Necessity is the root of learning

When I first started learning Japanese, one of my first lessons was
about occupations. When I first learned the words for doctor and nurse,
I thought to myself, "When will I ever use these words? Who cares?"

However, when I met some med students and was having a conversation
about their daily clinical jobs, I was dumbfounded from the start.

Then when I actually went to the hospital myself, I learned the words
for doctor and nurse - among others - REALLY fast.

As they say, necessity is the root of invention - or in this case, learning.

Now, how can I bring this motivation for learning into my classroom?
Just a thought.