I still remember my first day in Taiwan back in August 2006. It didn't go as I had hoped...

Having majored in linguistics and previously gotten fluent in Japanese, I hoped I would be able to pick up Mandarin Chinese relatively quickly. And I figured that the similarity between the writing systems would give me a big head start on literacy.

But none of this prepared me for the torrent of noise that came out of the mouths of bus drivers, cab drivers, restaurant servers, bartenders, and new friends.

It quickly became clear that language study does little to prepare you for language use. And that reading skills have almost no overlap with listening and speaking skills.

This delta became even more evident when I began teaching business English to adults. Most of my students were extremely diligent and motivated, and had spent well over a decade studying English. But they still struggled with the spoken word.

Why? Because they had spent years learning about English in Chinese. And they had spent almost all of their time focused on memorizing vocabulary and rules out of context.

And this is exactly what most of us do when learning Mandarin Chinese, too. We study our butts off. We memorize mountains of words, rules, and Chinese characters.

But even after years of effort, we get the same predictable results:

• We can understand vocab and grammar consciously when we have time to think about them, but not when they come at us quickly in conversations.

• We learn to read fairly well (especially when we have time to stop and look things up), but can't understand the same words and structures when spoken aloud.

Fortunately, there is a better way. A more natural way. A more effective way.

Immersion.

The right immersion environment trains your brain to:

• Understand the language even when spoken at native speed.

• Rapidly produce the right words and patterns at a near sub-conscious level.

And contrary to popular belief, immersion doesn't require getting on an airplane. While living in China or Taiwan can certainly be a wonderful experience, it is no longer a requirement for getting the daily exposure and practice you need to get fluent in Mandarin.

With the right methods, materials, and attitude, you can get fluent in Chinese right where you are. I call this the Anywhere Immersion Method™ (or A.I.M. for short), which I detail in my book Master Mandarin: How to Learn Mandarin Chinese Anywhere in the World. And I am excited to announce that in addition to a new digital version, I also just published the first print edition on Amazon.

I show you:

• How to build a fun and effective immersion environment right where you are, all without the hassle of moving to China or Taiwan, paying for expensive classes, or slogging through boring textbooks.

• How to bring China to you using the best modern tools, free online resources, and fun content that will make you forget you are studying a language.

In short, Master Mandarin shows you exactly how to learn Chinese anywhere, anytime. You will learn:

• Where you want.

• When you want.

• How you want.

What's the secret to getting fluent?

The key to getting fluent in Mandarin Chinese is creating a fun, immersive environment right at home. It is this environment—and all the exposure and opportunities for practice it provides—that will actually get you to fluency.

• Not textbooks.

• Not classes.

• Not teachers.

• Not apps.

Nope, your environment holds the key. And you have more power today than anytime in human history to control your learning environment. By leveraging the power of modern technology and media, you can create an amazingly effective immersion environment wherever you are:

• At home

• At work

• At the gym

• At the store

• In the car

• On a walk

You now have a third (and better!) choice.

You used to have only two choices if you wanted to get fluent in Mandarin:

1. Take expensive Chinese classes.

2. Move to China or Taiwan.

Today, anyone with an internet connection and a little creativity can learn Mandarin anywhere in the world. While Chinese classes and living abroad can be great, they no longer have to be a barrier to entry for language learners.

Master Mandarin shows you how to create a personalized language-learning environment that brings China to you right where you are. Not only can you learn from the comfort of home, but this approach has many advantages over traditional classroom and textbook-based learning:

• It's more fun.

• It's less expensive.

• It's more convenient.

• It's more efficient.

• It's more natural.

• It's more personalized, matching your unique interests, needs, and learning preferences.

• It provides a better balance between all 4 skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Meet Your "Diving Instructor"

Hi, I’m John Fotheringham, a linguist, teacher, the author of Master Mandarin, and the creator of the Anywhere Immersion Method.

Like most language learners, I really struggled to learn the language through formal classes. But once I realized that I could learn faster and have more fun by creating my own immersion environment, my progress took off. I now teach others how to learn through the same immersion-based approach, no matter where in the world you are.

I’ve been learning and teaching languages for over two decades, including studying Linguistics at Western Washington University, teaching adults in the U.S., Japan, and Taiwan, presenting at multinational companies, working as a translator and interpreter for the Japanese government, and now creating immersion books and courses.

All of these experiences have taught me what works, and just as importantly, what doesn't. If you wan to learn how to speak Mandarin, you have to speak it. A lot. If you want to understand the language spoken at a natural speed, you have to practice that skill directly. Fortunately, you can now do exactly that right at home. Master Mandarin shows you how.

Happy diving!