Learn Hardcore Russian: Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, я чувствую уверенность. - When I solve a problem on my own, I feel confidence.

Why is когда followed by the present tense решаю, even though in English we might say “when I solve a problem” (which can feel future-like)?

In Russian, the present tense is normally used in both clauses to describe:

general truths,
habits,
repeated situations.

So:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, я чувствую уверенность.
= When(ever) I solve a problem on my own, I feel confident.

Both решаю and чувствую are in the present tense and express a general, habitual relationship, not a specific future event.

If you wanted one specific future event, you would usually use the perfective future:

Когда я решу эту задачу, я скажу тебе.
When I solve this (particular) problem, I’ll tell you.

Why is it решаю and not решу?

The difference is aspect:

решаю – imperfective (я решаю)
- process, repeated action, habit.
- fits “whenever I solve a problem / when I’m solving a problem”.
решу – perfective (я решу)
- one complete act in the future: “I will solve (once)”.

In your sentence we talk about a general habit:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу…
“Whenever I (typically) solve a problem by myself…”

Using решу here would sound like one single future event, which doesn’t match the general, timeless meaning.

What case is задачу, and why is it used here?

Задачу is accusative singular feminine of задача.

Nominative: задача (subject form)
Accusative: задачу (direct object form)

The verb решать (“to solve”) takes its object in the accusative case:

решать задачу – to solve a problem
решать задачи – to solve problems

So задачу is the direct object of решаю.

Why is it singular задачу (“a problem”) and not plural задачи (“problems”) if we’re talking in general?

In Russian, it’s normal to use a singular noun to talk about a typical, representative case:

Когда я решаю задачу…
Literally: When I solve a problem…
Meaning: When(ever) I solve a problem (in general)…

You can say the plural:

Когда я решаю задачи, я чувствую уверенность.

That sounds like talking more about sets of problems or “tasks” in a more concrete way (e.g., your work tasks), but the singular is very natural for describing a generic situation.

Why is there no word for “a” or “the” before задачу?

Russian has no articles (no words equivalent to English a/an or the).

решаю задачу can mean:
- I’m solving a problem
- I’m solving the problem
- I solve a/the problem (in general)

The context (and sometimes word order or extra words) tells you whether it feels more like a or the in English, but grammatically there’s just задачу with no article.

What is the difference between самостоятельно, сам, and один?

All three can translate as “by myself / alone”, but they have different nuances:

самостоятельно
- adverb: “independently”, “on one’s own initiative”.
- Emphasises that you do it without help, in a self-reliant way.
- Very natural in your sentence: решаю задачу самостоятельно.
сам (я сам решаю задачу)
- literally “I myself”, “I on my own”.
- Emphasises who is doing it (not someone else), and often “without help”.
- More informal, very common in speech.
один (я решаю задачу один)
- literally “alone” (physically without other people around).
- Focus on being by yourself in terms of company, not necessarily independence from help or guidance.

Your sentence wants the nuance of independence, so самостоятельно is the most precise word.

Could I move самостоятельно and say Когда я решаю задачу самостоятельно, я чувствую уверенность? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, that is perfectly correct:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, …
Когда я решаю задачу самостоятельно, …

Both are grammatical and mean the same thing: When I solve a problem independently…

The difference is only rhythm and slight emphasis:

самостоятельно right after я can slightly highlight the manner of action early: When I, independently, solve a problem…
At the end: решаю задачу самостоятельно reads more like one tight unit “solve a problem independently”.

In everyday speech, both orders are very natural.

Why is there a comma before я чувствую уверенность?

Because Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу is a subordinate clause (it answers “when?”) introduced by the conjunction когда.

Russian punctuation rule:

When a subordinate clause comes before the main clause, you put a comma between them.

So:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, я чувствую уверенность.

If you reverse the order, you still use a comma:

Я чувствую уверенность, когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу.

Can I drop the second я and say Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, чувствую уверенность?

Yes, that’s possible and natural in speech:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, чувствую уверенность.

Russian often omits the subject pronoun when it’s clear from context and the verb ending.

You could even omit both я:

Когда самостоятельно решаю задачу, чувствую уверенность.

This is also possible, especially in informal speech or writing.
Including я in both places makes the sentence a bit clearer and more neutral/formal:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, я чувствую уверенность.

Why is it я чувствую уверенность and not simply я уверен?

Both are correct but not identical:

Я чувствую уверенность.
- Literally “I feel confidence.”
- Focuses on the subjective feeling you experience.
- More about the inner emotional state at that moment or in those situations.
Я уверен.
- “I am confident / I am sure.”
- Describes a state/quality of the person: being confident or certain.
- Often used about being sure of some fact: Я уверен, что это правильно.

Your sentence connects a situation (solving a problem independently) with an emotion that arises from it, so чувствую уверенность is a good match: it highlights the feeling that appears in that context.

Could I say я чувствую себя уверенным or я чувствую себя уверенно instead of я чувствую уверенность? What’s the difference?

Yes, these are all possible, with slightly different structures:

Я чувствую уверенность.
- I feel confidence.
- Verb чувствовать
  - noun (accusative).
- Focus on the feeling as a thing you possess.
Я чувствую себя уверенным.
- Literally: I feel myself (to be) confident.
- чувствую себя
  - уверенным (instrumental, predicate adjective).
- Very typical pattern for “I feel X (adjective)”:
  - Я чувствую себя счастливым / уставшим / уверенным.
Я чувствую себя уверенно.
- I feel confident(ly).
- чувствую себя
  - adverb уверенно.
- Emphasises how you behave / function rather than naming the feeling as a noun.

All are correct; your version is slightly more “abstract” (you feel confidence as a concept), while чувствую себя уверенным sounds a bit more everyday and personal.

Why is уверенность in the accusative here, not some other case?

Because it is the direct object of чувствую:

Verb чувствовать (“to feel”) normally takes a direct object in the accusative case:
- чувствовать радость – to feel joy
- чувствовать боль – to feel pain
- чувствовать уверенность – to feel confidence

So уверенность stays in its dictionary (nominative) form, which for an abstract feminine noun ending in -ость looks the same in nominative and accusative:

Nominative: уверенность
Accusative: уверенность (same form)

What would change if we used почувствую instead of чувствую, or решу instead of решаю?

That would change the meaning from a general habit to one specific future event.

Your original:

Когда я самостоятельно решаю задачу, я чувствую уверенность.
Habitual: Whenever I solve a problem by myself, I feel confident.

More specific future event:

Когда я самостоятельно решу эту задачу, я почувствую уверенность.
When I solve this problem by myself, I will feel confidence.

Here:

решу / почувствую – perfective future: one completed act in the future.
решаю / чувствую – imperfective present: habitual / general relationship.

How is this sentence pronounced, and where are the stresses?

Stresses (capital letters show stressed syllables):

Когда́ – kag-DA
я – ya
самостоя́тельно – sa-ma-sta-YA-tyel-na
реша́ю – re-SHA-yu
зада́чу – za-DA-chu
я – ya
чу́вствую – CHOOV-stvu-yu
увере́нность – oo-VE-re-nnast’

Whole sentence with marked stresses:

Когда́ я самостоя́тельно реша́ю зада́чу, я чу́вствую увере́нность.

Pay special attention to:

чу́вствую: the вств cluster is pronounced, roughly “CHOOV-stvu-yu”.
самостоя́тельно: the stress is on -я́-, not at the beginning.