To be truly successful in the international arena, whether as an immigrant, student, businessperson, or tourist, openness toward other cultures is vital and the most obvious door to those cultures is language. This book is an aid to parents, educators, researchers, and individuals who want facts about foreign language learning in order to apply concrete tools to maximize their potential in this area. It examines the various factors in successful multilingualism across the lifespan, discussing groups such as those bilingual from birth and those who become adult foreign-language learners. Special attention is paid to the question of how long it takes a non-native speaker to become fluent. For those considering adding a third language, this book looks at the benefits of bilingualism that transfer to trilingualism, as well as the eight key factors in first and second language learning that influence third language success.