How come Spanish doesn't seem to be working out for me?
How come I am currently learning Spanish, and I am able to comprehend it during online courses (sometimes), but when my Columbian and Puerto Rican friends speak it at school I cannot understand what they are saying at all? It sounds as if they are speaking a billion words per minute, they talk super fast!
8 Answers
It takes a long, long time and there is some unknown factor in the learning process that makes it easier for some people, hard for others. My mom's friend living in Mexico is not fluent after 9 years, my mom got fluent after only a few months. Jump in, don't worry about sounding foolish and do your best.
I have never met anyone trying to learn a foreign language who doesn't find that they are spoken extremely fast by natives. It takes time to get used to the sound of the new language, which comes with hundreds of hours of attentive listening. Until you reach that stage, it would be a real accomplishment that you could follow natives at a normal speed... in virtually any language but yours.
This is one of the most common problems when learning a language. It is very important (and I stress "very) to make sure you are not only continuing your online courses, but also listening as much as possible to any Spanish speaking friends you have as often as possible.
Ask them to speak more slowly every so often or question them about what they are saying if they are your friends. Eventually you will be able to hear individual word, followed by short phrases and then entire sentences. It takes time and patience, but it is worth the effort.
Buena suerte 
Because online courses slow it down for you so that your mind has time to process it. The better you learn it, the more you will be able to understand Spanish spoken at normal speeds.
The other side of this coin is that native Spanish speakers who are learning English say exactly the same thing about us English speakers. "They talk so fast!!" Jeje. That's normal.
You need to turn on the Spanish channel while you are doing things. you do not need to understand it. But having Spanish in the background help to get your ears adjusted to the sounds. Eventually you will notice one or two words amongst the Spanish jabber, then you will notice a phrase. This needs to be done in addition to studying Spanish.I have to warn you it will take a long time.
I have been attempting to learn spanish for quite some time myself. While I try hard for a while, I slowly drift away only to come back after a break and work on it some more. It seems it will take forever, but it is like anything else, with repetition and effort I'll (we'll?) get there. I can remember thinking of each letter when I was learning to type, but now I rarely think in letters unless the word is unfamiliar to me, I just think of the word and my fingers do the rest. Hopefully spanish will be the same way. I think having spanish on in the background is a great idea. It would definitely help you be more familiar with words and phrases and how they are used in context. Hang in there, and you'll get there!!!! Hopefully, so will I 
I was in an elevator today with some Spanish speakers talking very quickly and try as I might I could barely understand what they were saying.
