English isn't just a languageâit's the passport to global business, higher salaries, and opportunities that Spanish or Portuguese alone can't unlock.
Only 4% of global English conversations happen between native speakers. The rest? Non-native professionals like you, using English to get deals done.
From SĂŁo Paulo startups to Mexico City call centers, English proficiency determines who gets promoted, who earns more, and who accesses global opportunities.
Including Airbus, Samsung, SAP, Rakuten, Nokia, Renault, and Microsoft
British Council / Corporate Language Research, 2016-2024That's 1 in 4 people globallyâyour competition for international jobs
British Council Global Analysis, 2024Nearly 3 in 4 executives need workforce English for expansion plans
Economist Intelligence Unit Survey, 201296% of English business conversations involve at least one non-native speaker. English isn't about sounding Americanâit's about being understood by Germans, Chinese, Brazilians, and Indians working on the same project. Functional proficiency beats native-like fluency when the goal is getting deals done.
Business English Research / Applied Linguistics, 2012-2024The salary data is brutal: English proficiency doesn't just helpâit fundamentally transforms your earning potential.
Monthly salaryâlimited to local companies
89% premiumâaccess to US companies, nearshore roles, international projects
Mexican Tech Sector Analysis, 2024Monthly vs. $1,168 local averageâ4.7x salary jump with English
Colombian IT Sector Data, 2024Higher earnings vs. intermediate Englishâtech + fluency = career rocket fuel
Mexican Tech Salary Survey, 2024Monthly for bilingual agentsâEnglish opens $6.5B BPO market
Brazil BPO Market Analysis, 2024-2029Higher pay for English speakersâ52% of employers need bilingual staff
ACTFL Employer Survey, 2019Nearshoring and remote work have explodedâbut only for professionals who speak English.
Mexico is #1 US trading partnerâ56% increase since 2020 driven by nearshoring
US Trade Statistics, 2024Tesla, BMW, VW, Chinese OEMsâall creating English-required jobs
Mexican FDI Data, 2019-2024US companies nearshoring customer serviceâfluent English mandatory
Mexico BPO Market Projections, 2024-202958% of English vocabulary comes from Latin origins. You already know thousands of wordsâyou just need to unlock them.
29% direct Latin + 29% French = massive cognate overlap with Spanish/Portuguese
Etymology Research / Historical Linguistics, 2024FSI Category reverseâRomance speakers learn English faster than vice versa
Foreign Service Institute Classification, 2024Both languages share verb conjugation conceptsâeasier than for Asian language speakers
Comparative Linguistics Research, 2024Spanish/Portuguese â English: informaciĂłn â information, universidad â university, problema â problem, importante â important, diferente â different, familia â family, hospital â hospital, natural â natural, persona â person, posible â possible
The challenge isn't vocabularyâit's articles (a/an/the/zero), prepositions (in/on/at), phrasal verbs (look up/look after/look into), and do vs. make. These are learnable patterns, not thousands of new words.
Research shows Romance language speakers face the same obstacles. Know them, practice them, overcome them.
Spanish has 2 articles, English has 4. "Life is beautiful" not "The life is beautiful." Master this at B2 level through massive exposure.
"En" becomes three different words. "Married to" not "married with." "Depend on" not "depend of." Each requires memorization.
Don't exist in Romance languages. "Look up" (search), "look after" (care for), "look into" (investigate)âlearn as vocabulary items.
"Hacer" covers both in Spanish. English splits it: "do homework" but "make a cake." Learn collocations, not rules.
"Embarazada" = pregnant not embarrassed. "Actual" = current not actual. "Ăxito" = success not exit. Common traps.
TH sounds don't exist in Portuguese/Spanish. 14+ English vowels vs. 5 in Spanish. American R requires molar bracing, not tongue tapping.
You don't need native-like fluency. You need functional business EnglishâB2 for most roles, C1 for leadership.
Basic greetings, simple transactions, present tense. Can handle routine tourist situations but not work conversations. Not sufficient for any professional role.
Deal with most travel situations, describe experiences, understand main points of clear speech. Minimum for basic customer service rolesâcan handle routine interactions but struggles with complex problems.
TARGET FOR MOST PROFESSIONALS: Interact with fluency without strain, produce clear detailed text on business subjects, understand complex discussions. Software developers, tech support, most nearshore roles require this level minimum.
MANAGEMENT & LEADERSHIP: Express ideas fluently without searching for expressions, use language flexibly for social/professional purposes, understand implicit meaning. Customer service (US clients), presentations, cross-border team management, negotiations.
Near-native proficiencyârarely necessary for business. C1 is sufficient for virtually all professional contexts. Don't let perfectionism delay your career advancement.
Most Latin American professionals should target B2 (Upper Intermediate) as their initial goal. This unlocks 80% of job opportunitiesâsoftware development, tech support, basic customer service, project coordination. From B2, you can advance to C1 through on-the-job practice while already earning the salary premium. Don't wait for perfect fluency to start applyingâcompanies hiring nearshore talent expect B2, not C2.
This isn't motivationâit's neuroscience. Learning English now protects your brain decades from now.
Bilinguals develop symptoms 5 years later than monolingualsâmassive for quality of life
Concordia University, Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, Oct 20240.4% prevalence in bilinguals vs. 4.9% in monolinguals
Venugopal et al., Alzheimer's & Dementia Journal, 2024Enhanced attention, problem-solving, and mental agility throughout life
PMC Cognitive Benefits Study, 2012; Multiple 2024 StudiesLifelong bilingualism builds "cognitive reserve"âyour brain develops alternative neural pathways that compensate when Alzheimer's or dementia strikes. Research shows bilinguals have more brain pathology at diagnosis but perform at the same cognitive level as monolinguals with less damage.
The brain essentially masks symptoms longerâmaintaining function despite disease progression. Bilinguals show larger hippocampus volume (the region most affected by Alzheimer's) and better executive function throughout life.
Important: This research is observational (correlation, not causation). Bilingualism doesn't prevent dementiaâit delays when symptoms become noticeable. But a 5-year delay means 5 more years of independence, memory, and quality time with family.
15,000+ Latin Americans work directly for major US tech firms. Hundreds of thousands more in nearshore roles. English makes it possible.
Reverse works tooâLatin Americans can now access US salaries remotely
MBO Partners Digital Nomad Survey, 2024Latin Americans at Dell, Amazon, Google, IBM, OracleâEnglish required
Tech Company Regional Employment Data, 20243+ days/week in Mexico, Brazil, ChileâEnglish enables international opportunities
Latin America Remote Work Statistics, 2024AI translation exists, but it can't replace human English fluency. Companies still need professionals who can think, negotiate, and build relationships in English.