This may sound like a weird topic, but I think it’s a very interesting idea.

(In case anyone didn’t know, “VS” is short for “verses” and means “compared with” or “competing with”)

My message of this blog post is this:

LEARNING ENGLISH IS NOT REALLY THE SAME THING AS LEARNING A LANGUAGE

Ok, I hope to have your attention now.  You might be thinking, “What the hell is this crazy guy talking about”?

Well, think about this.  Imagine I told you that I will start to learn Swedish.  That might be fun.  It might be interesting.  It might be a great thing for me to do.  But, I’m probably not going to do it.  (If you are Swedish, please don’t be angry with me  I chose this example because many people from Sweden are very smart and will understand this example without being offended)

Why don’t I try to learn Swedish?  Well, the thing is that there are a lot of things that I want to do in this world and I don’t have time to do them all.  There are only about 9 million Swedish people in the world, and they have a great English program already in their country.  I can communicate with many them already with using English.  For me, learning Swedish would be similar to learning a new hobby.  I could learn to play the guitar, I could learn how to cook fancy food, I could learn how to dance, I could learn a lot of things.  I might do some of these things one day, but I’m not going to right now.  We all have only 24 hours in a day and we can’t do everything we want.

Why is learning English SO different?  It might sound like I’m being unfair or something.   Well, here is the thing…

English is the world’s language.  By not having REALLY GOOD English, you are missing out on SO MUCH of what is going on in the world.  Yes!  I’m talking about making a lot more money.  But that is only part of it.  I’m talking about improving your entire life.

The purpose of learning English is NOT to learn a new language and communicate with more people.

The purpose of learning English is to JOIN THE REAL WORLD!!!!!!!!!

You might have an awesome life already, and I hope you do, but I guarantee that it will be a hell of a lot better, richer, and more interesting if you put focussing on learning English as one of the most important things you do in your life for the next few years!

You should absolutely keep your own language and never forget your culture, but it’s almost weird and ridiculous to not take English learning super seriously.  It’s absolutely possible to do it now, it’s fun, and it’s not going to cost you a fortune.  I could write a whole book about the major benefits of learning English, but I think you are smart enough to imagine what some of those are.

I’m not talking about getting to just an “ok” level.  I’m talking about totally kicking ass!  This is what we are doing here.  We are having fun, but we aren’t joking around.  We are serious about making sure your improve your English improves to the point where it makes your life (WAY better, much more interesting, much happier, and it makes MUCH more money for you)

This is not going to happen in one or two days, but it will happen if you take it seriously, and we’re here to help.  The process will be more fun than you think, the results will come faster than you could guess, and the benefits to your life will be MUCH better than you can imagine even now.

English isn’t really just a choice anymore.  It’s a total MUST in my opinion.  Some people understand this but most people don’t.  They don’t understand how important it is because they can’t see it.

Some people never leave their country for a trip, some people never leave their city for a trip, some people never even leave their town or their village in their entire lives!

They might seem happy, but they are in a little bubble.  Can you imagine if you lived in a small town and NEVER left it even one time to see what was outside?  I guess you might know people like this; people who have never been anywhere and live just a simple life of doing the same thing every day; no new thoughts, no new experiences…

I know people like this in Canada.  They don’t know how important it is for them to get out and see some of the world.  They aren’t dying so it doesn’t seem necessary.  I’m trying to say that not learning English WELL is almost like the person who has never left their little farm village.

I don’t wish to insult or judge these people.  I just want to make a point for the people reading this blog who get what I’m trying to say.  If you can read this blog, good for you! Your English is already not bad at all!  But it’s not enough.  You NEED to keep going.  If you don’t believe me, that’s fine.  I just want to make this point to give you something serious to think about.  This is my honest opinion and I truly believe that you won’t regret it if you follow this advice!

Please leave your comments below  I love reading them as always.  Do you agree with what I’m saying?  Am I making any sense?  Will this help give you more motivation to learn?  Let me know below…

And also, please remember to visit our English Video lessons every day!  We’ve got over 40 now and we’re making a new one every day, 7 days a week.  I hope you go there and watch the video.  Warning!  Your English WILL get a lot better  And also, our monthly membership part of the site will be ready soon.  We know you are gonna LOVE it!

We just made a new free podcast here.  NEW FREE CHINA232 PODCAST

The podcast is actually about Stitcher Radio.  I think you’ll like it!

This free app from Stitcher is the best way to listen to free mp3 English podcasts.

You can use the free Stitcher radio app on your ipad, iphone, Android phone, Android tablet, or Blackberry.  It’s really clean and easy to use.  Just download the free App here and enjoy the 232 lessons wherever you want in a super convenient and comfortable way.

Please watch the video below for more details.  If you can’t see Youtube in your country, Here is the link to China232 on Stitcher!

Hey guys,

Here’s another Canadian song Add and I often listen to while we’re cooking or working out. I’m not sure why we like it, but for some reason it just kind of feels good. I like the lyrics “words of the song” as well as the feeling.

The song is by “Sam Roberts”. It’s called “Brother Down”. The song was what they call a “one hit wonder”. This is a great phrase to understand in spoken English.

If a band or singer is a “One hit wonder” it means they made one and only one song during their career that got super popular.

Some bands and singers make many great and popular songs. Many bands and singers make one song almost everyone knows, and all their other stuff either sucks or just isn’t popular. I haven’t heard a lot of music from Sam Roberts, but I do know this song and I know he’s referred to as a “One hit wonder”. Here is the video of the song. Below are the lyrics. Will LOVE to hear what you think!!

One life to live but we’re doing it wrong you see
Got my brother down ’cause it’s nothing to me
Everyone’s saying that it’s wrong to cheat
But there’s no other way to get my life on easy street

Someone else telling you what you’re living for
Been knocking you down now you’re looking for more
The only sound you hear is a closing door
Been looking for peace but they’re bringing you war

Rich man crying ’cause his money is time
Poor man smiling ’cause he knows he ain’t blind
There’s a man over there says he’s tougher than me
But I got eyes that can see through fantasy

I think my life is passing me by
I think my life is passing me by

Take it all back ’cause it don’t mean nothing
If you give it away and you’re looking for something back
Wake up every morning and there’s nothing there
No reason to die but no reason to care

Someone else telling you what your living for
been knocking you down now your looking for more
The only sound you hear is a closing door
Been looking for peace but they’re bringing you war

One life to live but we’re doing it wrong you see
Got my brother down ’cause it’s nothing to me
Rich man crying crying cause his money is time
Poor man smiling cause he knows he ain’t blind

I think my life is passing me by
I think my life is passing me by

One life to live but we’re doing it wrong you see

Here is one of my favourite Neil Young songs. You can see the lyrics in the video. Listen to it on good speakers and let me know what you think. Next time, I’ll play some music from other artists, but I just really want to get you guys into Neil Young. He’s awesome! Love to hear your thoughts on this song!

I was just reading some investment news. I’m trying to decide if I want to buy some Facebook stock. It is kind of cheap now so I was thinking it might be a decent time to buy. Some very smart people are saying now is a great time. So, I’m thinking about it…

Now I’m a bit confused. I just saw this new Facebook TV commercial on Youtube. It’s definitely “odd” to say the least. I’d love for you to watch it and tell me what you think of it.

Why would they make this?

Is it good for their brand?

Does it make sense?

Do you like Facebook more or less after watching this?

Can’t wait to hear your thoughts! (Send this link to your friends too. They are probably bored at work anyway and wouldn’t mind “wasting” a few minutes with a good laugh. I’d like to hear their comments too.)

I wonder if China232 is like a chair… Lol. If it is, I’m thinking the VIP section is more like a BMW or Porsche 911