Do you do this?

  1. Hear an English sentence.
  2. Translate it into Japanese in your head to understand it.
  3. Think of your answer in Japanese.
  4. Translate your answer into English (checking grammar rules).
  5. Finally speak.

If you do, no wonder you are tired! This is often called a “translation monitor” in language learning, and it is the biggest wall between you and fluency.

The Problem: “Apple = りんご”

When most of us started learning English in Junior High School, we learned lists:

  • Apple = りんご
  • Dog = 犬
  • Run = 走る

We wired our brains to route every English word through a Japanese definition. English → Japanese → Concept.

This is slow. It’s like trying to run a marathon while carrying a dictionary.

The Solution: “Apple = 🍎”

To get there, we need to cut out the middleman and connect English sounds straight to images and feelings. English → Concept.

Babies don’t learn that “Dog” means “Inu.” They see a furry animal, hear their mother say “Dog,” and the connection is made instantly.

How I Train Your Ears and Eyes

In the method I use at Starfish English (inspired by the Fluent Forever approach), I reduce Japanese translations as soon as possible. Japanese isn’t the enemy here — we just use it strategically, as a tool rather than a crutch. (Absolute beginners may still lean on Japanese briefly, and that’s okay.)

Instead of writing “Dog = 犬” on a flashcard, I put the word “Dog” on the front and a picture of a cute puppy on the back.

When you see the picture, your brain feels the meaning immediately. No Japanese required.

Experience the Shift

In my 1-Day Domestic Immersion Course, I build an environment where you get sustained practice at this. Across eight hours without Japanese, you get far more repetitions of responding directly than a weekly lesson can give you — and the responses that were effortful in the morning start coming more readily by the afternoon.

That shift—when you stop translating and start just “understanding”—is a wonderful feeling. That’s what thinking in English actually feels like.

It’s tiring. That’s the point.

Want to feel it for yourself? In the Adult Conversation course, I practice this “letting go of translation” approach in every weekly lesson.

Experience the 1-Day Immersion