There are seven languages that, if you learn them, can make more money at work.
But I'm not just talking an extra point or two on the salary scale here.
I'm talking new opportunities you never knew existed.
Private golf courses, really? An EU passport? Flying planes?
Let's start with the language that is known for paying very high bonuses.
(Speaks German)
It is no secret that Germany is a business giant, for one, has some of the biggest automobile brands in the world.
And if you happen to be an engineer, there obviously great opportunities there.
But there's so much more, take Berlin. Berlin is a hub of innovative, cutting edge tech businesses, and the new startups coming from Berlin.
Well, they just keep on coming. However, this is Germany.
You won't be the only educated talent out there, so learning the German language will be a pretty strategic move.
German will also help you get a job in the sciences, healthcare, law, media, teaching.
Ever thought of being a pilot? This is all thanks to Germany's thriving and super stable economy.
And if you move to Germany and speak the language, you can get a wage increase of up to 4% not to mention generous bonuses.
By the way, did you know that you can study for free at any public university in Germany? It's true.
What about international business?
Well, all around Europe, you will find the business is conducted in the German language like these economically important languages, for example.
But German isn't only useful in Germany. Have you noticed that the Germans are the world's biggest spenders when on holiday? That's right.
And while they do usually speak English, German tourists love being looked after by German speaking tour guides.
So, opportunities are plenty for entrepreneurial German speakers around the world.
(speaks in Spanish)
After English, Spanish is by far the most useful business language in the US.
In fact, 13% of the population of the US speak Spanish at home.
The thing is, the buying power of Spanish speakers alone is huge, and it's a pretty smart move to align your services with the needs of the population.
And, as for Latin America or the amount of people you can reach by knowing Spanish is staggering,
giving you a major advantage of your English speaking competitors who only speak English or even worse,
expect everyone else in the world to speak English, too.
But think of all the Latin communities and employees hired by businesses around the US.
If you speak Spanish, it's just one more reason for a company to hire you and pay you more while you're at it.
And Spanish doesn't just come in handy in the US.
According to the British Council, 34% of companies in the UK rates Spanish as useful to their organisation.
So if you can speak Spanish, well, you're first in line for that next job.
Yes, there is big money in Russia, but also in Russian.
Learn the language and you could be selling real estate to Russians who are in football clubs like Arsenal, buy up luxury homes along the Thames, in Miami Beach.
The market for Russian language services in English speaking countries is huge, especially in tourism, a bit like the Germans.
Russian tourists are big spenders.
But if you want a job in Russia and the language is even more important because only a small percentage of the population of Russia can speak English.
This means that English isn't enough by itself if you're serious about working there.
Economically and politically, Russia has huge power, with some of the finest minds in science and engineering.
And wherever the centre of gravity is in the world of business, knowing the language gives you access to that opportunity.
But, listen. Russian is not just for rocket scientists.
Many Russians themselves want their kids to learn English because they themselves recognised for them English gives them access to the rest of the world.
So, there's also a very high demand for English teachers, along with plenty of other great jobs in areas like IT and design.
Have you ever looked for an English teaching job abroad like I did back in 2009 or whatever it was?
You know that the highest paid education positions are in the Middle East, especially in the UAE.
There's also journalism, childcare, finance, foreign services.
All of these are great jobs if you speak English, but the best jobs in this region go to those who speak English and Arabic.
It's like with translation jobs, for example, Arabic is the second highest paid translation language of all.
The opportunities go far beyond these fields.
Arabic is the language of the biggest oil rich country in the world, and the Gulf region is developing at an incredible pace, with incredible jobs for those who can speak Arabic.
But oil, not your thing? Fair enough.
How about tourism, aviation, fashion or infrastructure?
The Arab world is also really big on things like landscaping and horticulture.
Fancy working for a sheikh?
You can work on projects as big as private golf estates and race courses.
Remember that the UK as well have very strong trade ties with the UAE.
According to Arab News, learning Arabic is becoming increasingly useful post Brexit.
And, let me tell you, western Arabic speakers are in high demand and very, very low supply, which is great news if you're planning to learn it.
But it's bigger than just being able to negotiate better deals.
As with all language learning, the cultural insight you get from learning the language is just as important,
and in the Middle East, creating mutual trust will give you a huge advantage in Arabic.
The Arabic language is a gateway.
In one British Council report, I read ranks Arabic as the second most important language of the future, and one of the first is, any guesses?
Well, I'll tell you in just a second. But this cultural thing is a big deal.
And at StoryLearning I teach languages through story.
And one of the reasons for that, for building my courses around stories well, is to teach you about the culture at the same time, because it really is that important.
Now let's see if your instincts were right.
The number one language of the future is:
(Speaks Chinese)
According to Bloomberg, Mandarin Chinese is the top language worldwide for business besides English.
China is a global power and, analysts say, will become the world's leading economy by 2050.
And I don't doubt that.
Now, have a look here. Can you imagine the opportunities that exist?
Here's the thing about doing business in China.
It is all about building relationships, forming friendships, knowing how to show the proper respect for the local custom.
And they're very particular about this in a business meeting,
is really not enough to just going to bring a few memorised Mandarin phrases to the table and just hope for the best.
There's a lot more to understanding Chinese than that.
Even body language matters a lot more than you might be used to.
So if you really want to impress, your best bet is to learn Mandarin, which will also teach you the right levels of politeness, composure, etiquette and all these other things.
So, where will Mandarin be useful to you?
Well, there are over a billion Mandarin speakers in the world.
No doubt you've noticed that there are Chinese business people and just about every country you've ever been to. They are a force to be reckoned with.
But, still, learning Mandarin makes the most sense if you're headed for China,
where you will also be able to operate in lots of nearby countries like Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and so on,
and there's nothing better to set you apart from all the other foreigners out there than knowing how to speak the language.
It's an advantage in every sense.
But how about the language that not many English speakers are learning?
Portuguese allows you access to two amazing markets, Portugal and Brazil.
Let's start with Portugal.
One of the best things about Portugal right now is their fantastic residency programme
that can lead to citizenship if you are serious about setting up there.
This is quite a big deal if you fancy an EU passport, for example, but you will need to pass the Portuguese language test first.
Portugal also has tax incentives that look really quite appealing for US citizens.
They have a tax treaty with the US that allows you to avoid double taxation on your income, which is a big deal for you guys.
And then, there's Brazil. And Brazil is a land of plenty of huge swaths of rainforest resort lined beaches for miles, incredible culture.
It's no wonder is a major destination for international business now.
In Brazil, the top moneymaker is agriculture.
Brazil is a huge exporter of coffee, maize, soybeans, oranges, sugar and also one of the world's leading producers of tin, iron ore and phosphate.
And in the face of setbacks, the Brazilians, they know how to bounce back.
Brazil is a country with an impressive history of economic growth, and for those... Brazilian entrepreneurs out there will ever inspire you.
Brazil is big on entrepreneurship, is the third biggest in the world in fact, and your advantage in Brazil is that far fewer people speak English.
So if you go in there with English and Portuguese, you're already winning,
and you can access a really exciting number of opportunities that might be quite saturated in your home markets.
Let's give you a really simple example of how this language learning can work in a sales context.
I write books, and this is a book for English speakers to learn to speak Portuguese.
But I also have a book for Brazilians or anyone else to learn how to speak English.
And I often do things like go on Instagram and do live Instagram video speaking Portuguese.
And, because Brazil is such a big market, I can speak to them in Portuguese, and then lots of them will go and buy my book.
So, it's a simple example, but being able to speak the language really facilitates that.
(Speaks Portuguese)
And, there's one more extremely useful language for business, which you have probably already guessed, and this one is truly international.
French is not just big in Europe. It is spoken on five continents in 55 countries.
That's right, and the African French market in particular is huge.
But, even in the US, it's really useful to know because France has close business partnerships with the US.
And, if you plan to expand your business or career into Canada, then French really is a must because, after all, Canada is the number one consumer of US exports.
If you're still in your study years, there's an extra call incentive here,
which is that foreign students who know French are eligible for some pretty awesome scholarships.
And, if international business isn't your thing, well, international organisations and NGOs rely heavily on employees who can speak French.
Check the job boards for development aid work, for example.
A huge amount of job listings require French. Amazingly, it is estimated that by 2050, the year by China is supposed to be the biggest country of all,
French will be the most spoken language in the world, which might come as a little bit of a surprise,
but not as much of a surprise as these languages right here, which are really easy for English speakers.
So, if you fancy learning a language, one of these will be a very good place to start.
Click the video and find out what they are.
