Nadine Gooden: The language enthusiast

SHE believes there is no limit to what one can achieve and no border to where one can go and armed with five languages, entrepreneur and linguist Nadine Gooden has allowed her personal mantra to work for her.

She has travelled to several countries over the past few years, including China, where she spent three years managing international sales; has made a successful career out of a niche offering in many universities; and was instrumental in the establishment of two businesses which allow her to network with people from around the world. All this has been facilitated in part by her love of languages.

Gooden speaks Spanish, French, Japanese, Mandarin and a little German, and was quick to add during last week’s interview with All Woman, that she is very fluent in Jamaican patois and the English language as well. She said she has been fascinated with languages since childhood and was equally enthralled by the idea of getting paid for what she likes doing.

She started learning Spanish during her first three years at secondary school. When it seemed as though the school’s inability to provide a teacher to teach the language beyond the ninth grade would derail her dreams, she just waited until graduation. Thereafter, she enrolled at the Shortwood Teachers’ College where she settled herself in a Spanish repeaters class for those who had failed the subject during the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) exams. The fact that Gooden was enrolling in a class for those who had actually done Spanish in CXC did not go unnoticed and she recalls one teacher in particular voicing her displeasure.

“She said to me, ‘you are wasting your time and your parents’ money, why do you think you can pursue this language at this point if you have only done it up to third form and this is a class for repeaters? What gives you the impression that you can do it now, you are just a time waster, but if the other teacher would take you into her class then go right ahead’,” recounted Gooden.

The language enthusiast passed her exam and enrolled at the Mico University College to pursue a diploma in teaching Spanish and Social Studies where during her final year, she came across that same teacher who was at pains to admit that she had judged Gooden wrong. When she signed up for a conversational class in French, her decision was once again put under the microscope since the class was for those who could actually speak French which she had not done before. Her sanity was questioned when she signed up to do CXC French after just a few months of joining the class. But she passed this too.

After leaving Mico, Gooden taught Spanish classes to the staff at various companies, which assisted her in funding her education upon enrolling at the University of the West Indies, Mona, to pursue her first degree. She especially remembers her time spent at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, where under the guidance of the now deceased Dr Raymond Wright, she taught managers and middle managers the language.

In 2001, Gooden pursued a Master’s in Political Science with International Relations at a university in Guadeloupe and upon her return to Jamaica, freelanced as a French and Spanish tutor and translator. When the opportunity came to go to China as an international business manager responsible for the Spanish speaking and French speaking markets for a company specialising in power generators, Gooden grasped it.

“Actually somebody who knows me heard of a possibility there where they needed someone who spoke Spanish and French and had a teaching background and some background in international relations and so that was me,” she said.

“I went first to assess the situation and see whether I would like it and they give you an actual challenge with a real client that came in who you were supposed to close the deal with on that day, and I closed the deal and they said ‘okay you are hired’,” she recalled.

While in China, she interacted with buyers from Europe, Africa and Latin America, and also taught the staff at the company English at intervals. It was through her interaction with the Chinese that she learnt Mandarin.

“When you have a language background, it just makes it a little bit much easier for you; you don’t get this great shock about how you are going to learn,” she said of the ease in which she picked up the language and fit into the Chinese culture.

Gooden’s travels were not just limited to China and Guadeloupe; she has also been to England, France, the United States, Mexico and Montserrat and has found language to be a great asset on each of her travels.

“It’s always very refreshing for people when you can hear them speak even one word in their language,” she pointed out.

Still, Gooden said no matter where she went, there was always a great longing to come back home to where her roots are. She believes that despite the challenges faced by some Jamaicans, there is some good and a vast amount of untapped resources.

“The Chinese have a saying that I like which says, “It is better to light a candle, than to curse the dark’,” she said before adding, “So I prefer to stay here and make my mark and my contribution to the place that has given birth to me, where my roots are.”

So in 2008, her first company International Business and Language Consulting, was started. The company deals with language facilitating trade and importation by assisting with the procurement, auditing, quality control and the administrative services for persons doing business in China, Europe or USA. The company also provides translators and interpreting services for Spanish, French, German, Russian, Portuguese, Dutch, Mandarin and other languages upon demand.

“We do translating and interpretation on the local market like for tour guide services and language training, but we do realise that it is a niche market and you have to find creative ways of staying afloat, not just waiting for that one translation or that two translations to come in, so essentially we have quality assurance service that you can get mainly in China,” Gooden explained.

But pretty soon, Gooden was getting demand from her clients to source persons to install those goods that they had imported through her company. As a result, her next company, Islandwide Builders and Leading Contractors, came on board to undertake engineering and construction work for those in need of such a service.

Gooden, through her business acumen, has proven that being a linguist has its merit and does not only confine one to being just a teacher or a translator. For those with an interest in studying languages, her advice is simple, yet profound.

“When you do some surveys you’ll find that people with a language background are better paid because that is an added skill, even in customer service and in marketing. When you think about it, a language is for communication and every field of business people have to communicate, so you really just have to open your mind, do your research and check. Check yourself at first and see what interests you have and explore…”