There is a joke that I have heard often: “If you speak two languages, you’re a bilingual. If you speak three, you’re a trilingual. If you speak only one, you’re American.” We all know that English is a very popular language in the world. However, a lot of people assume that it is superior and refuse to learn other languages, which is a big mistake. As a bilingual, I can definitely prove why learning foreign languages is beneficial.
1. Increase of job opportunities
We all know that the job market these days is extremely competitive. Businesses are targeting the global market and work with clients all over the world. Therefore, employers tend to hire prospective employees who can speak more than just one language. Being multilingual helps you stand out from other competitors, have higher chances of getting a job, and earn you more on your salary, according to The Economist.
2. Become more open-minded
When you learn a new language, you're not only learning about the vocabulary or grammar, but also about the history, lifestyle, and culture of a country. Languages are powerful. It is a tool for people to communicate and understand each other. It recorded all the changes throughout the history. By learning languages, you will have eye-opening experience about other cultures, including music, movies, food, literature, poetry, and fine arts. Cultural differences are interesting and fascinating. The more you know about other cultures, the more open-minded you become. It is always a good thing to broaden your view and have a different perspective of life.
3. Increase your brain power, improve memory and decision-making process
Now, let's talk a little about how learning languages benefits you biologically. Just like how your muscles are trained when you workout, your brain power improves when you start learning something new, in this case, foreign languages. By studying the grammar and vocabulary of another language, your brain is trained, and, of course, your memory is developed to store information. Researchers from University College London have shown that learning other languages altered gray matter – the area of the brain, which processes information.
Learning languages also helps improve your decision-making process. A study from the University of Chicago found that when people speak in a language other than their native tongue, it helps eliminate most common bias called “potential losses,” which can cause us to ignore promising opportunities when there is any risk of loss present.
4. Enhance your travel experience
Having more than one language in your pocket helps you a lot while traveling to other non-native English speaking countries. Your travel experience will be ten times better when you know the local language. Why? Because you will have chances to talk with people who are actually from there. They will give you the insight of life in their country, the cool facts about their culture that you probably cannot find on travel blogs. Furthermore, the natives know the area well. If you ask, they can show you the good places to eat or interesting sites to visit.
Learning languages brings you benefits and helps you improve your brain, your career and your travel experience. If you want to become a person who is confident while traveling around the world, an employee who usually goes overseas to work with high salary, or just simply a cool multilingual to impress people, do not hesitate to learn a new language.
