Adam Coaching Proposal

Olá, Adam! 👋

Thank you for the great conversation with Alexia and for being so open about where you are with Portuguese and what you actually need. We have been thinking carefully about your situation since the call.

Below you'll find two coaching plans we built specifically for you, along with a third option for learners who prefer a more self-directed path. Take your time reading through everything, and let us know if you have any questions.

Aquele abraço,

Alexia

(+ Foster & Buddy 🐶)

What we noticed

You are not a beginner, even if it feels that way. You have a genuinely good ear, your pronunciation comes naturally, and you have years of exposure most learners would envy: a husband from Rio, his friends around all the time, his mother slowing down her Portuguese just for you. You also have a 750-day Duolingo streak, which says everything about your consistency.

So the gap is not effort, and it is not exposure. In your words: the potential is right there, but then you can't. You understand pieces of what you hear, but engaging with it in real time, forming your own sentences, keeping up when the whole family is talking at once, that is where it breaks down. You described it as a bombardment of unfamiliar stimuli, and that feeling of being out of control is exactly what makes the language start to carry a negative energy you don't want it to have.

Here is the honest diagnosis: apps train recognition, not production. Duolingo, Rosetta Stone, Babbel, Lingopie, they have all been feeding one half of your brain for years while the speaking half sat in the passenger seat. You said it yourself: you can do all the stuff on your own, but it's not really the same. That is not a you problem. It is exactly what happens when someone learns alone for years without a structured reason to speak.

And then there is the Spanish and French sitting in your head alongside the Portuguese, blurring into each other. That is a real and very common obstacle, and it is fixable with deliberate work, not more input.

What we would focus on with you

From understanding to speaking. This is the whole project. You have years of passive Portuguese stored up. Our job is to get it out of your head and into your mouth, session by session, until forming sentences stops feeling like a chore and starts feeling automatic.

Comprehension at family speed. Not podcast speed. Real Cariocas, talking over each other at a dinner table. We would train your ear specifically for the Rio Portuguese you actually live with, so that being surrounded by it becomes fun instead of exhausting. As you put it: it's more fun when you know what's going on.

Keeping Portuguese, Spanish, and French in their own lanes. Foster came to Portuguese from Spanish himself, so this is familiar territory. We would work deliberately on the specific places where your languages collide, so each one gets stronger instead of blurrier.

Accountability and engagement. Your words, and we agree completely. Personalized homework, writing tied to what you're working on, audio exchanges in our private WhatsApp group, and support for your Dia do Português at home with Gui. Structure with real people on the other end, which is the thing no app has ever given you.

December in Rio. This is the goal that ties everything together. Gui's grandfather turns 90, he speaks no English, and you want to be there as a participant, not a spectator. And somewhere in there is the other thing you said: proving your husband wrong. We would be lying if we said we didn't want that too.

CC Coaching: what is included

Every coaching plan includes the following:

Your two coaching options

Our recommendation for you is Option B.

You called this your six-month boot camp, and we think that instinct is right. Six sessions will build momentum, but twelve gives us enough runway to do the actual work: activating your speaking, training your ear for family-speed Portuguese, and untangling the Spanish and French, with time to spare before December. Roughly one session every two weeks, with WhatsApp keeping the practice alive in between.

That said, Option A is a real program, not a lesser one. If the investment is the deciding factor, six sessions is enough to build a foundation, understand exactly what to practice, and know what to do next.

Both plans are valid for 6 months from your first session, which lines up with your December deadline by design. Payment for either option can be split into two installments.

Get started with Coaching! →

(you can change the price on the payment page depending on the plan you want)

A note about CC Club

CC Club is our full self-study membership, and it is the right fit for learners who are genuinely self-motivated and comfortable building their own structure. At $360 per year, you get the full episode library, transcripts, worksheets, and our live group classes.

You've been a member before, so you know the honest difference: CC Club gives you the resources and the group. Coaching is built entirely around you, with Alexia and Foster knowing your voice, your specific gaps, and your deadline. Given that what you told us you need most is accountability and real engagement, and that live group classes weren't the format that pulled you in last time, we think coaching is the honest recommendation for the next six months. But CC Club is there if the timing isn't right, and most of our coaching students continue as Club members after their program ends.

Join CC Club →

What we would ask of you

• Study 30 to 40 minutes daily, in addition to your sessions. You already do this with your apps, so we'd simply redirect that time.
• Keep your Dia do Português going at home with Gui, even when it feels slow
• Show up to every session, and give us at least 48 hours notice if you need to reschedule
• Complete your personalized homework and send your audio practice in the WhatsApp group. We reply within one to two business days.

Consistency is what makes coaching work, and a 750-day streak tells us you have it. Our job is to design the right program and stay with you through it. Your job is to show up, do the work, and walk into that birthday party in December understanding what's going on. 🇧🇷

Questions?

If anything here is unclear or you would like to talk it through before deciding, reply to this email and we will get back to you personally.

Once you get started, this page becomes your personal study hub. Your curriculum, class recordings, vocabulary notes, homework, and audio materials will all live here in one place as the program runs.