Success Through a Foreign Language

SUCCESS THROUGH A FOREIGN LANGUAGE These atomic number 18 a couple of readings that I take aim been asked to do for our friends from Russia who visited with us as a part of the Children of Chernobyl Program. Im waiver to read a short selection from a motivational book called Insight. This particular reading has to do with the importance of understanding and using exotic lyrics that top executive be appropriate to the Russian students, because, certainly, were living in a world that is pop offting smaller and smaller and were going to sustain to be able to communicate in to a greater extent than one words if we argon going to be successful.The second reading is from its the runner chapter of a book by Jane Carlson who is the President of S toilettedinavian Airlines. Its called Moments of Truth and it is a handbook, or manual, for people who argon interested in doing a better rent out of customer service. Scandinavian Airlines has a great reputation for wonderful customer se rvice. Those be the two readings. The first one is called Success through a Foreign Language. Every year an industrial manufacturer in Virginia grudgingly shells out the cash to head two employees to a voice communication school to learn French.The employees have the technical and managerial abilities for the job but they lack the necessary opposed style skills. The entrust of paying for the contrasted wording training of other(a)wise qualified employees is common among many employers. Increasingly, however, employers are blocking this extra expense by emphasizing the requirement for unusual row skills during the hiring process. Richard Moore, Vice-President of the Arlington-Virginia Branch of John and Snow Incorporated, a public health consulting inviolable, admits that he gives preference to people who know a foreign linguistic communication, even if the language isnt required for their job.This new trend toward emphasizing foreign language skills is go-ahead doors for many individuals who have risen to the challenge. When they are seeking a new job or advancement at their current company, bilingual and multilingual individuals often have the competitive edge. In fact, in nigh cases, the need for foreign language speakers is so great that companies go to the language departments, rather than the business departments, of universities, to recruit upcoming graduates.For example, recently 30 Boston University students from the Schools Spanish Program were recruited for jobs in Venezuela. This doesnt designate that you must have a foreign language major to benefit professionally. In fact, despite popular belief, in a business situation, you dont even have to be fluent in a foreign language. According to Lorraine Smith, President of the Language Exchange in Washington, D. C, even knowing a curt of a foreign language puts a foreign individual at ease, and consequently, increases the communication and negotiation potential of the situation.Smith po ints out that from both the foreigners and your supervisors prospective any level of a foreign language proficiency shows a small-arm more of a commitment to the client and to your business. More than 50 % of the students at the Language Exchange are learning a foreign language for their careers. More than 75 % of the students studying Russian, Spanish or French cite career success as their language learning incentive. However, at the University level, the number of individuals learning a language for career success is much smaller.According to Professor Jeff Delusio this is because younger students expect others will know English. only if the Survey Business Person knows that this isnt always true and even when it is the case, by relying on anothers language abilities you are abdicating control of the situation. Robert Taylor, President and Co-Founder of Taylor Associates International, Washington, D. C, based Health-care management consulting firm that operates primarily in fore ign countries, finds that in his dealings in countries in the Middle East and the South Pacific relying on the natives English is problematic for other reasons as well.We are unable to ask questions in the way we truly intend, he says. In addition, its difficult to pick up subtleties of communication. Taylor hasnt found the use of interpreters to be the answer in these situations either. In fact, most linguists and business people agree with him that the potential for miscommunication is great when using interpreters. Not only have most foreign interpreters learnt British English, but also they are often faced with time constraints in order to keep the conversation flowing.As a result, they tend to encapsulate their translations opening the door for more errors. Having an edge in the international market place means meeting its language needs and staying current with the global changes. Currently, Taylor Associates lacks French and Spanish speakers a fact that has lost it valuable business opportunities in several rapidly developing foreign markets. For example, without French-speaking employees the doors have been closed to the company in the countries of North Africa where theres a strong market for health systems analysts.Similarly, lacking Spanish-speaking employees, Taylor Associates has lost out in Latin America where public health systems are developing at a swift rate. John Snow, on the other hand, owes much of its success to a ready supply of foreign language speakers. The companys faction of expertise in the growing field of public health and the Spanish and French-speaking employees has allowed it to bring its business to approximately 30 countries. Some professional areas have stronger language needs than others, and for certain languages all of the others.For instance, Japanese, Chinese and other Asian languages are in high demand in sales, marketing and trade specialties. And Spanish speakers are needed in development agencies, health-care prof essions and environmental organizations. With the end of the cold war, Russian and German have become the two fastest-growing foreign languages studied in America. Generally, Russian and German, along with other languages spoken in Eastern European countries, are in great demand in areas of economics and policy consulting by governments, research institutions and large American corporations eager to enter this new market.The Eurasia Foundation in Washington, D. C, a newly-established and independent Government-supported organization, arranges grants for economic and democratic reform in the former Soviet Union. Russian and other Newly Independent State Languages are in demand both for employees of the organization and for recipients of its grants, including the United States and other Western non-profit organizations and businesses. Jim Casual, programme officer at Eurasia Foundation, sees a dramatic fruit in private intentness in these countries and predicts it will only get be tter.With this upswing in private industry is the need for the Western know-how and assistance, and he says, people who know Russian and N. I. S. Languages have a huge advantage. Foreign language abilities can turn into professional growth in the European Community as well. Currently, French is most commonly used among policy-makers, since the organization is headquartered in Brussels. However, French is not the official language of the European Community. Actually, according to Allan Cuckoff, Spokesman for the European Community delegation in Washington D. C. , there are nine official languages.As a result, the European Community relies heavily on translators. In fact, language translation itself has become a large-growth industry there. Because there is miniscule incentive for policy-makers to learn English, the English speaker who knows another language has an edge. In addition to career success, there are numerous personal benefits in learning a foreign language. For example, t he process of learning a foreign language flexes your creative muscle. As you know, the more you exercise your creativity, the more creative you become. Your memory, particularly long-term memory, gets a good workout.In language learning we discover a junto of memory training techniques suitable to your needs, much(prenominal) as word association and rhyming patterns. These techniques can be applied successfully to other situations as well, such as remembering peoples names and memorizing vital business statistics. Youll feel more confident when communicating because your interpersonal skills will grow no matter which language is used to converse. You become more open to new cultures and places. Language and culture are inseparable, leading many to see language learning as a form of diversity training.Within the United States, Spanish is the fastest-growing language, and speaking Spanish is a great way to demonstrate your awareness of and sensitivity to the diversities in your nat ions population. Before you receive to study a foreign language, develop a successful attitude. Exorcise those ghosts from embarrassing high-school language classes. Many modern language classes are small and interactive, allowing little room for inhibitions. Whether youre in a classroom or teaching yourself, self-confidence is a key. And remember foreign language learning, especially your first one, is work.Success at it requires radiation pattern and patience, in addition to the constant reminders that you CAN do it. Before tackling a foreign language, also ask yourself the following four questions 1. How will this help me in my career? 2. How will this help me in my personal development? 3. How much of this language do I really need to know? 4. How much of this language do I already know? Your answers to the first two questions should be your goals and your incentives. Dont forget them. The third question is crucial to setting a realistic language goal.If you need to learn Russ ian or Spanish only for business meetings, focus your attention on the spoken language and steer clear of excess areas, such as historical verb tenses found only in literature. You wont need to know them, and consequently, you wont enjoy learning them. The last question, that is How much of this language do I already know? , will help you realize that you probably already have some of the language under your belt, even if its just a little bit. Knowing uno, due, tres and the names of your favorite Mexican foods is a warm-up for Spanish.Next recall how Spanish speakers pronounce these common words. For languages such as Japanese, the search for words might be a little more difficult. Instead, start with names, such as Kawasaki or Mitsubishi. Do you hear a pattern? Yes, they are all four-syllable names. promptly that you are in the right frame of mind, here are some tips for learning process. Avoid crash courses. Crash courses often teach also much, too quickly not allowing the bra in to absorb the beginning lessons before the later ones are taught. Language learning is incremental.You have to understand the beginning before going on to the middle. Listen to audio cassettes for pronunciation and cadence, but be warned, some audio cassettes merely have you repeat phrases. This method does not help you contain what youve learned. Look for interactive audio programs that encourage you to answer questions and think in the language. Listen to foreign wireless. In most areas there are radio programs and some times entire stations in a foreign language. If you have difficulty finding one of these, inquire at your local public radio station. Watch videos in a foreign language.Whether they are for learning or for pleasure, videos provide a great way to hear the language in the condition of natural conversation. Full-length films are loaded with idioms, hand gestures and other cultural and language specific characteristics. When you read in a language, dont try to un derstand everything. You ought to avoid dictionary dependence. Certainly, you didnt use a dictionary to learn your native language. Instead, skim and read what you can. By going for the gist of the piece youll enjoy reading more and progress faster. Newspapers and magazines are fantastic vocabulary builders, because you will find plenty of ontextual clues in the pictures and the topics will probably be ones youve already read about in English. Seek out native speakers. If you are unable to visit the country where the language is spoken, find native speakers in your area with whom you can converse. You can get in touch with them through colleges, consulates and cultural centres. Mimic foreigners speaking English as well as their native language. Some teachers start their beginner foreign language classes by having the students imitate foreigners speaking English. It helps the students in their pronunciation of the foreign language.Dont get bored down analyzing the language. Practice is the key to learning a foreign language rather than spending weeks memorizing every form of every verb tense. Practise with the vocabulary you have. The more you converse, the quicker the missing pieces of your vocabulary will fall into place. And, finally, release new vocabulary words and phrases on index cards with the English translation on the back. Index cards easily fit it the coat pockets and handbags and can be pulled out and studied just about anywhere. A few tips on the importance of how you go about learning a little bit about a foreign language.