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Amber

Shreveport, LA • Studying: Spanish

"[My patients] feel comfortable with a physician who speaks their language… that barrier is diminished when you can speak another language."

"That’s what they say differentiations humans from animals—it’s language, it’s communication."

"They say it’s a small world. I think it makes it smaller if you learn another language."

"When you’re traveling, it can widen your horizons and give you a different perspective on life. I think it’s all worth it."

"There are a lot of intercultural marriages, and I think that also gives you an incentive. You want your kids to learn both languages—from the dad’s side and the mom’s side."

"Recently, I downloaded the app. Sometimes, when I’m not on very busy rotation in the hospital, I’ll have a few minutes and I like to go over some of my lessons."

"I took an evening class. That’s when my Spanish teacher really made me interested, and she also recommended Rosetta Stone."

Jessica

Phoenix, AZ • Studying: Teaches 3rd-12th using Rosetta Stone

"I have five students that are the only one doing their language…. [One boy’s] mother is Korean, so it’s great—he’s been able to converse more with some family members."

"In the last month or so [one student] started reading the Stories, and he said, ‘Miss Jessica, I just read all of that in Spanish, and I know what it said!’ and now he’s so excited."

Kevin

Santa Barbara, CA • Studying: Spanish

"When you’re going out to serve and try and help them in a moment of need, you try to make them as comfortable as possible and better serve them. They’re scared, they’re confused. And I can help them just by speaking in their native language."

"For me, it’s really helpful just being able to communicate one-on-one with them, and not having to go through the steps of playing telephone through another interpreter."

"Really, that’s the first step—just make the commitment. The tools are out there for you. Just go ahead, commit, and make it happen."

Pamela

Hawaii • Studying: Russian

"I work with foreign exchange students—placing them in the community and also taking students myself—because I figure, I was an exchange student and it changed my life. I should give this back to some other kids."

"I try and spend at least an hour twice a week."

"That’s what I tell people, instead of playing music or listening to the news, put on your language."

"Just go ahead and try, because most people are really willing to help."

"Recently I decided that I had to go beyond just purely audio and start learning it more in depth—and that’s when I decided to go with Rosetta Stone."

Carole

Washington, DC • Studying: Italian

"You have to speak Italian to get past ‘tourist’ Italy… and that’s 95% of it."

"I can remember thinking, ‘Oh my goodness, I am in this really challenging class and I actually understand what’s happening—and I can keep up. I have to work hard, and I can’t take anything for granted, but I belong here."

"I think it just means a lot to people when you travel to their country and you can say polite things and greet people, even if they have to meet you in English."

"I thought that I liked Italy, but didn’t love it. What I realized is that, if you only see Italy as a tourist you’re really not even getting the half of it—because it’s much more about families, and it’s much more about dinners at peoples homes. And you have to speak Italian to get past "tourist" Italy… and that’s 95% of it."

"One thing about immigrant families is, we imagine that you come from a place and then you remain attached to that place. But a lot of immigrants left and never looked back."

"We’re going back to how children learn, because we get satisfaction from little pleasures, little wins. [Rosetta Stone] gives you some of those little wins quickly."

"I feel like after a base of Rosetta Stone, you can go to a country and get started with people;and then they will take you into, really, the true purpose of a language is—and that’s to communicate."

"Rosetta Stone gives you a funny kind of confidence, because you think you’ve been talking to people—because you’ve been looking at their pictures."

"I completed the whole course. It was a surprise for me, but I just kept going. … It is really fun, and I think it goes to the visual part of the brain, and that is so important."

"[Rosetta Stone] doesn’t have that weird obsession with the present tense that a lot of approaches have—life doesn’t come at you in the present tense, I’m sorry but it just doesn’t."

Butovens

Born in France, Lives in California • Studying: French tutor studying Japanese and Spanish

"That’s the end goal: to be able to have a conversation about anything with anyone."

"I have to admit, I’m not as diligent as my students. I’m trying, but some of them are really inspiring."

"[By the end of the session], I think they feel really confident. When they laugh, I know I touched something."

"Once you start, it’s not that intimidating. And it’s extraordinarily rewarding as well."

"There is really no excuse. You find the time, you set it, and you do it every single day. And it works, I’ve seen it."

Melissa

Baltimore, MD • Studying: Japanese

"I want to go to all the little places that people don’t really hear about and talk about the folklore, the people, [and] their signature foods."

"I was nervous. I didn’t know what to expect. There are no directions, but you don’t need it. It was fun. I didn’t want to stop. So I probably went through three lessons in the first night. It’s more or less like a game, which helps you learn as well."

[My roommate] didn’t know English, and I didn’t think at that time I knew Japanese that well. We’re sitting at the dinner table, and I’m just having a conversation with her. And I was like, ‘Wait a minute—I’m speaking Japanese to her!’ I got chills.

"Once you start getting to the point where [people] see you trying, they just open up. The whole world opens up, and the world becomes smaller."

"I was able to fill out applications and audition in Japanese—so the reading and the writing, also—you gain that from Rosetta Stone."

Jessica

Washington, D.C. • Studying: French, Greek, Spanish

"It makes traveling so much easier. Being able to ask people even simple questions, in their language, is such a phenomenal experience."

"I walked up to a Greek man who was selling something on the street, and I asked him [a question] in Greek … and he responded in such fluent Greek that I assume my question made sense to him and he didn’t think to dumb it down for me. That was a very cool moment, and it inspired me to keep going with it and get even better."

"I studied about two-thirds of the program before I went to Greece, and when I got there I was able to read the street signs."

Alex

Everett, WA USA • Studying: French, Spanish, Italian, Navajo, Russian, Japanese

Anecdote: "I like dabbling in languages… I just don’t like sitting around watching TV most of the time, so for me it’s just a hobby."

Language Journey: "It’s like opening a door. Even when you’re still a just beginner, people appreciate that you’re trying to learn their language—and sometimes they’re surprised."

Why Rosetta Stone?: "I really appreciate that Rosetta Stone is preserving endangered languages."

Peter

Los Angeles, CA • Studying: Italian and Spanish

"Have fun along the way, and everything else falls into place."

"You might approach someone and you might think they’re going to judge you, but oftentimes they are happy you speak the language—and they congratulate you. And that motivation keeps you going."

"Don’t worry about the big picture. Don’t worry about having that fluent conversation with someone … just focus on the basics and have fun doing it along the way—it’s really about the journey when it comes to language."

"I studied Spanish and Italian with Rosetta Stone, and … just being able to have a few conversations on the road allowed me to navigate my way within those countries."

"Use the language. It’s one thing to get immersed in the product, but you have to implement it. So get out of your comfort zone."