In Zen, the act of sitting down and doing nothing isn’t about idleness. It’s about allowing the mind to rest and reset. When you stop forcing progress, you invite understanding to emerge naturally. This stillness isn’t passive—it’s active receptivity.

In language learning, this means stepping back from constant effort to allow the language to settle into your subconscious. Play a podcast in your target language without trying to grasp every word. Let the rhythm of the language flow through you. Over time, your brain will pick up patterns and nuances effortlessly.

Research supports this approach: studies on the brain’s default mode network (DMN) show that periods of quiet reflection are crucial for consolidating memories and integrating information. In short, doing nothing allows your brain to do its most creative and productive work.


💃🏻111 Tips for Learning a Language 

Tip 56 - How the Zen principle of Sitting Down, Doing Nothing can help you 

In this episode of Ctrl+Speak, we break down the concept of ACL (Access Control List). ACLs are a set of rules that manage which users or systems can access resources on a network or system. Learn the difference between standard and extended ACLs, and explore real-world scenarios where ACLs are essential in managing access and ensuring security. Stay tuned for a short quiz at the end to test your knowledge!



CTRL+SPEAK

Episode 2: ACL (Access Control List)

In this episode you will hear a brief history of the national bulgarian holiday, celebrated on the third of March!

BULGARIAN

Трети март

Today we're talking about the noun "tangent" and the adjective "tangential" and how we often end up wasting time in meetings! 

Don't forget that I'm a full time English coach and tutor, right here on iTalki. So if you use English as a second language at work and you'd like to improve your professional communication skills then feel free to book some of my time and let's get to work!


DAILY Business English VOCABULARY builder

This podcast will waste your time

Do you find it harder to be nice and cooperative when you're tired? You're not alone — and there's actually science behind that feeling.

Researchers in Italy looked at how being tired affected people's brains and the decisions they made.

They looked at a total of almost 450 people. The participants all started by doing a set of similar tasks for about 45 minutes — but for one group, the tasks were made much more difficult to make the participants mentally tired.

For example, the mentally tired group was given more difficult quiz questions to answer. And while everyone watched funny videos, the mentally tired group was told to try not to smile or laugh.

Participants then played several economic games that asked them to make decisions that would give different benefits to themselves and others, like deciding how to share points in a group.

It was found that mentally tired participants were much less likely to make cooperative decisions in the games. They were also more likely to choose "antisocial" and "spiteful" options — where they could, say, choose to use some of their own points to reduce someone else's points instead of using them to help themselves or the group.

Why did this happen?

Among the mentally tired group, the researchers found a much stronger increase in "slow-wave" activity in parts of the brain used for things like planning, paying attention, controlling emotions and understanding others. These "slow waves" are similar to the ones seen in our brains when we sleep.

The researchers said this increase in slow waves may explain tired participants' less cooperative decisions.

So when you're tired after a long day, you may be less nice because the parts of your brain you need to help you cooperate are actually going to sleep!

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Science of Spite: Why We're Meaner when We're Tired

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