You have probably noticed that adults often prattle on about hindsight and a dearth of crystal balls. What they actually mean is that there are certain things in life they wish they had had the foresight to persevere with, be that playing the piano, nurturing a sporting talent (there’s an Olympian in all of us, right?) or yes, you guessed it… the foreign language. Ditching language regularly appears on the list of long-term regrets, not just from a personal fulfilment point of view (although it would have been satisfying to order from the menu in the local tongue rather than relying on the old pointing and talking louder technique) but from a professional perspective too.
Back to you teens. No doubt some of your peers are language-naturals who will work towards a string of linguistics qualifications; Great – those global opportunities will no doubt abound. You, however, are not studying languages; you know exactly what you want to do and how you are going to get there. Whilst this early conviction is great, be wary of falling into the “I’ll never need a language” trap or worse still, “What’s the point? Everyone speaks English anyway”.
The point is that the “everyone-speaks-English” statement is a little misleading; surprisingly, only 6% of the world’s population are native English speakers. So, if you are planning to be in a sector where you might need to communicate with the other 94%, it might be the one thing on your CV that gives you a professional edge.
And foreign languages aren’t just useful in the obvious professions like teaching or translation. It might surprise you to know that employers in broadcasting, journalism, retail, business, manufacturing, engineering, government, politics, law, sport, charity, technology (and the list goes on) all require staff with a language string to their bow, a necessity in light of ever-advancing globalisation. On top of the obvious practicalities of having linguists in the workforce, employers also know that these candidates are likely to have a whole range of transferable skills that are vital for effective cross-border relations (empathy, open mindedness, communication/social skills, wide perspective etc.). If you think about it, having a language is, in a sense, a passport to a whole host of opportunities that aren’t open to those who only speak their native language.
So, without formal study at school or at Uni, how on earth do you get to a level of proficiency strong enough to include on a CV? By using lingoo.com to nurture a language skill on the side-lines, that’s how. Offering you the opportunity to immerse yourself into a host’s home in your country of choice, be that for a regular visit, summer holiday, gap year or work placement, lingoo.com can help you learn language in the most natural and authentic way and ultimately help you to stand out from the crowd as the ‘think outside the box’ candidate the employer is after.
So when you travel the world and go on to the highest of professional heights, you’ll remember this post on lingoo.com, no crystal-ball in sight. You can thank us later…
Read more about how lingoo.com can help you develop your language skills.
