It’s understandable for a Westerner to assume that Chinese is terrifyingly difficult to learn. With its impenetrable written characters and unfamiliar sounds, at first sight it can seem like a complex machine that only highly skilled experts are capable of understanding and using.

But when you take a little time to scratch the surface and pick up its principles one step at a time, not only is it quite similar to English but also refreshingly logical and simple. For example, here is an introduction to Chinese characters from the British Council:

Blockchain is one of the most disruptive technologies to impact business in recent years. Its significance is such that understanding its ramifications is an interdisciplinary subject spanning technology, business, law and education. Its applications extend far beyond the cryptocurrency applications – Bitcoin, Ethereum and others – for which it is best known. Blockchain’s ability to generate a distributed ledger of events and transactions that cannot be retrospectively altered makes it ideal for academic records, for example.

Dissatisfied with your job or can’t find one that fits you? Then create your own! Starting a business isn’t easy, but the self-empowerment of taking the initiative is incalculable. Creating your own company is one of the most concrete ways of turning dreams into reality. Not only will it generate cash for your own pocket, but if the business grows it will provide livelihoods to others who work for you – that is until they start their own companies, for which of course you will have been the inspiration (keep telling your ego that).

Football (soccer) is an industry like many others. But its pull is exceptionally strong for young people. Many years before they hear the call of operations management or get their heads round freight forwarding, they kick a ball around and fantasise about scoring at Wembley. This simple passion creates a funnel of eager souls wanting to get into the football industry.

Companies in the United States need to know business law in order to sustain and grow their operations without falling foul of the system. With areas from bankruptcy to information privacy, business law finds its way into almost everything firms and their employees do. It defines the responsibilities of directors and company officers, the rules of partnerships and limited liability companies, securities regulation, intellectual property, corporate finance and a great deal else.

British fine arts auction house Christie’s was founded in 1766 and its founder, James Christie, was an intimate friend of the painters Gainsborough and Reynolds and the playwright Garrick. Fast forward to 2015 and it is one of the world’s leading auction houses with sales totalling $7.4 billion. Notable auctions have included Elton John’s car collection, a $22 million Qing Dynasty porcelain bowl, a $3.5 million Stradivarius violin, an $80 million Monet painting, the Oppenheimer Blue diamond, and many top works by Picasso, Mondrian, Klimt and Matisse.