How to build a daily study routine that lasts

A daily study routine is a small, fixed time each day when you work on your language. It matters more than any method, because a method you use every day beats a better one you use when you feel like it. The hard part is not starting. It is still studying in the second month, when the first excitement has gone.

Make the daily study routine small #

Choose a time so short that you cannot argue with it: a quarter of an hour, or even ten minutes. On good days you will do more. On bad days you will still do the minimum, and the habit survives.

Tie it to something you already do #

Attach your study to a moment that happens every day anyway: the first coffee, the bus ride, the walk with the dog. "After I pour my coffee, I do my flashcards" is a plan. "I will study in the morning" is a wish.

Plan the week, not just the day #

Give each day of the week one kind of practice, so you never waste time deciding:

Day	Practice
Monday	Review cards with spaced repetition
Tuesday	Read a chapter of a graded reader
Wednesday	Review cards
Thursday	Speak with a partner, or shadow a recording
Friday	Review cards
Weekend	Something fun: a film, a song, a recipe in the language

Track it where you can see it #

Put a calendar on the wall and cross off each day you study. A chain of crosses is surprisingly hard to break. If you miss a day, do not miss two.

Measure progress by what you can do #

Levels from A1 to C2, set out in the Common European Framework of Reference, describe what a learner can do at each stage. Reading those descriptions every few months shows you how far your daily study routine has taken you.