Can I sharpen my tones and speak in a standard Mandarin accent in time for my wedding?

Chris Foley has set himself a challenge to improve his tone pronunciation, and achieve a standard Mandarin accent in time for his Chinese wedding ceremony in one year. To reach his goals, he’s enlisted I’m Learning Mandarin founder, Mischa, as his language coach. Over the coming year, Chris will be documenting his progress over a series of monthly blogs with recordings. In this first post he tells his back story and sets out his goals.

My name is Chris, and I’ve been studying Mandarin Chinese for years.

Like many, I started my language-learning journey passively, picking up words and phrases here and there through apps, YouTube videos, and casual conversations.

It wasn’t until the Covid-19 lockdowns turned life upside down that I truly began to take studying Mandarin seriously.

But even then, my approach was inconsistent: A blend of enthusiasm and aimless wandering through textbooks and language exchanges.

Over the years, I began to increase my efforts, and reached a point where I can use Chinese to get through most day-to-day interactions in the country. However, like many learners, my main issue continues to be my foreign accent.

Now, with my Chinese wedding taking place next year, I am ready to commit to a formal study regimen, with the aim of standardising my Chinese pronunciation and starting to sound more like a native speaker.

My goal? To drastically improve my pronunciation, and ability to speak in natural sentence structures, within one year.

The Motivation Behind My Commitment

I’m getting married in a year, to an amazing Chinese woman, and this milestone has become my driving force to finally commit to a structured approach to studying Mandarin.

Although I can comfortably converse at a basic level and ‘get by’ in China, my pronunciation – especially my tones – has always been a glaring weakness.

My inconsistent tones have led to a few embarrassing misunderstandings and made me acutely aware that I sound unusual to native Chinese speakers, who are often not used to hearing foreigners speaking their language.

As most readers probably know, Mandarin is a tonal language, and getting the tones wrong can completely change the meaning of a word. For instance, “mā” (妈) means “mother,” but “mǎ” (马) means “horse.”

So as I look ahead to my wedding day, I want to be able to confidently converse in Mandarin with flawless tones. And I want my efforts to reflect my love and respect for the Mandarin language.

A New Approach with a Language Coach

To make this goal a reality, I’ve decided to tackle my Mandarin challenge head-on with a consistent study routine. After researching various options, I signed up for a one-year study program with Mischa, a Mandarin language coach and founder of I’m Learning Mandarin.

As a learner himself, Mischa documented his journey from mediocre Chinese with bad tones to fluency over a series of blogposts. Since reaching a high level in spoken Mandarin he’s become a language coach, guiding other learners through the process.

Instead of traditional lessons with a teacher, Mischa’s role is to identify my weak points, teach me the efficient study techniques to improve my speaking, ensure I’m implementing them correctly and hold me accountable when my motivation slips.

Mischa and I meet for coaching sessions once a month, during which he helps me craft a personalised plan and gives me feedback on my progress.

This tailored approach feels exactly right for where I am in my learning journey.

Back to Basics: The First Month

My first month has been all about revisiting the basics. Specifically, I’ve been re-learning foundational vocabulary with a sharp focus on pronunciation.

This has been frustrating at times but eye-opening, and well worth it. Revisiting words I’ve “known” for years, only to realize I’ve been pronouncing them incorrectly, has been humbling. It turns out that many of my bad habits – sloppy tone transitions and lazy enunciation – were more deeply ingrained than I’d thought.

Correcting errors isn’t glamorous work; it requires patience, focus, and a willingness to unlearn before re-learning. However, there’s a silver lining: I’m already noticing improvements in my tones.

Conversations feel smoother, and I’m starting to hear the subtle tonal differences that used to elude me.

In particular, Mischa picked up on issues with my third tone, which I tended to produce with a rise.

In most cases, third tone is produced as a low tone with no rise so I set to work practicing with example vocabulary and sentences in the recordings below.

Looking Ahead: The Next 11 Months

This initial progress has given me a lot of excitement and motivation for what lies ahead.

Over the next 11 months, I’ll move beyond basic pronunciation drills and dive deeper into more advanced tone exercises, including shadowing native speakers and sentence mining.

Mischa’s role as a coach will be crucial during this time, helping me stay consistent and avoid reverting to old habits.

We agreed I will be documenting my progress on a monthly basis on this blog, with recordings each month.

At the 6 month mark, Mischa will interview me in Chinese on his podcast.

And at the wedding ceremony, I’ll give you an insight into the fruits of my labour – providing recordings for you to see how I got on!

My Goals for the Year

By the time my wedding day arrives, I want to have achieved three key things:

1. Clear and Accurate Pronunciation: I want to speak Mandarin with confidence, knowing that my tones are spot-on and my words are easily understood by native speakers.

2. Consistency: One of my biggest weaknesses in the past has been a lack of routine. This year, I aim to develop daily habits that will serve me well beyond this one-year challenge.

3. Cultural Connection: Language is a bridge to understanding culture and people. I hope to use Mandarin to convey my ideas on everday topics effectively and deepen my connection to the language and my loved ones in China.

Final Thoughts

The first month of my Mandarin learning challenge has been an exercise in humility and perseverance. But relearning the basics is already proving to be a game-changer, particularly as I develop confidence with my tones.

As I move forward, I’m excited about the possibilities. I’m confident that I’ll not only reach my goals but also rediscover the joy of learning Mandarin along the way.

Here’s to the next 11 months of growth and transformation!