11 Reasons Why You Should Hire a Linguist
The obvious number 1 advantage of hiring a linguist: They know more than one language. Which means that it’s faster to learn tasks rather than acquire proficiency in a target language. Think about customer care for international clients. It’s easy to learn by heart and say “the good will be delivered next Tuesday”, but it takes a lot of time and practice to perform a proper conversation with a native speaker of a language.
2. They did an experience abroad. Going out from your confort zone means that you have to solve alone your own issues. If I had one Euro every time I read “the ideal candidate is a problem solver” regarding a job announcement, I would be rich.
3. They can handle with people from different backgrounds. Is your company on the international market? To be open minded is something that recruiters look for, and living abroad widens your way of thinking and helps you understanding cultural varieties.
4. They can perform several activities. Humanities don’t give you a job directly after getting a degree. Linguists may have had several job experiences because of this, and it means that they can fit in different fields. They can adapt easily to a new job.
5. They know how to do research and use the new knowledge acquired. In every workplace there is something to learn. Actually, in life there is always something new to learn.
6. They are consistent. Studying linguistics (language, morphology, etymology, phonetic, and so on…) requires time, and it gets more and more difficult, like maths. Linguists don’t give up on their mission. Consistency is a great competence in every job field.
7. They go on despite the critics. They often hear during their studies: “You only study languages! How many languages do you know? You will be a teacher! You’ll never find a job! “ but they actually continue their path no matter what.
8. “The online translator translates better, faster, and it is cheaper”. An experienced linguist/translator is able to translate with a much higher quality than your digital programme. Does an online translator understand what “context” may mean?
9. Speaking of context, linguists go beyond surface. They are used to it because of translations. Indeed, a translator/linguist is involved in finding the real meaning of a text and reporting it accurately in a specific target language. Of course mistakes can happen, as it’s not their mother tongue. But you learn from mistakes, isn’t it? Does it sound cool for a company which value is to have trustworthy people in their team? Are you looking for accuracy in your employees’ tasks?
10. They know how to use words. They know the power of words and how they can be employed for an amazing blog article or for the development of an important speech.
11. They never stop learning a language. Imagine to have someone in your team who improve themselves by attending refresher courses. Does it provide more value to your company? As I mentioned before, you never stop learning.
To sum up 11 nice skills to have for a job position (and maybe life?):
- linguistic knowledge
- problem solving
- open-mindedness
- adaptability
- researching skills
- consistency
- goal setting
- self-confidence
- go beyond
- writing
- willing to learn
I do think the readers of this article have understood that me, the writer, I am a linguist as well. Why have I written all these things? Well, currently I am looking for a job and I acknowledged that, despite the time I spend on reading announcements and writing a proper cover letter, my applications are rarely read. As I do not wish this for myself anymore, nor for my fellow linguist colleagues, I want to let everyone read and know that there is something more beyond the surface. My applications are not even seen? Fine, I write anyway!
