| |
China currently has a population of over 1.3 billion people. While English is still the most widely used language in the world it is hard to ignore the fact that learning Chinese is the wave of the future. Given the fact that China is the fastest growing economy in the world it is ignorant to believe that we only need communicate in English and expect the rest of the world to follow us. By failing to foresee this need to learn Chinese we could be shortchanging ourselves and possibly get left behind in terms of lost business opportunities.
As I mentioned in a previous article I had wrote, the number of people learning Chinese in the United States still lags far behind French and Spanish. In sharp contrast, the study of Chinese has increased tremendously in Asian countries. For instance in Japan it ranks second behind English as the most studied language in schools. This implies Americans are still cool to the idea of learning Chinese or fail to understand the importance of this language in helping them compete on the global economic stage. This has not gone unnoticed by the US government who a few years ago listed Chinese as a critical language and provided millions in funding for schools to increase the number of Chinese classes being offered. They also increased the number of teachers to help increase the exposure in the US to learn Chinese.
As a result we are now starting to see a trickle down effect. In previous years we mainly saw Chinese families taking their children to learn Chinese as a way of maintaining their culture. Times have changed as more non-Chinese parents are enrolling their children in classes to learn Chinese. They believe this will open more doors and career opportunities for their children in the future. This could not be further from the truth as China is the United States biggest trading partner. Learning Chinese will help any budding business person or current business person to compete on the global economy. Chinese is not only spoken in China but widely used in Asian countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, and the Philippines.
There are other benefits of learning Chinese other than pure economics. It can open up opportunities to study in China and learn Chinese culture. Secondly, it helps you build discipline and knowledge. Thirdly it helps develop your creative and critical thinking skills.
If you would like to read more about how to learn Chinese, you can do so here: www.rocketchinese.biz
 EasyPublish™ this article - publishers click here
More articles by Raz Chan
- Adsense UK (Phillip Booker)
The United States are pioneers in many areas and we tend to follow. Okay we do have our shining moments, but to be honest us Brits need to be watching activities in America and tweak them for the UK market. In the light of this I've gathered a few Adsense Tips, tricks and secrets to offer to my colleagues here in the UK. Here are ten to help you... - Are You Worth It? (Heather Dominick)
Are you ready to tap into your worth once and for all? When you constantly give your energy away to outside circumstances, you're left drained, empty and looking for ways to fill up. You search endlessly for the right "answer" to building your business, making more money ... - So What Myth Are You Here To Shatter? (Heather Dominick)
So What Myth Are You Here To Shatter? Every person comes to this earth with a purpose. As an entrepreneur, you have the awesome opportunity to fuse your business with your purpose!
|