People often ask me why I learn German. Germans themselves are especially fond of this question because they don’t see German as particular useful or worth learning. Over the years that I’ve learned German and during my time spent in Germany, I have learned to respond with “why not?”. I already speak the language that has been spontaneously adopted by the whole world as its lingua franca. I have been to four continents and numerous countries in my life and can say from personal experience that in the majority of situations the only language you’ll ever need is English.
So, as an English speaker, if you are just going for practical communication then it might be the case that you don’t ever need to learn a foreign language. But aside from just having the ability to speak to someone, there is immense value to be gained by learning a foreign language. Though the direct utility of an English speaker having command of a second language is questionable, the benefits of the process of getting that command cannot be understated.
Comfort Zone
The ability to calmly and confidently leave your comfort zone and, in a way, being comfortable with leaving your comfort zone is an immensely valuable trait. By doing so repeatedly you find that you gain an increasing amount of control over your life, you become the one setting the rules and initiating the change in your life, and you see more and more that things once thought impossible become possible.
Learning a foreign language in the post-pubescent stage of your life forces you out of your most comfortable zone. Your native language is how you form thoughts, how you communicate your thoughts, how you express love, friendship, fear, goals, etc.
Learning and using a foreign language as an adult strips you of that comfort. When using it you no longer have that confidence which comes with having a complete and total mastery of a skill. You will not realize how often you give excuses in passing or in sports, or how often your humor relies on the subtleties of your language manipulation—until you attempt to live in language over which you don’t have total control.
In addition to making you immensely more thoughtful in the use of your native language, this experience will teach you to be comfortable with the uncomfortable. To be the master of the uncomfortable. And your confidence will surge in everything that you do as a result.
Results Oriented
A foreign language is great because you get out of it exactly what you put into it. And it is all on you individually. As you work to expand your vocabulary, focus on learning certain grammar constructions or a new tense, or master some way of expressing something that cannot be directly translated, you can feel it becoming easier and easier when you speak with people.
When you talk to people in the foreign language you’re learning you get tangible and immediate results and feedback. Your conversation partner either understands you or they don’t, and you either understand them or you don’t. The amount of effort you put into learning is visibly and directly related to how successful your interaction is.
Too often what we learn is disconnected from the real world. In school and in college you learn things for unknown reasons and for undefined goals. Learning a language gets you into the habit of measuring the value of your learning in terms of the tangible results that it produces. The unique nature of language means that you can only rely on yourself to produce the desired outcome and you can immediately see the effects of the work that you put into it. Both self-reliance and the ability to connect work to results are two extremely valuable skills.
It Makes You More Memorable
Particularly as an English native speaker, having command of a second or third language makes you unique. People find multi-lingualism extremely interesting and typically have a great deal of respect for someone who can masterfully communicate in two or more languages. It shows that you are able to commit great effort to learning a skill and that you most likely have international experience. It proves you to be a risk taker with an expanded horizon who is self-assured enough to shed their comfort zone and try something new.
Confidence is contagious and you will find that the better you get in a foreign language the more confidence you will have in everything else that you do. You will find yourself to be an excellent listener and even better communicator. You’ll gain a laidbackness and calm disposition that one can only gain from actively pushing themselves out of their comfort zone. This is all in addition to the strenuous mental exercise that using a foreign language forces upon you that will make you sharper, smarter, and more thoughtful.
The barriers to entry to learning a foreign language are at all-time lows. There are a multitude of apps and websites that are excellent for starting off and can give you the base grammar and vocabulary needed for further learning. Apps like Memrise and others make learning vocab and phrases fun like a game. And once you get that base level of vocabulary and the minimum amount of grammar to string the words together, there are a number of ways to get into contact with native speakers including websites that connect people using skype and contacting a local language school to set up a tandem-partner. It is a relatively easy and extremely productive way to spend your downtime and has the potential to bring you immense benefits.