improving hearing when french people talk

There's a three step program to improve your listening ability: first listen, then listen, and afterwards listen some more.

I used a two-prong approach: I bought a French CD with guidebook which specialized in building listening skills. I would listen many times to a given track until I got as much as I could. Then I would read the transcript along with the audio, and finally I would listen again to the audio. This was addressing my conscious part of the brain. Kwiziq's transcription exercises are a great tool, too. Do all of them that are on your level. And when you're done, do them over again.

Then I also decided to have my subconscious work for me. So I just bought a CD of French chansons and played it in the car. I wasn't trying to understand every line as much as just get me exposed to it, while enjoying the music and singing. After a while my understanding was getting noticeably better.

If you can find a French native speaker, by all means, go talk to him or her. I didn't have one at that time.

Don't tense up over it. This takes time. Focus on the little improvements you make from one time to the next. Don't focus so much on what you don't understand yet. And remember, this is supposed to be fun!

The only person that can help is yourself. Listen 100 times, and read at the same time.