
3. Talk to your Korean friend. It's like an actual exercise for you to test your skills. You can also ask for their help. But for those who don't have Korean friends like me, just talk to yourself. Yes, talk to yourself. It's not embarrassing because you are learning and that's part of learning. To check if you're doing right, check videos online and compare them to yours.
4. Watch a lot of Korean dramas. If you're not a fan of Korean dramas, still watch Korean dramas. You can watch with subtitles, but pay attention on how they say a word or phrases, the expressions, etc. Another thing I do is translating any Korean song lyrics, I learned that from oh no nina.
5. Vocabulary. It's not included on books, not much of it. So you have to study vocabulary separately. A tip, don't just memorize them by reading, apply them on daily basis, like while using something, call them on their Korean name instead of your own language.
6. Challenge yourself. Don't be afraid to fail, it's a way to measure how you improved or what you have to change. Use flashcards, take quizzes, it's your choice. Just challenge yourself.
7. Set your schedules. This is important, be consistent and have discipline. But also care for yourself too. You don't have to study Korean literally everyday. Take a break, don't pressure yourself to much.
8. Review. Check your notes if you don't have anything to do.

That's it. Happy learning!

Anyway, Here's oh no nina's link, she also learns Korean, and shares wonderful tips on learning Korean.