The trick to becoming fluent in Japanese involves a bit more than pure saturation in the stuff; simply existing in Japan will do nothing to improve one's proficiency in the language.

One can live in Japan with the speaking ability of an infant, and get by quite well, if they wish.

But, advancing and progressing toward fluency, well, that takes a lot more than a textbook and a Japanese Visa.

Of course living here does help, slightly--being surrounded by native speakers is good, and the fact that everything is covered in kanji is also a bonus--but all of this is worthless if one doesn't actually pay attention to it.

Pay attention.

The best advice I've ever been given, and it applies to any language learner in any foreign country throughout the world.

Pay attention to what's around you.

That little bit of kanji on the escape handle in the train.

That obscured writing the dirty plastic wrapper from your afternoon snack.

That car's license plate.

The conversations of every single person within hearing distance.

Everything, there are no exemptions if one is serious about sounding halfway competent.

And though I wish this bit of advice had been apparent to me earlier, it hasn't stopped me from devouring every bit of the Japanese language that I can.

Television was a forbidden fruit when I lived in America--in fact I hadn't watched it in over 5 years--and yet, here in Japan, I am addicted, staying awake for every soccer match, variety show, soap opera and music countdown that my little TV can pump out.

I am familiar with every advertisement on the Yamanote line, and though print ads used to be an irritation--nay, a scourge, to me--I find them delightfully puzzling here, and look forward to any new products that JR is willing to plaster their train cars with.

But again, all this saturation is no good unless one pays attention.

I used to look at ads, and watch TV--but I never paid attention.

I offer this here for every learner of language, because since discovering that paying attention means more than being surrounded by a language, I have improved tenfold.

Paying attention isn't just listening closely, it's listening closely and taking notes. Cataloging every tiny change in intonation and pronunciation to memory, acutely recognizing what prompts certain responses and emulating them in your own speech.

Paying attention is knowing when what you say is strange.

Paying attention is curiosity, and it can't be taught in a classroom.

Fluency demands it of us all.

Lately, I suppose, I've been obsessing over this language, and there seems to be little good advice coming my way--but I've found this useful, and I hope all of you can, too.

So from here on out, pay attention.

Every kanji is made of strokes, painted in a certain order, and if you're paying attention, you should be able to draw them backwards in your sleep.

Best of luck to us all.