Language learning success means overcoming prevailing myths, ditching vague plans and setting realistic goals.

Mastering any new skill is difficult, whether it’s web design or roller skating. But the idea of learning a new language tends to fill people with absolute dread. Why?

For starters, there are plenty of language-learning myths that prevent lots of people from even attempting to learn a new language. One of these myths is that learning multiple languages is beyond the ability of some people; in other words, children of monolingual parents are simply not genetically suited to becoming polyglots. People often trot out this excuse when learning a new language proves difficult.

But while such ideas can be off-putting or discouraging, they are myths that buckle under scrutiny.

Just take societies across the world, from Canada to Switzerland, where speaking multiple languages is the norm. Surely, people in Switzerland don’t have some special language-learning gene that other people lack.

Nonetheless, when people are continuously confronted with myths like this, they start to believe them. As a result, they give up before they’ve really tried. In this way, myths can derail your language learning goals – but so can vague plans.

A vague plan like, “I’m going to learn Spanish” is daunting. After all, learning a new language from scratch is a huge undertaking. One way around this is to set specific tasks that contribute to a realistic goal, thereby giving yourself a sense of accomplishment.

To do so, start by deciding how fluent you need to be. If your goal is to speak with native speakers without straining, aim to reach level B1 or A2 in three months. But if you just want to be able to order food in a restaurant, A1 is probably sufficient.

Once you’ve set your long-term goal, break it into steps. For example, you might make a commitment to yourself to spend at least two hours a day on language learning.

After you’ve overcome debilitating myths and have set realistic goals, you’ll be ready to broaden your vocabulary. Next, you’ll find out how to learn lots of new words – and fast.