Way back in the 1970s, before political correctness had been invented and the sight of Benny Hill’s high-speed chase routines involving naughty nurses and policewomen in suspenders was considered cutting-edge comedy, a show appeared on ITV called Mind Your Language.
The setting was an evening class where new arrivals to the UK struggled to learn English.
The drama laboured through nine long years before it was finally cancelled, but while TV was then poking fun at foreigners, the number of people in this country who could speak a second language was dwindling.
Now, however, schools are putting right the decline, with the introduction of French and Gaelic to pupils so young that they’ve yet to master their times tables.
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It will be some years before these language lessons pay off, but in the meantime anyone with a firm grasp of more than one tongue – now there’s an image! – is at a distinct advantage.
A number of international firms based in Scotland have a need to communicate with a worldwide audience and in order to do that they need people who speak a range of languages.
At the moment there is huge demand for French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin and Cantonese, so if you are familiar with any of these you are at a real advantage.
Some of the vacancies serve the IT industry, while others include importers of international foodstuffs.
Now as anyone who has ever tried to grasp anything more than the basics in a second language will know, it is much harder to communicate over the phone than it is face-to-face. Remove all the visual clues and the challenge of comprehension gets so much tougher.
So you’ll need to be fluent – though finding yourself in an exciting multi-lingual environment, surrounded by colleagues whose skills match your own, will prove motivational.
If you find yourself working in a reservations position with one of the global hotel chains or travel bookers then a second language may not be enough.
There’s no doubt this is a tall order but, if you have a way with languages, it is the perfect way to make use of your skills.
Show the whole world you have the gift of the gab in any language!