Learning a foreign language does not necessarily mean months or years of frustrating tutoring and boring study, it can be fun, rewarding, fulfilling and the benefits – when they come – will surprise you, in an amazing way.
You may have heard, or even used, the term “I’d love to learn how to speak {another language}, but”. If we can get rid of the “but” bit, we might actually start getting somewhere. The best reason we found for learning a foreign language was to expand communication.
Wherever you are in the world today, foreign languages are being spoken in the street outside your home, in the town center and on the high street. It is unavoidable, and also a little frustrating that we hear two people chat in a foreign tongue and we cannot understand a word they say.
OPEN UP A WORLD OF NEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
Learning a foreign language instantly places you as a valid candidate in a number of jobs opportunities you may happen to be applying for. Even in posts or vacancies where there is no demand for the candidate to speak in any other tongue than Standard English, the fact you might have a second language on your resume speaks volumes.
Ask any HR administration recruiter about the bilingual candidate, and you will see their eyebrows lift instantly, as these candidates are people with an extra little something special. The brain is given a boost when you become bilingual, as there are clear cognitive benefits – regardless of your age. And, moreover, HR recruitment teams are taught this when training.
“Always cast to one side the candidate who is bilingual”, recruiters are told when training. This is to pigeonhole those candidates as “special” and “likely to succeed”.
CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Cultural experiences are often lost when you do not know how to communicate in a foreign tongue: one might be purchasing some guavas from the local outdoor bazaar, and as the purchase goes through and you are handed back your change, you might notice a local communicate with the trader with some quip that they will both laugh about and enjoy.
You, meanwhile, are none-the-wiser as to what was said, and an experience of rich cultural exchange is missed.
Learning a foreign language also helps you stay safe and smart in a city where tourists are aplenty: speaking the local language will keep the touts and unsavory types away from you the moment you use the local tongue. Feel free to share our articles, we only ask for credit! Be sure to mention IMAC Spanish Language Programs as the author and a link back to our website: https://www.learnspanish.com.mx/blog/blog-home/
See our list of interesting articles about learning Spanish, and language travel related topics.