The Importance of Learning German
On learning German after moving to Germany. Our community members really love or like their jobs. Few women make become executives in Germany. The pension system ranks low, coming in at 20th.
Personal News & Musings
🫣 Sometimes, I’ll overshare and/or rant a bit.
Last week, I shared a well-written article from DW posing the question: Do immigrants have to learn German in Germany?
As you read it, you can see the answer to the question is complex. Others discussing it on LinkedIn thought the same.
The bottom line is that language difficulties are a well-known barrier for newbies to Germany, and the government could do much more to make the country more accessible and attractive to immigrants.
Much needs to change in Germany, but this change will take some time. You can expect it to take literal years - for example, I wouldn’t be surprised to see more than one official language at some point.
Yet, I’ve seen pushback from newbies resisting the need to learn German. I witnessed people complaining about the lack of English jobs to a government official at an event this summer. This week, I received a message saying my newsletter could be more “foreigner-friendly” and include more English jobs. I’ve read posts online where people complain they can’t get certain things done in English.
While I agree that learning German is an individual choice, learning the language of the country you move to is also essential. As much as I wish I could share more English opportunities in the newsletter, few are available at the moment. I also expect that my readers are fluent in English and are at least working on their German—a poll I ran just a few months ago confirmed this.
It’s a two-way street. We can expect the government to take action to make things easier for foreigners in the coming months and years. But at the same time, the German language isn’t ever going away, and it’s unreasonable to expect anything different.
So, if you’re able, learn some German. Keep contributing to conversations about how things could be improved for immigrants in the country. These dialogues are important and need to continue for us to effect change.
It’s not going to be easy, but in the long term, life will only get better.
Community News
🤝 News from our community.
Our last poll asked: How much do you like your current job? I was honestly expecting results leaning more toward the negative side, but of the 110 people who responded, 72% said they either love or like their jobs.
Take part in this week’s poll. 👇
This week’s featured Berlin Life guides: Why It’s So Important to Learn German in Berlin & The Top German Language Schools in Berlin.
Read last week’s newsletter: On Being Grateful to Have a Job Right Now. For our past editions, go to the archives.
Check out our partners and save your precious Euros: Find an apartment in Germany with Homelike. Use BERLINLIFE50 for €50 off your first booking.
Support us: I’m working hard to grow our LinkedIn and Threads right now - we’d love a follow.
Event updates: This past week, we had a women’s networking dinner and it was soooo fun. We have a lot of very cool people in our community.
Read what one of our attendees had to say - she’s also looking for a German tutor who’s also familiar with Ukrainian.
Sign up to join us at our next event. You can also get on our separate mailing list to get occasional emails about our women’s events.
Shoutout: Our friends at
published a great list of the top tech communities in Berlin.
Food For Thought
💡 Articles about tech, the world of work, & other random things.
It’s not just that more men become leaders vs women; many are promoted over others who are more qualified despite being incompetent.
In Germany: “More men named Christian and Stefan are in the leading positions of German Top DAX companies than women altogether.”
Let’s be real and admit the AWS CEO is an asshole after telling employees they can quit if they don’t like the RTO rule.
Japan is experiencing a labor shortage, and toxic work environments are thriving. This has resulted in the rise of resignation agencies that help terrified employees hand in their notice.
Some of us have been programmed that we absolutely have to love our jobs, but imagine the notion of being more than our work.
I highly recommend reading this article, which has been so helpful to me throughout my career: How to pick a career that actually fits you.
Talent Berlin recently shared a list of English-speaking companies in Berlin.
Companies Hiring
🇩🇪 Companies in Germany that are hiring right now.
DeepL (Berlin, Cologne, Munich, & Remote, 12 jobs, EN required)
Enpal (Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, & Frankfurt, 100+ jobs, EN & DE required)
Flightright (Berlin, 5 jobs, EN & DE required)
GetYourGuide (Berlin, 32 jobs, EN required)
Vara (Berlin, 5 jobs, EN &/or DE required)
🇩🇪 German startups that recently raised new funding may also have vacancies.
Beyond Presence ($3.1 M) | Munich | Jobs
Infinite Roots (€2.6 M) | Hamburg | Jobs
ℹ️ We share new job postings daily on LinkedIn. Follow us.
News in Germany
🗞️ All of the news in Germany.
General Happenings
A newly built fire station in Hesse burnt down due to … not having any fire alarms.
You can now register your address online in Berlin, but not if you don’t have German or EU citizenship. You’ll still need to visit the Bürgeramt in person.
Apparently, we don’t need humans for artistic pursuits, like leading an orchestra; a three-armed robot conductor recently debuted in Dresden.
Politics & Economy
More German households spend 40% or more of their income on rent.
Berlin’s mayor wants to increase the number of Shopping Sundays from four to eight per year. (We also recommend reading our guide to Sunday shopping in Berlin to get a picture of what’s open, when, and where.)
Some call for a state bailout of Lilium, a green transportation startup, with people seemingly divided on the issue.
MP Heike Heubach recently addressed the Bundestag and was the first to do so using sign language.
The German economy may be struggling, but their exports to the US are at an all-time high.
Labor Market
Those on Bürgergeld will soon be expected to visit the job center monthly.
Germany’s pension system was ranked 20th globally, with The Netherlands at number one.
Immigration Insights
Many of us immigrated to Germany, but where do Germans go when they move abroad? These are the top 5 countries.
If you’re studying for the German citizenship test, read this for tips.
India’s booming economy adds one million new workers to the labor force each month—more than it can handle. As such, the government is pushing labor migration, and Germany is taking them up on the offer.
Fun, Interesting, and/or Useful
A man dressed like the Cookie Monster (you read that right!) was caught speeding in Dortmund.
Anyone clubbing in Berlin doesn’t think much about placing a sticker over their camera upon entry. The trend is catching on elsewhere.
In November, you can watch unlimited movies at the cinema for €12.50 a month with Cinfinity.
In “oh wow” news, see these rare aerial photos of a formerly divided East and West Berlin.
Ways We Can Help You
😇 Useful stuff served up by the Berlin Life.
Connect with other professionals in Germany with our LinkedIn Connect & Exchange list.
Settle into your new life in Germany and save money with our partners on insurance, banking, and more.
Read our 50+ free guides to living, working, and moving to Germany.
„What Happens in Your Brain If You See a German Word Like...?“ - a short film
But seriously, there is no justifiable reason not to learn the language - especially from the standpoint of politeness – or to even expect English language jobs to be available. Nobody migrates to e.g. the U.S., Britain or Australia expecting to be able to work or accomplish everyday tasks in any language other than English. So why should it be different in Germany?