Sunday 19 May 2013

The Importance of Being Multi-Lingual in Todays Society

By Michael Holmes


Hola, que tal? Me llamo Lucy y me gustara hablar con usted sobre el lenguaje. If that sounded all Greek to you, it may be time to bite the bullet and start learning another language. English is one of the most widely-spoken languages in the world and it can be easy to assume that no matter where you travel to, there will always be someone around to help you be understood. There is no need to struggle however, as learning a new language can be easy and fun, not to mention rewarding. As a country, England is home to possibly the most diverse collection of cultures from Arabic to Asian and European to African and with that comes a whole host of intricate languages that can be so much fun to learn and speak. If you are curious about learning something new but not sure where to start or how it can benefit your lifestyle, read on to see what you can gain from being multi-lingual.

First let's look at the most popular languages spoken across the world. Rather unsurprisingly, the Chinese language Mandarin is spoken by the most people, with over 900 million people citing it as their native language. It may appear only important to know if you live in China, but with so many global businesses being based in, or having offices in and around Hong Kong and China, it can be useful for anyone working in the world of commerce to at least speak conversational Mandarin. With an entirely new alphabet and writing style to learn, Mandarin can be a bit of a challenge but with the world's expecations that China will be the next business superpower of the world, it will be a valuable asset to multi-national companies to have some Mandarin-speaking employees.

If you are interested in throwing yourself into an unfamiliar language, Arabic is also a massively popular choice especially with regards to business. We have seen a lot of money being thrown into the up-and-coming Middle Eastern countries such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi, which means that knowing the language can really help when it comes to finding new places to work, live, and outsource to.

If you struggle with the idea of starting from scratch, there are hundreds of other languages that may be easier for you to pick up. One such choice is Spanish, which is the second most widely-spoken language, not just in Europe but in the whole world. Learning Spanish can help you in South America, Mexico, the Phillipines and even parts of Africa. This is great for those looking to branch out work-wise, particularly students who are looking for gap year possibilities. The cost of living in many of these countries is less than England so it can be an interesting and fun way of working and saving money as well as having amazing experiences that will last a lifetime. If you are proficient in traditional Spanish, you will be able to speak and be understood in many of the aforementioned countries despite the variations in accent.

Business owners and employees alike can also benefit from being bi-lingual as there are so many English people working abroad and also so many foreigners working in England. For instance, there are many Polish people working in jobs such as contracting or landscaping so if you own a business specialising in these things, it can really help bring you and you workers together if you can at least communicate the basics. Equally if you are looking to work abroad, you will find it much easier to find work if you know the local language, people will be more willing to give you a chance as you have shown dedication to the job by learning how to communicate properly with your employers too. It is useful to any profession. For instance, doctors working in England nowadays may be faced with patients who speak little English which can make it very difficult to diagnose them, it can also be quite dangerous to prescribe medication to someone who does not understand you. Learning basic medical terms in a variety of languages will make both the doctor and patient's life easier.

From CEOs to waiting staff, flight crew to cleaners, it can pay off in a big way to know another language. It will help you communicate with the society around you and let you learn in more depth about the cultures that surround you. It can inspire you to want to work abroad and even holiday in places you may not have felt comfortable in going before. Language is a great unifier and with so many languages spoken all over the world, it would be a shame to waste time not understanding someone when perhaps that person could give you the greatest conversation of your life.




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