The reasons to learn a new language are numerous and almost universally positive. But the benefits aren't all communication-related -- learning languages can also improve you as a person!
Perhaps you learn a new language through online lessons, incorporating it into your daily life, utilizing a smart language translator device like our own Jarvisen, or combining all three.
However you do it, here are four surprising pros to expanding your language capacity beyond your first one!
Better Memory
The more you use your brain, the stronger it gets. This is extra true when learning a new language: practicing it doesn't just make the comprehension part of your mind more robust, but its memory as well!
If you commit to studying your new language every day, your brain will quickly learn to store it in its long-term memory banks. This, in turn, will give your long-term memory the practice needed to work all the time properly.
Soon, you'll find yourself remembering other things easier: where your car keys are, the dates and times of urgent appointments, passages from your favorite book, and so on. If you want to keep that memory nice and strong, give it lots of great practice by studying a new language.
More Flexible/Creative Thinking
Learning a new language requires more creative thought than simply memorizing what word means what in the new language. You need to be able to detect patterns, piece together sentences, and learn new grammatical rules and correctly apply them, among other tasks.
The flexibility and creativity required to learn a new language will help you gain both things in your everyday life. You will adopt less rigid thinking while considering and executing creative solutions to everyday problems that simple, straightforward ideas we're not solving.
Improved Attitude Towards Other Languages and Culture
Unfortunately, not everybody has a terrific attitude toward other cultures and languages. For some people, the way their country does things in the language their country speaks isn't just good enough -- it's best of all.
Taking the time to learn a new language can change that. Dedicating hours of your time to understanding how millions of people communicate will undoubtedly cause you to appreciate those people and their unique style better.
Also, it's virtually impossible to learn a new language and not learn something about the culture that speaks it. Since the greatest weapon against ignorance is education, learning about the people, traditions, and lifestyles behind your new language will only help you respect that culture the way it deserves to be respected.
Expanded Vocabulary in Your Native Language
You've been speaking your first language your entire life. At some point, you're bound to have stopped learning new words and new manners of speaking, mostly because you don't need to. You've already learned all you need to know to communicate and get by.
But when you're learning a new language, you are starting from scratch. While you're learning this new language, you'll likely teach yourself new ways to speak and write that you did not consider in your first language.
With this new knowledge in your head, you can easily apply it to your original language. Just like that, while attempting to become fluent in one language, you're now extra fluent in another!
The Bottom Line
There are no drawbacks to learning a new language, only benefits. No matter how surprising some of these benefits might be, they all result in the same thing: changing your life for the better!
