Almost all of us have lived long enough to have regrets. Some of those regrets -- like a missed opportunity way back when, or a botched relationship -- we can't always do anything about; but others can be remedied. It's actually surprising what deficiencies in our lives are within our power to correct. Learning a language is one of those. It is never too late. A person like Bill Gates obviously has the challenge of making time for an endeavor such as studying a foreign language. But in reality, all of us face exactly the same challenge: how will we prioritize our time? In this interview Gates salutes Mark Zuckerberg for having learned Mandarin Chinese well enough to hold a Q&A session in China. Remarkable indeed. But even a more cursory knowledge of another language can gain you entry into people's trust -- a commodity not always readily available.
For some practical encouragement on how to go about learning a foreign language, check out my short e-book here.