Man with 3,326 day streak on Duolingo says he 'still isn't fluent' after 9 years
New Years resolutions aren't always easy to stick with many of us abandoning our health kick by the second week of January. The more ambitious among us might decide to learn a language over the year.
For many who opt to expand their horizons through language the natural choice is Duolingo - a free app for users to learn over 40 languages.
The app also gives you a streak so users can see for how many days in a row they have been learning. Even the most dedicated to their New Years resolutions might find themselves slipping after a year or so but one man is now at nine years.
Owen Radford has never been to Italy despite nine years of learning the language (Owen Radford)
Owen's streak on Duolingo has been unbroken for over 3,300 days (Owen Radford)Discover, learn, grow. We are Curiously. Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
Owen Radford has celebrated a streak of 3,326 days which equates to a total of nine years learning his chosen language, Italian, although he has dabbled in others.
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He told The Mirror: "I started learning Italian, which I'd been meaning to do. Although I started in December it was a New Years resolution from previous years.
"I just started learning on Duolingo and when you start something like that there's a lot of energy and motivation but it was seeing the streak counter go up and making various milestones."
Initially, the SEO specialist from Pudsey, Yorkshire, set out to learn Italian and now considers himself "proficient" in the language.
There are over 40 distinct languages to learn on the app - including High Valyrian and Klingon (SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)He said: "I have a colleague at work who is Italian so I'll speak to her whenever we're in the office together.
"I'm quite, quite harsh critic of myself so I'd never say I'm super fluent or anything like that but I'm happy with the level I've been able to get to."
After nine years, Owen is still finding things to learn as well as doing refresher courses whenever he needs to talk to his Italian colleagues about something specific. He wants to continue learning but also realises he's running out of lessons in Italian so is considering branching out into Dutch too.
He found that choosing languages which resonated or had a specific pull worked better than ones he felt he "should learn", which is why he thinks many struggle in school. He said: "In other countries in the world it's pretty normal for people speak two, three or four more languages."
The SEO specialist has chosen to predominantly focus on his Italian but has tried other languages over his 3,300 days, including French, German and some fictional ones.
"I did a couple of lessons of High Valyrian, that must have been right around the time of the last season of Game of Thrones," he said. "I think that was harder."
High Valyrian is a language created by author George RR Martin for his series Game of Thrones. It is one of only two fictional languages that can be learnt on Duolingo, along with Star Trek's Klingon.
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For Owen, the fictional languages didn't stick but his dedication to learning did and after passing 100 days he felt determined to keep the streak going. This wasn't always easy as life got in the way but Owen worked out a way to incorporate it into his daily routine.
The famous - and "threatening at times" - app notifications have helped him stay on track but he also has multiple reminders for himself that go off throughout the day.
Owen recommends anyone looking to stick to a resolution like this try to make it less intimidating, such as opening the app and doing five minutes while having a coffee or eating lunch.
He said: "The minimum is quite small, you can do a lesson quite quickly, it's just building a habit."
Over the past nine years, Owen has inspired his friends to join in with best friend Tracy now at over 800 days too. He said is doesn't intrude on his social life but they do "find it a bit odd sometimes."
Owen's friend Tracy was inspired to start learning thanks to his dedication (Owen Radford)
She has now reached over 800 days streak on the app with no plans to stop (Owen Radford)This community element has helped him stay the course with the pair encouraging each other when together. The SEO specialist also confessed he has a competitive side, saying: "One of the things I really like is the leagues, I can get very competitive as well.
"You start to recognise that you put a few lessons in suddenly you're at the top of the league for a week. And then somebody does a couple lessons and pushes you down. It becomes a little bit of a battle."
He called his own advice "quite boring", adding there's no "trick" to being consistent for nine years. Owen added: "Like going to the gym you start small, be consistent and you have to make mistakes because that's where you learn."
Despite his dedication to Italian, Owen is yet to visit the country after Covid disrupted his plans in 2020. His New Year's resolution this year is to save up for a trip to Sicily - and keep up his Duolingo streak.
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