dear frank:
i am drastically glad to hear from you and honored to give my proposals for Chinese learning.
firstly,it is of utmost importance to creat a relaxed and cozy Chinese practising environment ,in which you do can improve yourself.secondly,concidering Chinese is a language,you must spare time for reading or writing or just skimming over some Chinese articles .remember stick to it though you are as busy as a bee.
in brief,language is after all a medium of communication.as long as you use it everyday and incorporate it into your daily life,you will make your own way.
yours sincerely
Liming