This letter was originally sent to MyA5Letter subscribers on Sunday, February 22, 2026.
🧨🎉🧧Happy Lunar New Year, my dear friend of MyA5Corner!
Or happy “Tết” holiday, as we Vietnamese call this festive season.
For those who might not know yet, each Lunar New Year is represented by one of the twelve zodiac animals. This year is the Year of the Horse — a Fire Horse, even.
This combination only repeats every 60 years. It is the year of fierce action and determination, as a fire horse sprinting ahead without exhaustion or hesitation would appear in my imagination.
I feel like my year and all its goals start getting more real and serious from every Lunar New Year onward, even though I live now in Germany 😜 and I am not in Vietnam celebrating this “Tết” holiday.
With that occasion, I’d like to share with you one intention I’m having this year.
Ah but first, let me tell you the word I chose as a core theme to anchor myself around this year: “Refinement.”
✨ “Refine” what I am already doing and having, without needing to add more. ✨ “Refine” as a way to grow fast by leveraging existing ideas, skills, and resources. ✨ And simply… “Refine” to make life leaner, more organized, simpler, and happier.
Transformation through Focus and Refinement, if I may. I probably need another longer blog post or newsletter to fully explain my choice of this word.
But for now… let me share an intention I have for 2026 and how “Refinement” as a theme shaping this intention:
💕 Make German language learning fun, actually progressive, and impactful. 💕
So I have been self-learning German over the past 3 years, using different courses, textbooks, and materials.
Yet only now, as I am working for a German-speaking company, am I a lot more intentional about my speed of progress and study quality than ever before.
Before: It’s nice to learn the language as a hobby. Consistency is cheered on. Now: It’s important to learn the language as a real working skill. Actual progress and results are vital.
So I try to be more intentional about impactful learning and having a “refined” process, with my study schedule as well as my material input. I would like to apply the acquired knowledge instantly in my daily work life and make meaningful knowledge connections to progress faster.
A few examples of how this “refinement” can look:
- learn essential vocabulary first and fast
- speak and write the language as early as possible with foundational grammar knowledge and must-know words or phrases
- (for more advanced learners): master must-know words and structures and use them accurately
- link related topics to leverage knowledge acquisition at once
- basically, leverage the 80/20 rule as one of my 10 steps to learning a language
Through this “refinement” process, I have been reigniting my passion for language learning (definitely essential to master German!) as I once had when learning English as a child.
I do not just passively take in input and try to memorize everything, like when we cram for exams. I also take the time to categorize and summarize information, being more intentional about application and practicing what matters more often.
I hope to help you and many others through my German learning “refinement,” especially on my way to C1, and as I reflect back on my A1–B2 German journey and my lifelong experience learning and teaching English.
Here’s one example from my latest blog post, where I handpicked must-know vocabulary words on the topic of “Study and Education” and categorized them into groups for easier learning and usage.
You can translate this list to learn any languages, because these are core essential words that are applicable in many countries, cases and languages.
Do you find this Language Essential Word List helpful? 👉 Lemme know in the comment below.
I know, there is still a lot to do for this intention in 2026.
I am excited and energized to fill 2026 — the Year of the Fire Horse — with more helpful and inspiring language learning content, and to continue “refining” my language learning system for sharing with you.
How about you? Reflect on these questions if you haven’t yet:
✨Do you have a word for 2026? Or an intention, a theme that guides your actions this year?
✨Where do you think you can apply the 80/20 rule in your work or daily life to achieve fast and impactful results?
Now, enjoy the Lunar New Year celebration if you do celebrate. (I will host a very small family dinner with some self-made traditional food — nothing fancy, as I am not in Vietnam this “Tết” holiday.)
Until next time, stay healthy and motivated!
Warm regards,
From Suani with 💕
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