Multilingualism is more vital in the workplace than ever. Although English is the universal lingua franca and the language of international commerce, mastery of other languages is becoming more relevant in today’s increasingly interconnected world.
As a millennial, you may be entering your professional prime sooner or later. Learning another tongue or two now can give your career a leg up for these three reasons.
Expanding Your Worldview
Studying another local or foreign lingo is more than memorizing the basic words, polishing the pronunciation and building your vocabulary. The process involves grasping the culture that gave birth to it.
This type of cultural immersion helps you scratch the surface of the customs and traditions of the language’s native speakers and the history of its origin, which may inspire you to dig deeper.
An expanded worldview can help you navigate cross-cultural interactions in the age of globalization. Being more aware of language nuances and honorifics related to genders, ages, and so on makes it easier to hone your soft skills. These skills allow you to be sensitive to the cultural backgrounds and identities of others, allowing you to engage with diverse groups of people properly.
Boosting Your Competence
Although more people recognize the value of multilingualism, only roughly 21% of people in the U.S. speak a language other than English at home. What’s more, less than 9% of them can speak English fluently. In a country where nearly 79% of the population only knows English, being a polyglot can help you outshine other talent.
Moreover, learning a language on top of your mother tongue may aid cognition. Enhancing various areas of your cognitive function helps you process new information, retrieve it from memory and apply it to new situations. Exhibiting strong cognitive skills can raise your stock in the office and the job market, elevating your earning potential.
Research shows that bilinguals are less likely to develop early dementia symptoms. Slowing your cognitive decline as you age enables you to stay gainfully employed longer and keep doing what you love in your sunset years.
Increasing Your Employment Opportunities
Multilingualism makes you more employable. It opens economic doors that would be unavailable to you if you only knew English. Learning one or more languages widely spoken inside and outside the United States opens many exciting and fulfilling career paths across different sectors.
Hospitality
Being multilingual is beneficial if you want to work as a flight attendant, tour guide or hotel manager since these roles can involve regularly interacting with people from all over the world.
Effective communication can also help you create an inclusive, culturally aware environment for global customers, making you a competitive candidate and valuable team member for jobs in the hospitality sector.
Health Care
This sector is experiencing a chronic shortage of workers worldwide. Although the U.S. compensates health care workers handsomely, other countries — such as Switzerland and Sweden — may offer better benefits packages to attract physicians, nurses, physical therapists or caregivers. Being proficient in a foreign language can be your ticket to gainful employment and a higher quality of life abroad.
Moreover, a degree in the medical field is only one way to land a rewarding job in the sector. You can work as a medical interpreter for a tech company specializing in language access.
As a native-English-speaking millennial, you can excel in this virtual role by combining mastery of another language with tech savviness and literacy. All patient interactions occur via an app, so you’re safe from the usual hazards associated with health care jobs.
Human Resources
HR can be a lucrative field for multilingual millennials. You can work your way up to become a manager and earn more than $136,350 annually with or without a master’s degree in various industries.
Businesses need leaders with strong cultural sensitivity skills to manage workers from different backgrounds. Proficiency in multiple languages can make you a sought-after talent and more qualified for promotion.
Given the diversity and cultural awareness of many millennials, you may find it easier to develop the essential skills many younger American workers expect from HR professionals.
If you work in a Hispanic-dominant industry like construction, having a working knowledge of Spanish can help you better communicate with nearly a third of the workforce and perform your job well.
International Roles in Multinationals
The U.S. is home to dozens of domestic and foreign multinationals. They account for 23% of all private-sector jobs nationwide.
Speaking Mandarin, German, Arabic, French, Japanese or Russian can make you a better candidate than your monolingual counterpart for an international role in a multinational enterprise’s affiliate. Such a rare opportunity allows you to explore the world and experience new cultures.
Being able to get by in countries where less English is spoken can help you succeed as a digital nomad. People who don’t speak English tend to be highly appreciative of foreigners trying to communicate with them in their native tongues.
For example, speaking decent Thai in Bangkok or Vietnamese in Ho Chi Minh City as a foreigner helps reduce the language barrier, making it easier to connect with the locals more meaningfully and forge friendships.
Become a Multilingual Millennial
Speaking multiple languages to help advance your career is practical and worthwhile. The key is selecting which ones to learn with professional goals in mind and maximizing your new knowledge with plenty of practice.
