Heyo, it’s me again. I’m Pedro, and I don’t know how I’m writing this, and I really mean it. I’m Brazilian, and I’ve never had any English classes. Well, I did have English in school, but for 12 years it was all about the verb “to be” and learning how to add “-ing” and “-ed” endings. So if you ask me how I learned English, I’m not entirely sure, but I think I know.

How a brazilian learned english from scratch

I’m 23 (soon to be 24 on June 27) and I had an unfair advantage as a kid: I got a computer when I was two years old. I didn’t know anything about life, but I already had my computer. Back then, 90 percent of what I saw on it was in English. I remember browsing English forums to find games, learn how to do things, and so on.

One of my first memories of playing an MMORPG is Mu Online. I really liked the game but I was terrible at it because I didn’t know how to play. Then I saw one player tell another “give me items,” and the other player dropped a really cool-looking sword. I thought, “Wow, I want that,” so I started saying “give me items” to everyone, just like a dog that learned a new trick and wants treats.

I also wanted to be the cool kid. At the time PewDiePie was the biggest YouTuber in the world, so to fit in I had to watch his videos and prove I knew English, even though I didn’t. Every time I understood something he said I’d think “Wow, I know English.”

I watched other YouTubers too, like Markiplier, and I also watched a lot of TV shows in English with subtitles. I think that’s how I learned English, just like a baby learns by association. But as you can imagine, I don’t know many words or rules, my writing isn’t the best, and speaking is even harder. I’m working on it, and the people I work with are helping me a lot.

The language difference

As I mentioned, I’m not a native English speaker, so sometimes I have to think a lot before I can answer a question: first to understand the question, then to think of the answer, and finally to write it. This makes socializing very difficult, because sometimes you want to say something but don’t know how. In a group, this is a bigger problem, no one will wait for you, they just move on.

I also have some hearing difficulties caused by years of listening to music at high volume. Sometimes I miss what people say and have to ask them to repeat themselves. This is annoying for me and for the people I’m talking to. But it happens in Portuguese too, so it’s more of a personal issue than a language problem.

Using English at work

I’m a developer, and every resource (docs, tutorials, etc.) is in English, so I’m forced to use English at work even when I’m not on an English-speaking team. Coding in English is easy; what’s hard are the daily meetings, because it’s always a coin toss: sometimes you understand everything, but other times it’s really difficult, maybe the speaker’s microphone isn’t great or they’re too far away, so you have to rely on context to figure out what they’re saying. But overall, it’s not that bad, and I’m getting better at it.

Going to London

The first time I went to London, my first trip outside Brazil, was in 2024, when our company had only four people. We worked in a WeWork office, did a lot of fun activities, and overall had a great time. Since then, I’ve been back once, and I’m going again in July.

In London, it feels like another world, with different people, culture, and food—everything is new. It’s a wonderful experience, and I’m really glad I had the opportunity to go. It can be a bit lonely sometimes, since you’re in a new place with people you don’t know and everyone speaks a different language. Fortunately, at Querio we did many activities together, which was always fun.

In conclusion

It can be challenging, especially if you’re not fluent in English, but it’s worth it. I’m grateful to work at such an international company where everyone comes from a different country, and we enjoy plenty of fun activities together to bond and get to know one another.