How to speak 10 languages

How open are we to language acquisition? This is what we are discussing in today’s episode.

We work a lot with international audiences and international teams, and it seems that language plays an important role here. This is why I’m so glad to have Vladislav Alehno as my guest. Vlad is not just a polyglot — he is a hyperpolyglot.

In this episode you will learn:

Why calling a language “foreign” can block your progress — and what to say instead.
How to connect with a language emotionally, not just intellectually.
Why “complex” is better than “difficult” when describing languages.
How Vlad learned French fluently in just one year using natural immersion.
Why attitude matters more than talent in language learning.
Simple first steps to start learning any language.
How languages build bridges — and become part of your personal story.

When you listen to this conversation, please think about any leader, HR, DEI expert that can benefit from it and share with this person later on. I really care to be reaching the right people with my content, so thank you very much for this in advance.

I wish you fun and discovery!

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If you need to educate leaders in how to create psychological safety in your remote teams, or if you would like to increase inclusive leadership practices, or resilience of your employees – please contact us at ETTA www.ettagoglobal.com.

Additional materials:

Vladislavs Alehno on LinkedIn
Vlad on TikTok as langdao.vlad — “Langdao” stands for “language path” (from the Chinese dao meaning way or path)
Vlad on Instagram
Podcast What are Microaffirmations and why you want to have them in your team
Podcast Egypt. The Joy of Relationships
Podcast in Polish O Krok Do Przodu

Who is our guest?

My name is Vlad, Vladislavs, and I am a hyperpolyglot. Two years ago, I wasn’t calling myself a hyperpolyglot because it sounded a little bit too much, as the word “hyper” suggests. However, hyperpolyglot, by definition, is a person who speaks six or more languages fluently — ten, fifteen, even twenty. In my case, I’m able to communicate and use as a communication tool twelve languages or even more, depending on the situation. Usually, I say “more than ten languages.”

Working in an international setting, it’s really important to build bridges, because it’s so easy to destroy them. There are too many differences.

My mission is to build bridges and encourage other people to build bridges with others and with themselves. The languages we’ll speak about today and the approaches to learning them are part of my mission — building, not destroying, bridges.

Language as the Ultimate Icebreaker

I have about ten years of experience working as a sales trainer with different international teams. Every time you speak only English or only Polish with people who work with customers in their own language, there is a barrier, a kind of wall. They think, “Okay, Vlad, what you say makes sense, but it will not work with our nation because we are so unique.” But the very moment you apply even a few phrases in their language, the situation changes. There’s this feeling like, “Oh, now we feel that you know what you’re talking about because you’re talking about us.”

That’s how my languages began — out of practical necessity to find a common language. And over time, they developed, just like every skill does.

Building Bridges with Language in International Teams

We don’t need to be fully competent in the language, but here it comes to this division: “we” and “them,” especially in international organizations. The headquarters are “they,” far away, and “we” are here, with our own ways, trying to adapt.

When somebody speaks your language, it works on an unconscious or subconscious level, making them part of the group. It’s this in-group psychology — you transfer yourself, even if just a little, one step closer. You will never fully become Italian, for example — forget about it. Even if you speak fluently, you grew up in a different environment. But by using the local language as a tool, you are actually one step closer, one step ahead.

Personal Experience as a Latvian in Poland

I experienced it myself as a Latvian living in Poland. On average, Polish people don’t have very deep knowledge about Latvia, which is completely understandable. But whenever I meet someone who knows how to greet others in Latvian — how to say “hi” or “thank you” — it has a huge effect on me. I immediately open up and think, “Whoa, you’ve done your homework, you’re curious about my country.” Of course, it won’t always work the same way.

Cultural Differences in Language Appreciation

For example, French people might not have the same attitude, because they often feel that others should speak their language. But when working with smaller nations — Hungarians, for instance — they appreciate it a lot when you can say at least something in their language. It’s about showing respect for the very core of someone’s identity.

Language is not only an expression of culture; it’s a tool for creating identity.

How Did the Languages Come

There are different approaches to learning languages. One of them I call the “CV approach” — where you just list languages with some letters like A, B, C to indicate your level. But I don’t really feel connected to that approach. For me, language is biography.

Every language you speak is part of your personal story — the story of your life.

Growing Up Multilingual

In my case, I was born in Latvia, in a Russian-speaking city. I grew up speaking Russian as my first language. Nobody in my family spoke Polish or even Latvian — that was simply the environment I lived in. However, because of my Polish origins and the historical connections — Poland was present in our region’s past — I went to a Polish kindergarten and a Polish school. So, from childhood, I was speaking Polish too. Latvian, being the national language, was another part of my environment.

I grew up with three mandatory languages — Russian, Polish, and Latvian — and the fourth was English.

Talent or Curiosity?

There’s always a question: is it about talent? I think everyone has some talents, some strong sides. In my case, I’m good at noticing text; I’m very curious about language and words. I started learning English even before it was taught at school. I had a book and was simply curious, so I started studying by myself.
At school, four languages were my reality — but not everyone from my environment became a polyglot.

Then in Poland, I started studying international relations and European integration, and I also majored in Japanese. For five years of my life, I actually spoke Japanese. I had Japanese senseis, and every single day was filled with Japanese characters. I really appreciate this time because it opened me up to the world.
When you are able to speak Japanese and at least understand a little bit of that very different culture, all the other languages — here in Europe at least — start to seem more familiar. You look at them as one big family.

A Lesson in Respect from Japanese

One approach and value that I use for languages — and I think I learned it from Japanese — is respect.

All those questions like “How to learn language X quickly in three months or six months?” show a lack of respect for such an enormous layer of culture that you actually learn throughout your whole life. You’ll never finish learning a language completely.

It’s the same with Chinese characters. In Europe, we learn the alphabet and we feel ready: “I can read, I can write.” But with Chinese characters, you can learn your whole life and still never know them all — there is no limit.

Language Learning as a Life Journey

Later on, I continued my journey and started working in a call center using Latvian, because I realized that this language gave me some advantages in the market — it’s rare.

My wife is from Azerbaijan, so Azerbaijani and then Turkish became part of my personal life too. For me, these are like my family languages, and I feel an emotional attachment to them. While working as a trainer with international teams, I also learned Lithuanian, Estonian, French, and, more recently, Italian and Ukrainian. These are the two extra languages I now speak.

Again, it always comes from communication with people, because I believe language is about people.

Languages must have a face, a name, a story behind them.

Shifting the Focus: From Perfection to Competence

That’s the thing we need to change if we want to become truly competent in languages. And I want to stress being competent — not fluent, not perfect — definitely not perfect, but competent. The school system provides knowledge and then tests it. That’s what it does: either you know it or you don’t. It also shows language like mathematical patterns — you need to understand and strictly follow the rules. You need to be very attentive to follow these rules, because if you don’t, the teacher catches you making a mistake. Exams are about proving you don’t make too many mistakes — otherwise, you fail.

Failure as a Step Toward Competence

I actually like the word “fail” — it stands for “first attempt in learning.” In my approach, I look at languages as a competence built from three areas — it’s a triangle, basically.

First, knowledge is important. We cannot be competent without any knowledge — that’s for sure. But if we focus only on knowledge, we won’t become competent.

The second area is skill. Skill is created by repetition. Every repetitive action you perform with a goal in mind will eventually become a skill. Some people need to repeat something 10 times, others 15, and others 50 — but through repetition, the skill is created.

Why Schools Fail to Build Real Language Skills

From this perspective, school doesn’t give us many opportunities to build real skills, especially because it often starts with alphabet recognition. Observing my son as he acquires his first language, I understood something important: we should start with listening, just like children do. Then comes the “parrot stage” — repeating and producing language by speaking — and only later should reading and writing come into play. That’s how we build flexibility in language, and when we start with the alphabet, I think we actually mess things up a bit.

Building Skills the Right Way

From the skill perspective:

If you want to build better listening skills — listen more.
If you want to speak better — speak more.

There are different methods for building skills, and if you search Google or ChatGPT for “how to learn a language efficiently,” you’ll find many. They work — but only if you repeat them consistently. However, there’s a third crucial area of competence: attitude.

The Power of Attitude

Attitude is about motivation, beliefs, and emotional response. To simplify, you can think of attitude as having a plus or minus sign. A minus attitude says: “No, it’s too complicated. I’ll never speak the language. I don’t have talent.” The more you repeat these thoughts, the more you reinforce that negative attitude.

I’m creating content on TikTok and Instagram about languages, freedom, and emotions connected to language learning. I speak to a lot of people, and about 70–80% start by saying things like: “I would like to speak German, but I’m bad at languages. It’s too difficult. I think I’ll never speak German.” And sadly, that story becomes true. Exactly — you will not speak German unless you start working on those beliefs you’re expressing and repeating to yourself.

How We Sabotage Ourselves — and How to Stop

That’s the cruelty we play on ourselves. Maybe we’re missing positive examples — and I’m so glad we can take some from you. Actually, positive examples are key. Everything I do, including this podcast, is part of my mission to show that such examples exist. It worked for me; my passion for languages started when I saw other polyglots, like Luca Lampariello, an Italian hyperpolyglot who speaks very good Polish. By watching videos of other polyglots — even if their methods didn’t suit me (Luca’s method doesn’t work for me at all, and I don’t even like it) — I still learned from their attitude.

That’s what I’m trying to share now through TikTok and other platforms: a spark of passion and a sense of psychological safety — the message that it’s okay to make mistakes. You’re not a bad person. You’re not stupid.

Making mistakes is an indispensable part of the learning process.

Building a Positive Attitude on Purpose

Even if you repeat negative beliefs about language learning, you are still building an attitude — just with a minus sign. When you start practicing skills, a negative attitude can easily lead to demotivation. For example, you might listen for five minutes, not understand much, and then get frustrated and angry with yourself. That’s why, for the past ten years, I’ve been consciously working on my attitude — on emotional and mental hygiene. There are even words and phrases I deliberately avoid using when talking about languages.

This has truly helped me build an attitude with a plus sign — a mindset that supports my growth.

Language Without Labels: Changing the Way We Speak About Learning

One simple rule — rule number one: I never use the word “foreign” when talking about languages. “Foreign” carries negative connotations, and in many languages, including Polish, it can feel like “alien” or “strange.” It sounds uncomfortable, even a bit weird. I realized that if I keep calling a language “foreign” while aiming to become competent in it and feel free using it, I’m actually sabotaging myself. So, I stopped. Now I simply say “languages,” or even better: “my languages” — my French, my Italian. They are part of my identity and personality. I love them. They are interesting, deep, and beautiful.

Avoiding the Labels of “Easy” and “Difficult”

Another rule: I never call languages “difficult” or “easy.” It’s disrespectful. Building a relationship with a language is like building a relationship with a person — you wouldn’t meet someone and immediately say, “You’re a difficult person,” right? Everyone has aspects that are easy and difficult, and it’s the same with languages. Instead of labeling them this way, I focus on positive adjectives: languages are unique, interesting, incredible, and beautiful. For example, with French, I used to repeat a mantra to myself every morning: “The French language is beautiful and important to me.” Not “difficult” — beautiful and important.

Complexity vs. Difficulty

Every language has some complex parts. For instance, Japanese grammar is relatively simple — it doesn’t have cases, genders, or endings like Slavic languages. However, its honorific system is extremely complex and difficult to master without actually living in Japan. The word “difficult” is just an opinion, while “complex” more accurately describes the structure — and that complexity is part of the culture. Something can be simple, but not necessarily easy.

How I Learned French in One Year

My story about French is simple: from zero to fluency within just one year. I applied exactly the same principles I’ve been talking about when I started learning French. In my previous company, there was a French-speaking team but no French-speaking trainer. While training sessions could be held in English or Polish for other teams, the French team required training to be delivered in French. It was a practical need. At that time, my son was about one or two years old, and observing how he learned languages gave me inspiration. One day, I said something in French at home, and my son laughed — he loved the sound of French! It quickly became our playful home language, and we started counting and joking in French together.

Childlike Learning: Living in the Language

I used the “child algorithm” to learn:

Children listen a lot first, even when they don’t understand.
They observe situations, connect sounds with actions, and recognize patterns through repetition.

I started living in French:

I watched the news in French.
Listened to French music — creating a playlist of my favorite French songs.
Learned grammar naturally from lyrics — artists like Stromae, Manu Chao, and French rap expanded my understanding.
Practiced speaking French at every opportunity at work, especially with Francophones.

French phonetics are complex — not difficult — so hundreds of hours of listening were necessary. I practiced every day. I didn’t allow other languages into my life — it was full French immersion.

Full Focus Creates New Identity

It was full focus. By living in French, I created a new identity, because what you do defines who you are — verbs matter. By doing everything in French, the language gradually became a natural part of my life. And by consciously avoiding negative language — not saying “difficult” or “impossible” — and instead repeating positive affirmations, I built a strong, personal connection to French. Now, I feel completely natural in the language — and it truly is my language.

Personal Journey: Relearning Polish

Being a “Polish” person in Latvia is not the same as being Polish in Poland. For me, Polish was almost sacred — the language of the fatherland. I read many Polish cultural classics and even twice participated in the Polish Language Olympics here in Poland, performing very well. But when I moved to Poland to live and study, I realized that I was still a foreigner. Even though I knew the cultural code and spoke fluent Polish, it was a different reality. Living in a country means experiencing it in a completely different way, so I had to restart my Polish learning journey. Now, after almost eighteen years of living here, I think I finally understand a little more about Polish people — and, of course, it happened through the language. And it’s still a never-ending story.

Practical Tips for Starting Your Language Journey

I would approach it very practically. First, name three favorite songs in your target language — songs you could listen to a hundred or even a thousand times in a row. If you don’t have them yet, go find them. Next, name three people of influence — they could be podcasters, public figures, or anyone important to you who speaks your target language and feels like an authority. If you can’t name three yet, go search for them and make them part of your life. Languages must have a face, a name, a story, and a set of experiences behind them. Even if you can’t meet native speakers right away, we have the Internet and smartphones — there are endless ways to connect. Grammar patterns are important, but our brains learn best from other brains. We need real-life examples, real people, real emotions.

Another tip: find three favorite movies in your target language — or any other cultural content you enjoy. Apply your curiosity! If you love Japanese, look for Japanese music, films, theater, or even content about trains, if that’s your passion. For me, because I love psychology and human sciences, I always listen to psychology podcasts — in Italian, in Japanese, in any language I’m learning. Your learning must be connected to your own interests. There’s no one perfect method — because we are all different.

Thank you!

Photo by Leonardo Toshiro Okubo on Unsplash

How to speak 10 languages - ASA 018