The Top 5 Ways Learning Spanish Will Advance your Career

We’re guessing you’ve already seen articles on the personal benefits of learning Spanish, such as improved memory and longevity, but here at AIL Madrid we also know the importance of learning Spanish as a second language for professional purposes. Though this list could easily be much longer, we’ve boiled it down to the top five most important ways Spanish will help advance your career and encourage you to comment with any additional benefits you can think of:

5. Greater cultural understanding 

A huge benefit of speaking Spanish is that it opens your understanding of other cultures: Spanish is an official language in 21 countries, as well as multiple dependent territories. So not only will you be able to communicate with more people (more on that in #3) but, through culture focused class activities, you will also be able to better understand their motivations and product consumption, allowing you to better cater to a vastly wider market.

4. Improved reasoning and multitasking skills

Learning a language causes your brain to become more active as it makes new connections and juggles multiple forms of expression. This activity then causes you to reevaluate your native languages and vocabulary, allowing you to become more articulate and to present yourself in a more professional manner. In addition, your ability to balance multiple ways to say things translates into the rest of your life and helps you to efficiently manage long term projects and your daily tasks. It also helps you identify clearer paths to simple solutions, giving you better reasoning and problem solving skills for everyday situations.

3. Networking in Spanish

This may rank 3rd, but it’s still absolutely crucial: speaking Spanish opens the door to 427 million new potential clients and contacts worldwide, allowing your business/department/startup to compete on an international level. It also improves peer communication, leading to new partnerships and joint ventures that can span multiple continents. Finally, it makes business travel that much easier: as we mentioned, Spanish is an official language in 21 countries, so having even a basic understanding of the language can smooth over miscommunications and travel glitches.

2. Higher average salary

This just in (via Rosetta Stone’s research dept): professionals who speak more than one language earn 10% more on average than their monolingual counterparts. If you were lacking motivation to sign up for Spanish classes before, we’re sure you’re now reconsidering it in a new light. Language skills make you far more valuable to your employers, and they’re more than willing to prove it with some extra cash!

1. Beat out the competition and get hired

Though some of you may argue that earning a higher salary should be reason #1 to learn Spanish, it’s important to remember that you first need to get your foot in the door, so we think this is a clear winner: 9 out of 10 recruiters say that speaking a second language helps you edge out the competition. So if you want to stand out in a pool of similar candidates and grab an opportunity that could change your life, speaking Spanish could be the deciding factor that gets you the final offer.

This also applies if you already have a job in your preferred sector since speaking Spanish will provide more opportunities for promotion as well: by being able to communicate with more clients, complete successful business trips, and having a greater understanding your market, you’ll be the first person to come to mind when a promotion is up for grabs.

Let’s face it, these facts speak for themselves to let’s wrap up in just a few words: sign up for Spanish classes now and work your way to professional success. We can’t wait to see your career progress!