I've studied both Spanish and German extensively, even living in countries that speak each target language, but have only become fluent in Spanish. The way I b

I've studied both Spanish and German extensively, even living in countries that speak each target language, but have only become fluent in Spanish. The way I became fluent in Spanish was that I went to a Spanish speaking country and immersed myself completely. I lived with people who only spoke Spanish, joined a local rec sports team, got a job, and took formal classes for 3 weeks (focused strictly on the subjunctive, which is tricky in Spanish) when I arrived. The most helpful thing by far though was having a local girlfriend, aka the "long haired dictionary". If it's an option, having a significant other with whom you speak the target language is a major leg up. It took me about 18 months after being immersed to feel really fluent and comfortable. The reason I never became fully fluent in German was because although I lived in the country, I spoke a lot of English there. My Canadian study abroad roommate didn't speak any German and I found that most Germans I met spoke better English than my German would ever be, so many times we'd speak English instead of German. I was in Germany for almost a year. At the end of the day I think becoming fluent in another language takes a solid base of self study and a whole lot of practice with native level speakers. Build your base with Duolingo, explicit grammar study, and Vocabulary (I recommend memrise), and then find a way to practice natural conversation with native level speakers of the target language.