Below are some pieces of advice for learning Japanese in earnest.

Advanced

  1. Get rid of bad linguistic habits that you are likely to have developed over the years.
    One advanced student keep saying “SuiAsen!（「すいあせん。」 ” when he apologizes, which reminds me of a Japanese comedian with a red lipstick on his cheeks.

    He always says this expression in the right context in the right tone. The only thing that is not proper is the pronunciation.
    It should be, obviously, “Sumimasen（「すみません。」）” or colloquially “Suimasen　（「すいません」）”. He sadly complained that no Japanese people had pointed this funny sound out before.

    It is usually very hard to notice, point out and correct some of the mistakes that advanced learners make because they are so subtle.


  2. Read a lot of Japanese books to learn how we express ourselves, which is distinctively different from the way European people express themselves.

  3. Chat about anything with any Japanese people as often as possible to learn the informal/formal register.

  4. Buy a good Japanese-Japanese dictionary, which is publised for Japanese children, so that you can refer to this instead of a Japanese-English dictionary.

  5. When you talk to Japanese people, be attentive to their use of vocabulary/phrases/expressions. Make a note of those that you have never heard of. Afterwards, check them and if they turn out to be useful/interesting, add them to your list and try to use them in the right context.

  6. Be consistent in the degree of politeness. If you talk to your Japanese friends, always use friendly forms. However, when you talk/write to your Japanese teacher, always communicate in politer terms. Employ proper nouns/adjective/pronouns/verbs, etc. You have to be consistent in terms of politeness; do not mix less polite forms with politer forms as this make it seem you don’t really know advanced Japanese grammar.

  7. Realize that Keigo can be classified at least into three categories - sonkei (respect), kenjyo (humble), teinei (polite).