Anup is an Expat living in Stuttgart (Germany).
He works as a Senior Consultant at Deloitte Consulting GmbH.
He started my online-program “From Zero to C1 in 25 Minutes a Day” at A2.
My Program offered him a structured learning system that he could easily integrate into his busy life.
Step-by-step he has been improving his German by developing a better understanding of grammar and sentence structure and growing his confidence in expressing himself when speaking.
Just after finishing my A2 Module, a few months ago he gave it a try and took the official B1 TELC exam.
He was able to pass it with an incredible 95% score in Speaking:
- Reading/Listening: 44/45 (98%)
- Writing: 19/20 (95%)
- Speaking: 95/100 (95%)
Here’s a complete interview I did with him so you can learn from his journey going through my program.
Let’s jump right into it.
Anup,
What did you try before starting with my program “From Zero to C1”?
I had joined traditional language courses, which also works but needs specific time slot every week for example joining classes two or three times a week for 2.5 hours each. Additionally, not all teachers had good experience in communicating learning strategies.
What was your biggest challenge you faced with learning German?
I had a couple of them like –
- I always missed an effective learning strategy
- Not being able to recall all the topics and points discussed in the class
- Not being able to always spend one fixed slot for classroom training
- I was terrible when it came to writing in German, especially these articles and adjective endings.
What kind of program were you looking for?
To be honest, I was not looking for anything :) I happened to bump into Herr Professor free podcast and that was a turning point for me. I found his podcast super effective and it helped me a lot to improve my German.
What was your goal when you started?
My goal was to improve my basics as I had a feeling that without strong basics I will not be able to improve my German.
What stroke you the most the first time you came across my program?
Manuel‘s effective learning techniques and a very simple way to break long sentences into smaller ones is key to this program. In addition, he really focussed on the key topics which are very important in German like verb position, adjective endings and many more.
What was the big difference between my program and the way you learned German before?
As I said before, super effective learning techniques and ability to hear the podcasts and lessons again and again. I think if you listen to the conversation again and again, it helps a lot to improve your German, and in fact any other language you are learning.
What are some of the results you’ve achieved so far going through my program?
The immediate benefit was that I was able to speak fluently and confidently. Of course, I made mistakes but that did not stop me from speaking German. Also, my vocabulary improved a lot only through this free podcast :)
How did you prepare for your B1 exam to pass it with flying colors?
Simple two step process – “From Zero to C1” course + 1 hour everyday solving model test papers.
I solved 4 to 5 model test papers and it was easy to pass the B1 exam.
How long did it take to prepare for your B1 exam?
After I had completed the A2 Module of your “From Zero to C1” course, I took a gap for a month and solved a few test papers to gain some more confidence.
What was the most difficult part in the exam?
For me it was speaking. During the speaking section you don’t get much time to think about your response, hence you will have to prepare well in terms of how you would like to start a conversation and remember the key words you would like to use, so that it makes a positive impression on the evaluator.
Which specific resources helped you the most along the way?
I would say the material of the the “From Zero to C1” course was the top resource that helped me to improve and made my basics strong and I think that was the key to a successful German B1 course.
Also, a little bit of self assessment and identifying my weak points and further trying to improve on it helped me a lot.
How did you stay focused and motivated through the program?
Since I desperately wanted to improve my German, I just took day by day and made sure that I spent at least 15 minutes everyday to learn German.
The strategy “one step at a time” helped me to stay focussed.
How did you manage to combine a full-time job and learning German on the side?
If there is a will, there’s a way :)
How did a typical daily learning routine look like?
The biggest advantage we have as “From Zero to C1” students is that we can learn German at any time of the day. I basically utilized my travel time to the office, lunch breaks, travel time back home and whenever I had some extra breaks. It was not a fixed routine, but more flexible and easier to manage without any stress.
How much time did you spend daily on average for your learning?
On an average 1 hour every day.
What did you emphasize the most when learning?
I focussed on the basic concepts like the German cases, article and adjective endings.
What was your biggest obstacle and how did you overcome it?
My biggest obstacle was the articles and adjective endings. These concepts are very well explained in the course. As I learned it, it also helped me a lot to improve my writing skill-set.
What was the most important thing that helped you become more fluent in speaking?
Daily practice and listening to to podcasts again and again.
What helped you the most to overcome the fear of speaking to others?
I was speaking to my office colleagues quite often during lunch breaks and eventually, based on the strategies I learned from the course, it helped me to speak German fluently.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to someone who wants to learn German but finds it hard to find the time due to his/her busy life?
I always believe in the power of multiplication. Hence, even if someone can spend 15 minutes daily that means by the end of the week he/she would have spent 15*7 = 105 minutes learning German.
However, one should know what he/she needs to learn and hence to avoid trying to spend time in planning and identifying the right material to learn, I would suggest to try the “From Zero to C1” course and check it out yourself if it helps you and I am sure it will :)
“From Zero To C1 in 25 Minutes a Day” is my All-Inclusive, complete, step-by-step, no fuss, hassle free 75 Lessons online program (yes, only 15 lessons for each Module A1/A2/B1/B2/C1) for Busy Professionals like you, so you can go from scratch to become fluent and confident to join meetings with your colleagues, negotiate with your clients and give presentations in front of your bosses IN GERMAN. Even if you have a busy working schedule.
If you’d like to be added to the Waiting List of “From Zero to C1”, enter your information below, and you’ll be the first to know when I re-open the course.