The author dedicates this article to his friend.
A Deadlocked Past: "A dream that is not acted upon will forever remain a dream." When I was a student, I was fortunate enough to share a dormitory with a very talented friend who was a member of the Robocon team and an excellent contestant in academic competitions. After graduating, we went our separate ways and didn't connect much. Our most recent meeting left me with some concerns, and I decided to share this article so that more people would not encounter unnecessary obstacles like my friend.
My friend is very good at his profession, "lives" well, is loved by teachers and respected by friends, and gets along well with colleagues... I thought that with his solid foundation, his career path would be as bright as his studies. However, the reality is a bit different. He encountered an obstacle that seemed small at first, but became more and more terrible, to the point where it made him lose confidence: obstacles due to poor foreign language skills.
One beautiful day, I met NB again. My friend was still eloquent, energetic, and still the soul of the class reunions. Exchanging about work, my industry and NB's industry belong to a group of related industries, so it's easy to catch up even though we don't connect often. The next day, I was fortunate enough to be asked by him to 'review CV' because he needed to find a new job. Sharing about the reason for wanting to change jobs, he hesitated: since graduating, the highest position he has held is the Construction Commander or Team leader of product development projects; a position that is not bad at all, but cannot satisfy a guy who graduated from a prestigious school with a red diploma like my friend; meanwhile, colleagues of the same age, who graduated from less famous schools, and whose expertise is only at a good level, not as excellent as my friend; but in return, they can use English well. My friend is sensitive enough to realize that, after a period of communicating with foreign superiors, no matter how good you are at your profession, if you cannot report or express your views in English; when asked, you only answer stutteringly, say things that few people understand, and your ability to write reports is not up to par, far from the level of a 'bussiness report'... After so many years of dedication, my friend has not been appointed to a senior management position. Worse, what makes him psychologically frustrated and somewhat self-conscious is that he is reporting to people who have less expertise than him (but I need to emphasize that their foreign language skills are much better than his).
A few weeks after that reunion, I don't know if it was because of my friend's impressive education or ... because I 'edited well', my friend's CV caught the eye of the recruiter; he called me with an excited voice "I passed, a multinational company, double the income, I can choose two days a week to work from home as I proposed, and it's only exchanged in Vietnamese". I was happy for my friend, but... the joy didn't last long; the following week he called again "This position is a senior manager, Vietnamese bosses are not allowed to recruit directly; arrange for me to interview with the regional level in Singapore in English,... after the interview they said they wouldn't accept me"; listening to his voice, I knew he was very disappointed and discouraged because he had been looking forward to this position and this income for a long time. Once again, he failed at work, and the fall became more painful than before because now it is the slide of a middle-aged person who is stuck in his career, not simply the naive stumble of a young engineer...
NB, what I want to say to you is probably what you have heard before: if we want new results, we cannot continue to do things the old way. Expertise is only a necessary condition, not a sufficient condition for success at work; there are many other pieces of knowledge and skills, including foreign languages, which are indispensable if you want to go further in the 'professional' environment. The process of mastering a foreign language cannot happen in an "instant noodle" style, but is a process of cultivation and training. I knew you were very sad when you called me, so I thought in my head but didn't say to you: Suppose you were lucky enough to be accepted straight in, then what? What if when presenting, reporting, defending your views, etc... in the series of working days after that? To be honest, they will definitely soon realize that you cannot be the 'Head' of a block, representing 'Team Việt Nam' to work with them, simply because you cannot communicate with your regional level, not to mention with partners and other departments; it is likely that you will have a hard time staying long.
The road ahead: Result = Correct perception + Action;
Results only come to those who have a reasonable strategy and, more importantly, must roll up their sleeves and take action.
My friend is quite individualistic, rarely listens to anyone, but this time it seems like he listened to me; he texted me that he is learning a foreign language, he will not lose his opportunity and that of his small family again, he will escape the deadlock in his career, and he will not have to face the feeling of regret again.
My friend, the NB I knew was a guy with a lot of will and energy, as long as you realize it and start doing it, I believe you can do it!
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