Why should I learn French? Is French a good language to learn? Should I learn French, Spanish, or another language? What are the real benefits of taking French classes?
It is obvious that learning the language of Molière has lots of advantages, but if you are still hesitant and overwhelmed by such a flood of questions, then you should read the full post to learn more about its importance and find ways to motivate yourself to learn it.
So, in this post, I will share my top 6 good reasons why you should start learning French.
Learning French will give you an international exposure
French is the 5th spoken language in the world after Chinese, English, Spanish, and Arabic. It’s the only language, with English that is spoken on the 5 continents. 29 countries and 3 governments in the world have French as the official language.
Learning French will help you reach not only French people but also all the francophone population which is about 300 million people. You’ll be able to connect and interact with people around the world.
Imagine a situation where you are on vacation, You are lost and you want to ask your way. You meet some people at the beach. But the only language they speak is French. Embarrassing? I guess so if you don’t speak French.
That’s why you need to learn a foreign language and especially French as it has the power to make you reach millions of people around the world.
Studying French will also expose you to French culture, its gastronomy, literature, cinema, and philosophy. You‘ll also discover about the other French-speaking countries and festivals like Festival de Canes, le FESPACO which is the cinema festival in Burkina Faso (West African speaking country), …
You‘ll be able to stay connected with the world and know what’s happening in real-time through online channels like France 24, RFI, TV 5 monde…
Broaden your career perspectives by learning French
If you are planning to work in France or Canada, or any other francophone country you‘ll need to speak the French language to be able to interact with customers, with your colleagues,... The French language will be very useful for your integration and for facilitating your immersion in society.
In general, being a polyglot is a valued talent researched in the professional world. Look around you! There is at least one, if not more, French-speaking company in your country, and who knows? Maybe you’ll end up working for one of them.
Speaking about job opportunities, Jooble.org is a great platform for finding jobs and it's entirely free to use. Their page dedicated to French jobs is a great resource for those who want to explore international French-speaking professional opportunities.
Don’t miss out on Business opportunities
If you are a businessman or willing to do business, French is a language you might want to consider. The majority of the French-speaking population is based out of France and almost half is located in Sub-Saharan Africa. According to a recent survey, about 44% is based in Africa whose population has great potential for growth due to its high birth rates. The proportion of French speakers on the African continent could reach 85% of the total francophone people by 2050 according to an estimate made by an organization that monitors statistics on Francophones. That represents real business opportunities in the future. You don’t want to miss this.
Learn because you love the French language
If you love French culture, wine, and gastronomy, learning French will help you fulfill your desire. You’ll be able to pronounce your favorite food name or order the “Bordeaux” wine in your favorite French restaurant. You will also be able to enjoy the best French movies on YouTube, Netflix, or Lingopie, and visit your dream city in France, and so on…
The great thing about all this is that you’ll be able to do it without being embarrassed. There are so many great benefits of learning French!
Learn French because it is an everchanging language
Learning French will expose you to a variety of accents and ways of saying things in several countries. Through its expansion out of France, the French language has a lot changed and is continuously changing. New vocabulary is regularly added to the dictionary. Learning French will expose you to a dynamic language that is far from fading out but is always rejuvenating.
Because speaking French is not as difficult as you may think
The French language has a lot of connections with other languages such as English, Spanish, and Italian. If you speak one of these languages, you‘ll quickly notice a lot of similarities in the vocabulary and grammar structure. For example passion, adorable, information, relation, restaurant, carte, dîner, and entrepreneur are all French words that have the same meaning in English. At least it will avoid you some false friends.
To wrap it up
The benefits of studying French are numerous. Whether you want to facilitate your immersion in a French-speaking company/country, make friends, or travel around the world, French would still be useful.
For those who were still hesitating, stop thinking over and over and make a big jump ahead. You can already start learning with us now! Check out our free French resources in the Free lessons section. The grammar part is perfect for laying the foundations of the language and the vocabulary for the essential words and phrases necessary for starting out.
For more
If you want to take your learning further and take live online classes with native speakers, in a structured way (CEFR standards), we recommend Lingoda, an online language school with affordable and effective live group classes and private classes. You can access the free trial here. This will give you the opportunity to try out up to 3 group classes or 1 private lesson and judge by yourself the effectiveness of the lessons. If you like challenges, you can participate to the Lingoda sprint and get 50% or 100% cash back if you attend all the classes you subscribed for. As a LearnFrenchWithChanty reader, you can enjoy a 10% discount on your monthly plans with the code CHANTY10.
The spoken institute's approach to teaching French is very effective. I love how they focus on practical conversations, which makes it feel like I'm learning a language for real-life situations.