157. Unlocking the Real You in Mandarin

But Where Are You Really From?: An Asian-American Struggle

You've heard Angela share her struggles with trying to improve her Mandarin, being at a loss knowing simultaneously too much and nothing at all, it seems. She's also explicitly said that there is a clear market for creating a resource for Mandarin speakers born outside of the motherland, but that she wouldn't be the one making it! ...well, she's officially eating her words because recently Angela felt compelled to bring something like this to life to help people like us finally be able to have meaningful conversations in Mandarin and express ourselves the way that we've always wanted to, especially with family and friends. That's why she's been busting her butt creating a Mandarin course designed specifically for ABCs/ABTs with the help of her Mandarin teacher (Jane) based in Taiwan. In this episode, the first half (up to 18:48) is in English, and Angela and Jane discuss their inspiration for starting Real You Mandarin, the structure of this self-paced online course (video based realistic dialogues!), and what makes it uniquely tailored for the ABC/ABT audience (hint: a focus on real topics like dating & relationships and even media representation). In the second half of the episode, we switch into Mandarin to discuss the best and worst parts of working on this course so far! If you're a Mandarin speaker, we invite you to listen to the second half and learn some things along the way, as Angela asked Jane to live-correct her Mandarin when she made mistakes trying to express herself! Real You Mandarin is available now. You can learn more and join the course at: https://real-you-mandarin.teachery.co/ and follow them on Instagram & Tiktok at @realyoumandarin Now through the end of June, you can access the Early Bird Discount 25% off price directly on the site. As an additional thank you for being a loyal listener to the show, if you sign up now with promo code "whereareyoufrom10" you'll get an additional 10% off the course price! This AAPI Heritage Month, connect more deeply with friends, family, and your culture by learning to unlock the real you when you speak Mandarin! ---- Follow the podcast on Instagram at @whereareyoufrompod and on TikTok at @butwhereareyoureallyfrom --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/butwhereareyoureallyfrom/support