Why I Speak Spanish and Other Tales

Like most kids in high school, I took Spanish because it was required to get in to college. NOT because I wanted to be cultured or worldly, and certainly not to broaden my career opportunities.

And I'll be honest with you. I hated Spanish. I was that kid who sat in the back of class and said

"When am I ever going to use this crap?"

Then again, who could blame me? I was a white girl in the middle of a real-life Farmville with no brown people for miles.


Who needs Spanish?

But like many other important decisions in my life, I decided to learn Spanish.... for a boy.

Ahem. Not just any boy... A foreign exchange student boy. 

Now, it is pretty safe to say that I made a lot of questionable decisions that year. But a decade later, I'm happy to say that learning Spanish was not one of them.

I started out picking up just a few simple words and phrases. And swear words. But then I grew into full sentences and dialogues that were meant to be cryptic to my parents and my dorm roommate. Somewhere in there I picked up some actual grammar after declaring Spanish as my major.

Even then, I didn't know what the heck I was going to do with Spanish, but I liked it. And suddenly, it seemed a lot more relevant to my world.

Looking back, I can see how Spanish helped me academically and in my career. Especially in my career. I know that speaking Spanish gives me a competitive advantage and has helped me land both of the jobs I've had since graduating from college.

The most important 9 letters on my resume spell out 'bilingual' and I don't take them for granted.

And that's why I started Speak Español. To help other people, like me, become bilingual and see how far Spanish can take them in their businesses and in their careers.