Without a doubt, learning German is an excellent investment in both your personal and professional life. Some popular reasons for people to start learning German include being able to talk with German family, preparing for an exchange program at a German institution and for taking holidays in Germany. There are however many other great reasons to learn German that many people never even consider. These are some that come to mind:

Germany is the most populous European nation and German is the most widely spoken language in Europe. Learning German can connect you with 120 million native speakers around the globe and you might be surprised to learn that German is the 3rd most popular foreign language taught worldwide. Learning German will allow you to communicate with German speakers all across the world and not just the Germans, Austrians and the Swiss in their respective countries.  

Germany is the economic powerhouse of the European Union and one of the biggest international exporters. Germany’s international trade earnings are proof of the high demand for German goods. Knowing German creates many business opportunities, not just in Germany itself but also internationally. Germany exports more high-tech products than any other country apart from the U.S. so Germany is a country of innovation.

With ample disposable income and an average of 6 weeks of vacation a year, German’s have both the time and means to travel. Year after year the German’s spend more on foreign travel than any other nation. Tourism companies, airlines, hotels and car rental businesses that can communicate in German will profit from the German tourism industry.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that the German language is dying. In number of books published, Munich is second in the world only to New York. As very few German books are translated into English, the only way to appreciate these books is by learning to speak German.

German speaking countries have a very rich cultural heritage. The Germans are well known for their poets, classical musicians and great philosophers. 10 Nobel prizes have been awarded to German, Austrian and Swiss German authors. Scientists from the three major German speaking countries have won dozens of Nobel prizes in physics, chemistry and medicine. Knowing German allows you to access the works of these people in their original language allowing you a more in depth appreciation of their work.  Even if the cultural significance of Germany is of minor importance to you, you may still be attracted to high quality of live in German speaking countries.

You’re probably thinking that’s all well and good, but German is too hard to learn. If that’s the case, you’d be wrong! If English is your native language then you already have a huge advantage when it comes to learning German. Due to their common heritage, German and English share many similarities in both vocabulary and grammar. Also once you learn the German system of sounds, it’s easy to predict how the spoken word is written and how the word is pronounced. Also learning German can be really fun when you use resources like this free learning German podcast..

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