I think it depends on the person, as previous people have stated.
That’s one thing that drew me to LingQ- that you aren’t forced into one way of going about the learning process. You have the flexibility to make the process operate in a way that is best for how you personally learn.
At first, however, this flexibility can be quite overwhelming. I found watching the Academy videos to be the most hopeful, as well as the FAQ. It took me a few days before I started to get the hang of things.
For me, personally, what is currently working for me in learning Japanese…
I’ve always learned best writing things out AND also by getting a grip on something first, and then turning around and explaining it to others. This two-fold process works best for me. There’s something about that process that just makes things click in my mind. So I’ve found the Import feature to be the most helpful in my case. I like to pick what area/topic/etc. that I want to learn next, and then go about it in the round-about-way of “how would I teach this to someone else.” I know that may seem crazy… like putting the cart before the horse, but in order to do that, you have to learn it along the way, so in a weird way, you become knowledgeable in the end. I don’t know… it’s what works for me- right now in the moment. Maybe this methodology won’t work as well when I’m more advanced.
So I start by researching the topic- that can be via already existing lessons on LingQ, blogs, videos, books, etc. Then I do a lot of practice with writing everything I’m working with (especially helpful since it’s Japanese) in my paper notebook. I think I filled half my notebook just writing the Hiragana text over and over and over, and trying to do it from memory as often as possible. Then I start to organize a lesson, listen to lots of different audio files to find the one that helps me the most (or watch videos), and re-write (or would that be type) everything again as a more formal lesson in LingQ’s import. Then re-read back through my lesson several times. Then reading it along while listening to the audio. When I’m happy with it, and I think it seems helpful and free of errors, I share it in the library. Finally, when all is said and done, I like to test my recall skills by using the flashcards on my phone through the LingQ app. I especially like the LingQs of the day email. Eventually, through this process, I learn these words (and often, interestingly enough, additional interesting info or history about certain topics) and move onto other lessons.
That’s what works for me, though. You may prefer to read, to listen, to write, to teach, to draw, use mnemonics, and so and so on- or a combination of these things.
Best of luck!
but it’s still helpful.