In this globalized world, learning a second language can be the deciding factor in your career that catapults you to the skies. Learning another language besides our own helps us to learn about other people and their culture. Being able to connect with people from other parts of the
world is one of the most rewarding aspects of our experience be it personal or professional. Being a bilingual or a polyglot actually opens up the world for you. A czech proverb states that you live a new life for every language you speak. Knowing a language makes you almost a local and you will be pleasantly surprised by the warmth and affection shared by strangers in foreign lands when they realize you have made an effort to be part of them. It builds friendships that last a lifetime.
A landmark study on children by Peal and Lambert showed the general superiority of bilinguals over monolinguals in a wide range of intelligence tests and scholarly achievements. The most surprising outcome of this study was that the influence of language learning was not just confined to the linguistic domain but also extended to the non-verbal cognitive areas. Language learning helps you improve your memory, your critical thinking, problem solving and multi-tasking abilities, as well as sharpens your focus and listening skills. Therefore as adults, it is imperative that we create an environment where our next generation can develop these skills early in life so that it becomes a foudation for their communication abilities and cognitive development for the future.
Language skill can be the one significant facet that sets you apart from your monolingual peers at your workplace. Recent research into HR trends has shown that learning a second language can boost your annual salary by two percent. If your language skills can aid you at work it is good to factor in this 2% bonus while negotiating your salary. According to The Ladders, learning German can bestow you with a 3.8% bonus, while learning French results in a 2.3% bonus and Spanish can give a 1.5% bonus in your annual salary. Therefore it is good to invest in learning a second global language such as German or French from reputed tutors and trainers who have themselves worked in such environments. It is imperative that you know your trainers skills instead of paying huge amounts to branded language institutes with mediocre tutors and impossible time frames of study.
Language learning is said to aid your decision making skills as well. It is believed that when people deliberate in a second or third language they emotionally distance themselves from responses and biases pertaining to their native language and hence decisions are more clear, systematic and reason driven. It also aids you in gaining confidence and developing an awareness and respect for other cultures instilling empathy, tolerance and a global perspective in a learners mind.
Thus we see that learning a language has enormous advantages. Learning a second foreign language in this interconnected, interdependent world does not just make business sense, but it helps build you as an individual honing your communication skills, analytical, business skills, listening and creative skills as well as your EQ, memory, math and reasoning skills. Grab the opportunity today and give us a call... Don't delay your decision- making any further....
By Lily S George, BE, MHRM
Training Head, Solomon Languages.