I have fortunate/unfortunate quality of being familiar with many languages and fluent in none (other than English). It's always been my dream to be fluent in several languages, but my indecisiveness on where to start has held me back for years.
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My options so far...
Mandarin (A1):
Pros: My family is from mainland China, but sadly it's just me and my dad now, and he's fluent in English. So it's more of a cultural-roots thing than a personally practical choice (although objectively practical). But this does mean I have access to a native speaker for practice. Semi-interested in media. Good amount of resources to learn from. I enjoy listening to and learning it (crazy I know, but it's familiar to me).
Cons: Will probably return to China once or twice at most. Main motivation was connection with family, which is no longer relevant. :(
Cantonese (A0):
Pros: My in-laws primary household language, but only grandpa is not bilingual, and mom speaks Mandarin as well. My friends all speak it at home, too. So lots of regular immersion opportunities. Good for connection with local Chinese communities.
Cons: Not a fan of speaking/listening or watching media. Probably won't travel to Canton or HK much, so only mildly practical at home really. Incredibly difficult to learn and very few formal resources.
Spanish (A2):
Pros: Biggest foundation and most upside locally in America. There's so many times I ran into Spanish-only speakers or wanted to help out someone struggling to communicate and wish I had been more fluent. Loooottts of resources and immersion opportunities abroad.
Cons: Spanish culture and media doesn't excite me (sorry). I don't like the sound of it. I do love the feeling of speaking it and communicating with natives, but I'm not sure if that's just because it's my most proficient language and so it's more fun to practice?
French (A1-A2):
Pros: Love French culture, although I've cooled off on it over the years. Lived in France briefly which got me up to A2 but it's probably A1 now since I'm rusty. Don't know how much I'll visit in the future, though. Lots of resources. And just love the language in general.
Cons: Still kinda niche for practical purposes. French will hate me whether or not I speak it lol.
Japanese (A0):
Pros: Like listening to it (neutral about speaking). Big weeb so obviously interested in the media and traveling to Japan more (would love to live there in the future). Locals don't speak English much so very useful in that regard. Decent resources available.
Cons: Somewhat niche and certainly the most difficult on the list.
Korean (A0):
Pros: Loveee listening and speaking. Probably my favorite in that regard. Watch lots of K-Dramas so easy media immersion. Could see myself spending more time in Korea, and locals don't speak much English. Have Korean friends to practice with. Semi-easy to learn.
Cons: Very very niche. Not much use other than turning off subtitles on shows lol, especially if I don't end up traveling there a lot.
Thai (A0):
Pros: I'm a Muay Thai fighter and therefore deeply embedded in Thai culture. I have a lot of Thai friends in the US that speak okay English, but would be nice to communicate more easily. I lived in Thailand for half a year and very good chance I'll live there long-term at some point in the future. Speaking Thai opens lots of doors in Thailand.
Cons: I kinda hate it lol. I don't like listening/speaking and it's difficult. Very few educational resources to learn in the US.
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In Summary:
I enjoy speaking Spanish, French, Mandarin, and Korean the most.
I enjoy listening to Korean and Japanese the most, and enjoy their culture and media the most.
I am most likely to spend time traveling/living in Thailand or Japan.
Cantonese and Spanish are most practical at home.
Mandarin and Spanish are most practical anywhere.
I have the biggest head start in Spanish, followed by French and Mandarin.
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TLDR: Spanish/Cantonese/Thai are most practical, Japanese/Korean most enjoyable, and Mandarin/French fall in the middle.
HELP MEEEE!!! lol
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