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English Profficiency Has Many Levels

January 04, 2021 • written by Kevin Olega

How would you rate your English communication skills on a scale of one to ten?

I’ve heard this question so many times.

My boss asked me this question once.

Many people who went to school rate themselves as a 5.

They see five as the middle.

I rate myself as a seven.

I see seven as the middle.

We usually don’t care about the people in the extreme top level.

I didn’t until I got asked a question about it in the interview.

Here’s the list of how I answer the question.

After the list, I’ll share how I came up with this list.

Levels of Communication Skills

1 - People with learning intellectual handicaps.

2 - People in jail.

3 - People with no education.

4 - Understandable but bad grammar.

5 - Can understand, speak, and write. There are decent but not good.

6 - Can hold a fun conversation. There are few errors.

7 - Can sell and explain well.

8 - Can sell effecively, teach, negotiate, and manage people. Manager-Small Business Owner

9 - Can earn millions by writing a contract and closing large deals. Top Lawyers and Executives.

10 - Can write a book that earns billions. Best Selling Author and Influencer. Can design and implement a business model that earns billions. Top tier entrepreneurs.

I told the interviewer that I rate myself as a seven.

I was asked why I’m a seven.

I see seven as the middle.

I see five as the bare minimum.

I’m higher than that.

This was my job interview for my tenth job.

I already know that I’m better than many people with their English.

At the time, the only reason why I picked seven is because I see seven as the middle.

The interviewer asked me to describe to me what a seven can do.

I tried to describe myself.

I can sell in English.

I can offer and present my product or service in English.

I can explain things in English well.

He said good.

I got asked why I’m not an eight.

Describe to me what an eight can do.

I said that the people who are an eight can do what a seven can do but they are better.

Usually sales managers and small business owners are eight.

I got by description for an eight from people who are higher than me and I look up to.

The interviewer asked me to describe a nine.

I couldn’t answer.

I don’t know.

I said.

It’s the first time I’ve been asked that question.

I was so focused on developing my skills to get from seven to eight, I wasn’t paying attention to any of the other skill levels.

I got hired at the job despite not having an answer.

The question about that stuck to me.

What are the other levels like?

Months later, the interviewer, now my boss, a young CEO of a tech recruitment company asked me to accompany him at Starbucks for a meeting.

The Starbucks was full of professionals and executives.

The table next to us had five older men having a meeting.

One of them passed papers around.

The papers seemed like documents or contracts to me.

I heard the words, are these okay to sign attorney?

Those are good.

I saw one of the older men begin to sign the documents.

Another older man pulled out a checkbook and started writing.

I saw the words fifty million pesos on the check.

My boss noticed me staring at the people in the meeting.

You’ll see more of that if you hang out at Starbucks or eat at Chinese restaurants.

They probably closed a property or business deal.

I said wow.

They had a conversation for an hour that ended with a fifty million peso transaction.

That’s what I consider a level nine.

My boss jokingly asked me.

If that’s a level nine, what’s a level ten?

I spent the next several years thinking of an answer.

But that’s for another story.

I want you to look at this list again and think about it.

Where are you?

Where would you like to be?

What kind of help do you need?

What kind of activities do you need to do to get to the next level?

What obstacles are you going to face?