Should I learn a second language?

Clearly, if you are a non-native English speaker reading this you have already answered that question for yourself, and the answer was “Yes”. But what about those who have been raised in an environment where English is spoken exclusively? You never planned to take an international assignment, or travel extensively. You recognize that English is the lingua franca for business, and that just about any place you go there will be someone who can speak English. It that case, is there any career or business benefit from learning another language? I think yes, there is.

There are some industries in which being multi-lingual, if not a requirement, is at least a major advantage. For example in the travel industry there is a strong need for public-facing employees who can speak a variety of languages. In social services, medical offices, government, law enforcement… there is a need for people who can communicate with the local constituents and immigrants who live in the area and may come for assistance or services. But what about day to day, run of the mill businesses? Is there any advantage for a programmer, project manager, or sales executive to be able to speak Spanish, or French, or Hindi?

• Learning another language helps you understand that other person
  
  

I don’t mean just because you can converse in their language. It can help you even when you are both speaking English. A case in point. Early in my career I saw that we were doing a lot of business with our Japanese partner. We had two or three of their programmers in our office working alongside our people. They could all speak English very well. Even so, I thought it would be fun to take an evening course in Beginning Japanese. I took the class for two semesters, and they were happy to help me practice. It wasn’t really enough to become proficient in Japanese, but it was enough for me to learn about the language structure, grammar, and the sounds that make up the language. Now that I had some idea of how their language worked it made it easier for me to understand them when they were speaking English. Since then there have been many meetings in which I have become the “translator” between my Japanese colleagues and the other English speakers in the room. They will say something, and I will repeat it – all in English, but in a sense, different dialects. I have encountered similar situations with clients throughout Europe and Latin America.

• Learning another language may help you understand their culture
  
  

One of the side effects of learning another language is also learning something about the cultural differences in that country. When you are dealing with people, understanding what make them tick, and why they make the decisions they do, can be a real benefit. Not everyone has your background and biases, or ways of doing things. In one country it may be common to waste no time, and cut right to the point, while in another it may be more typical to dance around the edges, cover all of the options before making the final decision. I learned from some of my foreign friends that “no” doesn’t always mean “no”. Sometimes it means “maybe”. If they don’t like the answer they may ask the question again, a slightly different way, to see if the answer changes

• Learning another language can help break the ice

 
Sometimes, just being able to greet your colleagues in their own language can help to put them at ease and set a more agreeable tone for the meeting. I think we have grown to expect that people speak English, but they do appreciate it when someone makes an effort. Starting off the conversation with “Bonjour. Comment allez-vous?”, or “Ohayo gozaimasu” tends to set everyone at ease. I have traveled extensively, and generally when I go to a new country I try to learn at least a few basic phrases, just because it is polite, and helps me adjust to the new environment. Plus it is fun to see the reactions when people don’t expect you to be able to speak their language. (But be careful to not set expectation too high, or come off as condescending.)

• Once you have learned one new language, learning another may be easier
  
  

I think learning a second language changes the way you think. It sort of rewires the synapses in your brain so that learning a new language becomes easier. Of course there are families of languages that are easier to learn because of their similarities. The so called Romance languages, like French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese, all have similar grammar and vocabulary. As do the Germanic languages, German, Dutch, and to some extent English. So if you start with French for example, it may be easier to also learn Spanish, than say Dutch.

• Being multilingual can open up new career opportunities
  
  

A big part of doing business is proper communication. When you can speak other languages, and appreciate other cultures, you have taken a big step toward putting yourself in the place of that other person. Once your colleagues and managers realize you have this skill they will begin coming to you for things that are outside the scope of your daily activities. One of my colleagues was fluent in Spanish, and so he would be invited to meetings with Latin American clients to act a translator. Some of these were meetings with participants at much higher levels in the organization than he would normally have dealt with in his position. Once he became known to them, and they saw how well he was able to handle potentially volatile situations they began to invite him to other engagements, even when his translation skills were not required.

• It’s a small world, and getting smaller by the day
  
  

As a result of outsourcing, offshoring, and our expanding global economy, even small businesses are becoming global in nature. If your company has a web site there is good chance that at some point someone from another country will be landing on it, and they may want to do business with you. The better equipped you are to understand them, their language, their culture, and their business customs, the better off you will both be. Learning a new language is one step in that direction.

 

What is the right time to learn a second language? Well, the sooner the better. If you can start teaching children, even before they begin school, they will be well placed to learn more as they grow. Some universities (sadly, not all) require at least one year of a foreign language, and most community colleges offer adult education courses in some languages. Many public libraries and book shops have self-study courses. And of course there are online courses as well. If you are still in school maybe you can look into an overseas internship. The best situation is when you can actually live in the country or visit for an extended period. But if that isn’t practical, find someone you can converse with on a regular basis so that you can correct errors and retain what you have learned. The main thing is, once you star, practice, practice, practice. Otherwise you’ll forget what you learned.

Coming soon… Tips for Presentations to a non-English speaking audience

Please let me know if you would like to see more article like this. And don’t forget to check my blog at http://HoodSoftwareSolutions.com