Here’s a question, prompted by a fellow tenant of my co-working office. If you had to choose one word that you hope is used to describe you as a businessperson, what would it be? When he (the fellow tenant) originally asked me that question, I drew a bit of a blank. But then yesterday, after I (hopefully successfully…) mediated a very tense professional interaction, a colleague referred to me as “truly a class act.” And then my answer came to me: if I have to be only one thing as a businessperson, I want to be classy. I want to be the person who never, ever takes personal jabs at people and never, ever operates unethically or puts my own glorification ahead of the good of the project, or the industry, or the association.
I posed this question on Twitter and other translators chimed in, hoping that they would be thought of as “Professional” (Daniela Guanipa), “Resourceful” (Angel Dominguez), “Re-hireable” (Richard Lardi), “Transparent” (Mia Wilson), “Competent” (Filippe Vasconcellos), “Trustworthy” (Kevin Hendzel), and “Appealing” (Karen Tkaczyk). It’s an interesting exercise: over to you for the comments!
Hones and ethical but I suppose that is part of your ‘classy’.
When I saw the question, the prompt answer from my mind was “reliable.”
But your “classy” beats me. I have to admit.
To be classy, you have to be a lot of thing, not just reliable as I am in my fields. I wish I could be classy, but I failed most of the time. So, I’d better stay reliable, in my fields.
“Different” 🙂 In terms of the way I deal with clients, (esp. in France) Available pretty much all the time, friendly, personalised, informal. Different website from the norm. Different kind of approach as an agency. Different attitudes in my Standing Out Facebook page.
Dear Corinne, For most of my life, I have echoed Kevin’s choice, “trustworthy.” One of my guiding principles has been always to keep a promise, whether it is a marriage vow, a commissioning oath, or an estimate to a client.
Now, however, I’m beginning to think that I would like the word “inspiring.” I get all choked up when I see the wonderful talent that is coming along in the next generation (in all fields), and I would like to do my part to help it blossom. So, let me strap my alto recorder to my bicycle and ride 1,000 km to the next presentation! 🙂
SR&T, Jonathan.
I’m sure that for most translators, it depends on the week: I’d suggest, often one after the other “frenetic”, “exhausted”, “relieved”, “calm”, “bored”, “unemployed”, and then it starts all over again 🙂
My one-word answer would be “Donaudampfschiffahrtsgesellschaftskapitän”.
It is so short because the word “Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz” no longer exists as a legally allowed single word in German.
I think of myself as being dependable. Keeping my word is very important. Being a businessperson requires a set of skills that is very different from being a translator. Being good at your trade doesn’t warrant running a successful business, though it certainly helps. I’m definitely better at doing translation than I am at running a business.
Meticulous! I’m all about the details.
My word: communicative. I try to be responsive to clients and colleagues, prompt, concise, informative, and cheerful. I enjoy serving as an ATA mentor and SciTech Division blog editor. My clients and project managers have thanked me for my attitude, and I think it helps me stand out. And we’re translators; communication is what we do.
I like “classy”, “dependable” and “talented” they are really good words to have next to your name, especially if you are a freelance translator. In addition to these, I would like to be thought of as “helpful”. I want to help my clients’ businesses succeed; I want to help my fellow translators and freelancers who succeed in their businesses; I want to help people communicate exactly what they want to say in my language; I want to help my fellow women who are struggling for equality in the workplace and for the right to be mothers or business women without guilt; I want to help make the world a friendlier and more pleasant place to be in, where people don’t just think about what they can do for themselves, but how they can help others.
Smart!
As the saying goes: Smart by name, smart by nature?
Right now I’m an honest businessperson. I will continue to be honest, but I also want to be a smart businessperson – something I definitely need to work on (being firm and negotiating are not my favourite things to do)!
Dependable.
Conscientious
Upstanding. [Defined by Merriam-Webster as “marked by integrity” and gives as example “an upstanding business(man)person”]. But, classy….trumps most all others! Because if you are classy, it goes without saying that you are all those other things too: honest, dependable, helpful, and so on and so forth.
In the interest of full disclosure, the first term I chose to describe my business personality on Twitter when Corinne first asked was “bat-shit crazy.”
(And I only eliminated that choice because it violated the one-word rule.)
“Trustworthy,” my other choice, does not mean I’m the guy who should be chosen to squirrel away all the Academy Award envelopes backstage before the announcements of the winners.
Trustworthy to me means my clients can trust me — to be honest, accurate, insightful and ultimately a custodian of their best interests. After all, what we sell goes far beyond documents or words or even communications.
We’re all selling a product that most clients can’t even judge as accurate or valid.
So much like we trust our doctor or surgeon or airline pilot — all activities where their actions lie beyond our ability to judge their immediate competence — we must trust that we are safe in their hands.
So our business is ultimately — in fact, exactly — like those businesses that are built on a bedrock of trust.
Hi Corinne,
I think I’d like my word to be “comforting.” If a client is nervous about an upcoming deadline or a translation that needs to be exactly right, I’d like them to breathe a sigh of relief when they hire me for the job.
“Reliable” is my answer too. Since, it covers up all things such as: professional, trust, efficient and consistent.
Thanks!
http://www.pioneer0303.com
“Pro-fair”
Why? I love to be challenged from the point of view of the field I might get to translate or edit, as long as I can stay fair with:
a) Fair Ethical Conduct (this involves not only clients and myself but also colleagues, of course)
b) The Quality I know I can provide, or else I decline assuming the responsibility and refer to someone else, and
c) Rates and Budgets accordingly.