Now I've got your attention with my catchy title. I must ask " Did you really believe this was possible? ". Surely not, but maybe you clicked on the link because you want to learn another language and don't really want to spend long doing it.

Clearly, it isn't possible to learn a language in two days but there are methods you can use to speed up the process. Techniques you can use to remember words, clever mnemonics, the roman room method, concept maps, tools which will improve your memory, and suchlike.

Pah.

I don't want to spend my time doing this. I‘m too busy. What can I do instead. I’m looking for something easier, something more passive, something that can happen around me if and when I feel like learning. And I don’t want to leave the house either.

I have some suggestions to start.

1. Improve your vocabulary.

Write Spanish names on everyday items. This is an easy way to expand your vocabulary, and not only that, associates the Spanish words with the objects, something that straight vocabulary learning does not do. This makes it easier to remember a word when you need it. To prevent boredom setting in, start with the drinks cabinet, wine cellar or plastic bag with the booze in it.

2. Improve your comprehension.

Don't listen to the Spanish radio. You won't understand any of it until you are at an advanced level, and it is discouraging.

Instead watch Spanish TV (which can be done over the Internet) concentrating on the soaps (telenovelas). You don't need to understand them to enjoy them, and the same language is repeated again and again. Look up the meaning of commonly used expressions. As you will hear them so often, once you are hooked on telenovelas, you can’t help but remember them.

3. Improve your spoken language

If you don’t want to leave the house practice on your nearest and dearest. Get them to learn some Spanish. If you don't use it, you lose it. This is especially true with foreign language learning, and it is important to constantly reinforce what you are learning.

4. Stay Motivated

This is the hardest part of language learning. So book a holiday in a Spanish speaking country, and keep learning key eating and drinking words. Barcelona is a great place to practice them in. In fact Barcelona is such good place to practice Spanish in that you might spend longer there than you intended.