The seasons they go round and round – age, experience and idea leadership

[Blind people examining an elephant*]

I recently became the senior member of the English staff in my college. I remember joining the staff a few years ago  as the youngest member, filled, possibly overfilled, with ideas and enthusiasm. The 30 or so years between those two points in time have passed without much noise. However, as my mother would say, with age comes philosophy. Comparing my work situation then and now, I see how they are both are outlier positions but yet bring positive values that should not be automatically dismissed but instead seriously considered.

Each society and profession has its peak years. For example, in some sports, the high point of a career is between the ages of 22-30 while some professions view the peak of competence at around 50 or even older. Clearly, colleagues below and above the peak years do not have the same status. Their perception of matters is often viewed as non-mainstream, whether as being “new-fangled” or “old school” although the correlation is far from 100%. As such, colleagues tend to place less value on their views, which can create some pain, if not anger because such employees are not taken completely seriously, whether justifiably or not. For example, many recent graduates are eager to apply new technology or approaches to a given problem but the existing staff is very skeptical of these novelties. Likewise, the old-timers in the group have no patience for many changes as they don’t see what is wrong with the old system or why they have to deal with a certain issue. Such employees, whatever respect they receive, are still outliers in terms of their point of view.

Yet, in practice, for an organization to grow and cope with a dynamic world, it needs both tendencies, i.e., to push forward and retain proven methods. Mainstream colleagues have a natural tendency to maintain the status quo with small changes to deal with relevant changes. By contrast, new blood sees the whole picture without any assumptions and can identify a fundamental issue that is being missed. On the other hand, older colleagues, generally but not always less enthusiastic about technology and change, often restrain overambitious plans, making them more effective. Thus, a broad mix of employees in terms of tenure is a recipe for success.

Unfortunately, depending on the organizational culture, the leading voices often completely reject both points of view. It is far more convenient and comfortable to do as what was done before without controversy or join the bandwagon of change without criticism. This choice reduces external disagreement and dissonance. Even if it is unreasonable to completely adopt a certain point of view, it is quite probable that it contains elements of truth that should be taken into account. These positive values not only enrich the program and work team but also motivate all members to actively participate even if their view is minority.

Based on my work experience as a teacher in a large team, I can say that an effective leader respectfully and seriously considers all opinions and not only listens to them but also applies any relevant elements in the final decision. Not only does such balance improve any plan or decision, it motivates all members, young and old, to actively participate in all decisions.

The seasons do progress. All of us started our careers as newbies where-ever we are in our careers now. As such, mutual respect and serious consideration of outlying views is an effective strategy for creating a dynamic team. Everybody identifies a different aspect of an elephant. It is the combination of perspectives that creates a clearer impression of the truth.

* Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

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One-eyed and canny – Why you should and can market your service through public speaking

 

[one-eye*]

All businesses, especially freelancers, seek to market their services with the maximum efficiency at the lowest cost. One of the least used techniques is speaking at conferences and other public events. Not only is it one of the most effective ways of making a business known but it also involves the least financial investment, making it available to the most cash-starved freelancer. Moreover, the challenges involved with public speaking are far less intimidating than they seem. In practice, racking some courage and investing some time can efficiently and effectively lead to many new customers.

["Concentration" game" with two penguins shown]

The spoken word, especially face-to-face, is the most effective form of marketing. In reaching out to potential customers, the goal is to create a positive impression such that they will remember your name when they require that service. Written materials, whether advertisements or informational posts, have limited effectiveness since the average person sees thousands of words every day. Thus, it takes extraordinary text and/or timing to leave an impression on any given individual. By contrast, potential customers have a significantly better retention of spoken words. Adding a face and a personality further strengthens the impact of any message in that we remember not only the content but connect it with a specific person. Thus, an oral presentation to an audience, especially a live one as compared to through video means, leaves a strong impression, the goal of all marketing efforts.

[small red purse]

The financial cost of public speaking is potentially the lowest of all forms of marketing. Advertising, whether in written media such as newspapers or audiovisual forms such as TV, can be quite expensive, far beyond the budget or justifiability of a small service provider. For the most part, only major corporations invest in regular advertising on these means. By contrast, expressing your message orally and directly involves very little direct cost whether the forum is a conference or a social media such as TikTok. In some cases, the conference even pays the presenter. Public speaking mainly involves a time investment for planning, preparation and performance. All businesses regardless of size and budget can choose to invest that time.

That speaking directly to the public is an effective means of marketing is intuitively clear to many if not most freelancers and other business people. Their issue is the ability to actually stand up (or sit down as it may be) and do it, whether out of the belief that they have nothing to say, are not natural speakers, will make a fool out of themselves or they are simply too shy. Based on my 30 years of experience teaching public speaking, these issues are either irrelevant or easily managed, meaning that almost any person can make a professional oral presentation.

[Owl on thick book]

For reasons of insecurity, doubt or ignorance, many knowledgeable people do not recognize their own expertise. Yet, due to their background or natural tendency, they find a certain task to be quite straightforward and obvious and assume that others find it similarly easy. In practice, each person is unique in terms of talents and weaknesses. The result is the terms simple and complicated are subjective, i.e., personal. Therefore, many peers and potential customers will appreciate clear information on a given subject because they do not understand it or need more information. While it is true that that given speakers may not be the only or even the best source of information, they are the expert in that place and time. Thus, even entrepreneurs with little business experience can educate their peers and customers on specific matters, thus creating a positive image of themselves. It is merely a matter of identifying a relevant subject.

[ball with a scared face]

The myth that only natural speakers should make presentations also discourages potential quality speakers. From my long experience teaching public speaking to first-year engineering students in Israel, the percentage of people with a natural gift of gab is quite small, clearly less than 5%. However, with minimal coaching and practice, a very high percentage of normal-range individuals become effective public speakers. Moreover, it is important to remember that even professionals are nervous before the actual event. However, they have learned that this tension is acceptable and manageable. Likewise, business people wishing to market themselves and their services can manage their worries and make an effective presentation even if they are not especially gifted in that area.

[genius at work sign]

In practice, for the most part, speaking proficiency involves managing nerves, proper preparation and appropriate subject matter.  In terms of avoiding black out, the key is ratio is nervousness to preparation time. In other words, the more insecure a person is about public speaking, the more that person needs to practice. When “showtime” comes, the practice pays great dividends. I actually practice much more now than I used to as I want better results. Preparation involves understanding and organizing the material and smoothing out and mastering the connection between the various topics in the presentation. Once a lecturer is certain of the entire content, it is possible to focus on and connect with the audience. As for subject matter, most people cannot fake expertise. People speak with confidence on those matters that they thoroughly understand and enjoy discussing. With proper psychological and physical preparation as well as subject choice, the scary monster of standing up in front of people turns out to be a manageable process.

[shy woman]

Many people with much knowledge to share do not speak in public they believe their lack of comfort or shyness does not allow it. No business person, freelance or salaried, feels comfortable in all aspects of their job at any time of their career. In many cases, circumstances force people to deal with their fear of the unknown, whether it is accounting or personnel management. The refusal to face these fears prevents some people from reaching their full potential. It does not mean that the task will necessarily become their favorite but instead it will not interfere with their performance. If a freelancer has no budget for effective advertising and needs more customers, the refusal to speak in public may limit their potential growth. Clearly, not dealing with an issue is a choice but not necessarily an ideal one. As for shyness, many years ago, I was a sales manager for an advertising company and interviewed a certain sales candidate whose speaking skills as evidenced by his interview were so bad that I shortly rejected him as a candidate in my head. However, his answer to my last question completely changed my mind. I asked him to tell me about a special event in his life. His description of skiing in the Alps was so fluid and passionate that I hired him. The moral of this story is that when talking about something they enjoy, people forget their shyness and become effective public speakers. A person can be very shy at home and in social situations but project a strong presence in certain work situations. Any person can be persuasive.

[frog with crown]

In short, despite the general perception, any business person can effectively and efficiently make a positive impression on peers and potential customers by speaking directly to them at conferences and public events as well as on video social media. It is possible to overcome issues such as lack of experience and innate fear of public speaking as these issues are quite manageable. A person does not even have to be the leading expert either. When speaking directly to people, the presenter becomes the primary source of knowledge. As the expression goes, in the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed are kings, which makes for great marketing.

 

* Picture captions allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

Picture credits: Pixabay

Foreign teaching

 

[Inca king and queen*]

As Susan Dray wrote in one of her recent posts, going on vacation is a great opportunity to observe and learn not only ways of conducting life but also conducting business. On my just completed family visit to Los Angeles, I visited many commercial establishments, not always by choice, and gained valuable insight how to attain high prices and create a distinctive brand as well as a negative lesson on how to lose potential customers, which is no less important.

[clothes rack]

One business lesson reinforced by this trip was the vital connection between high prices and personal service. I took my 95-year mother to an upscale clothes boutique and watched for an hour and a half how the staff of three women made each of the customers feel like a queen. They greeted them by the first name, carefully choose their clothing, brought it to them in the dressing room, complimented them when appropriate and let me them choose at their speed. When it came to pay the bill, they gave each a discount, more symbolic than anything else given the income status of these women, thus providing each of the customers the feeling that not only had they bought beautiful clothing but paid less for it. It was clear that these women would return when they again needed an outfit for a special event. The store was able to sell at high-end prices because it had sufficient help, treated their customers professionally and friendly and created the image of a good value in terms of quality and price.

[donut assortment]

On the other economic scale, I stopped for a snack at one of the umpteen small donut shops in Los Angeles. Their names, physical layout and menu are essentially identical. However, one distinguished itself enough to lead me to return with its spirit of its service, quality of its food and unique atmosphere. The woman at the cash register had a huge smile (despite opening the shop at 05:00) and exuded genuine warmness. The bagel sandwich I ordered was both tasty and far less expensive than its Starbucks cousin. What really sold me was the classical music in the background, a Chopin concerto if I identified it correctly, which made my breakfast even more pleasant. I certainly did not expect that atmosphere at a donut shop. I then noticed that most of the customers were regulars that ate their donuts and sandwiches in the shop, attesting to the hominess of the place. Despite being at a first view a carbon copy of countless other similar business, this donut shop was special and personal, an ideal for all business in competitive fields.

[newpaper ads]

As a reminder of how not to run a business. I picked up a local weekly newspaper whose target audience would be quite relevant to me. Unfortunately, their lack of urgency and interest made sure that I would never spend any money on advertising in it. I called the advertising manager in the morning but was told that she was on the other line and would get back to me shortly. Shortly never arrived but I called back again that morning. She answered and provided me with several pricing options. I asked her to send the specifics to my email, whose spelling was confirmed over the phone. She then told me that she would send me the proposal “that afternoon”. I failed to understand why such a 5-minute task would need to be postponed to the afternoon but was still willing to be tolerant. More than a week later, I had yet to receive any proposal. As my late father would say, that is no way to run a railroad. Customers appreciate promptness and urgency. If they are not important at the sales stage, they will most probably not exist after the sale.

[coffee and patisserie]

As a side note, company names are important even if ignorance can be excused. I stopped at a cozy little expresso shop, filled with couches and cushions, and ordered a coffee and a pain au chocolat. (I can highly recommend the latter). The name of the café is La Laiderie, which had bothered me every time passed it previously. The reason finally clicked: laid means ugly in French; To be fair,  the name is actually composed of the various first names of the owners’ children. While appropriate in LA, the name faces some issues in other places. I suppose many other establishmen names do not travel well.

As the expression goes, a word to the wise is sufficient. Even experienced entrepreneurs need occasional reminders of correct business practice and the importance of making customers feel like kings and queens. It is far less expensive to do this by observing others than making your own errors. As the essential rules of business are essentially identical worldwide, a perspective person can even learn when touring abroad. Now, I am happily back home and back to work and just a little wiser from my trip.

Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

All pictures via Pixibay.

Writing evolution with laughter

 

[skeleton of hand*]

What goes around, comes around. For many years I quietly laughed at my father, an old journalist, as he did his “hunt and peck” routine around the typewriter. He was reasonably fast at it but it looked so inefficient. Maybe as a bit of ultimate justice, for many years my wife has quietly, most of the time, laughed at me as I went back and forth from the mouse and keyboard, “stubbornly” refusing to learn and use keyboard shortcuts. Grabbing the opportunity to right a wrong, I just participated in a paid two-hour webinar sponsored by the proz.com, a leading translators site,  entitled “Keyboard shortcuts and more to skyrocket your productivity”. In it, Joachim Lépine enthusiastically demonstrated a plethora of shortcuts for Windows, Word and Excel, to name a few platforms. The amount of material was overwhelming but fortunately he provided a nice file to follow along and help us refresh our memory afterwards. I have to say that it was money well spent.

What I learned is that I should, can and will apply these keyboard shortcuts and significantly increase my speed. Clearly, I will not be able to nor do I strive to compete with these keyboard racers just I don’t try to pass sports cars. I am sure that even many people native to word processing are unaware of many of these options, making it no shame to sit and learn them. I took my wife’s advice and identified ten of these shortcuts to learn and apply in the immediate future. I will even share them with you on the hope you also may them helpful.

However, first, I would like explain my background in word processing technology. Born in the 1960’s and possessing terrible handwriting (in three alphabets, no less), I have witnessed and used most of means of writing in the last 60 years. I learned on a manual typewriter, reaching 60 wpm, a respectable speed. I then used electronic typewriters as well as correcting electronic typewriters. I immediately fell in love with the first DOS-based word processers (…/2p for double space) as they eliminated the need to type all documents twice. I relished the speed of the Commodore 64 at least until an important document was erased by accident when a magnet got too close to the audio memory tape. I graduated to the first true text writing programs, including WordPerfect, before settling into Microsoft word. I have yet to use any speech-to-word programs on the formal basis that I share my office with my wife and talking out loud would disturb her but I do not reject that technique out of hand. So, while far from native, I am willing and able to try technology, at least up to a certain point.

Looking over the 10+ pages of shortcuts, it is clear that my benefit from this webinar will only be partial. I find it quite difficult at my age to remember so many similar combinations even if there is a certain logic to them. It is probably true that age is not the only factor as even my academics in their 20’s are neither aware nor interested in becoming keyboard focused. As in all skills, easy and difficult are highly subjective terms. That said, I strongly believe that with sufficient motivation and effort any person can become decent in any skill. Thus, I will strive to absorb as many of the tips.

As for the ten ones I have marked for special effort, I will share them with you:

Shortcut	Function
Win+Tab (release)	Previous task/document
Win+E	Show file explorer
Ctrl+Shift+N	Create and name new folder
Win+Spacebar	Change keyboard language
Win+.	Emojs and special characters
Ctrl++F6	Switch between documents that are open
Alt+W+H	Side to side documents
Click left side of a row in a table	Add rows
Click left side of a row in a table then press backspace	Instantly delete row
Ctrl+Click	Select one sentence

 

If you find these terribly obvious, you can freely (but quietly please) laugh at me. I deserve it as just punishment for my previous sins. If any are new to you, enjoy. If you did not know any, I suggest taking some kind of course or webinar to improve your knowledge. The process is exhausting but evolution, however belatedly and slowly, is part of living and makes us better in countless ways, always punctuated by a little laughter, of course.

* Picture captions allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

Picture credit

Good wine and translation – Marketing the unknown

 

[bottle of wine*]

Being allergic to grapes, I am far from a connoisseur of wine despite my French mother. Still, from time to time, I have to go to the store and choose an appropriate bottle of wine to bring as a gift or use in a boeuf bourguignon. As a non-expert, I look at the labels, the bottles and the price and make an uneducated guess which is ordinary vin de table and which is a distinguished vintage. Likewise, purchasers of translation and similar services must look for clues to somehow distinguish the risky providers from the ones they can trust. These service providers can learn much from the wineries in how to market their products and attain higher prices. Specifically, it is important to understand the similarities in market niching, messaging, framing and pricing.

It is clear that some people are neither interested in nor can distinguish a fine wine. Thus, they are not willing to pay more for a better product and are quite satisfied with a cheap fermented-grape liquid, a bit like Google Translate. On the other hand, for reasons of pride, need or personal taste, other wine buyers seek the extraordinary and pay a premium for it without hesitation on condition that they receive value of course. Likewise, with machine translation of various types readily available and often able to produce understandable texts, many translation purchasers do not require more than a satisfactory rendition of the text and view low cost as an essential factor. On the other hand, in some fields, particularly medicine, law and marketing, accuracy and seamlessness are vital for the success of these materials. These customers seek expert translators to provide local versions of the text with the knowledge that the benefits of a solid translation far outweigh any cost. As one expert said at a conference, there are two ways to make money as a translator: work quickly or specialize. Wineries and translators must choose a path.

Faced with a wall of similar sized bottles, I depend on the labels to provide me some clues to the quality of the wine. If I see a wine that claims “made from the finest grapes”, my initial question is whether there are wines made from the poorest grapes. On the other hand, “Graced the tables of Louis XIV, Napoleon and George Pompidou” or “Grand Cru ”indicate the vintners have a strong idea of what they are doing. In short, it is important to build trust in a few words. Translators also must express their uniqueness in a few words to build trust. “15 years’ experience”, “Certified Translator by X” and “20 years of professional background in Z”, to name a few, indicate that this person is superior to others. By contrast, “expert translator and “reliable editor” merely state the minimum requirements. So, extraordinary wines and translators must define themselves and express their distinctions to the buyer.

Seemingly minor, the form of the text on the bottle creates an impression. Like clothes, design elements such as font, pictures and aesthetics create an overall impression. Simply put, a cheap label indicates a cheap wine while a fancy label hints at a fancy wine. For translators, since many translation purchasers cannot distinguish proper translation from poor translation, they notice obvious visual elements. Therefore, translators need to make sure that the formatting is neat and identical to the original (or at least as identical as relevant). Obviously, translators must make every effort to avoid spelling errors. In particular, errors in spelling names can often upset customers. It is important to relate and explain any non-translated item, include charts and screenshots. As in wine labels, a classy look indicates a quality product.

Statistically in wine and translation, there is no correlation between price and quality. Some table wines are quite good while some expensive wines do not justify their price. Still, faced with two bottles with red liquid from the same grapes, I look at the price and assume, from lack of contrary information, that the more expensive one is better. So, if I want to bring a more impressive gift, I choose the more expensive option. Likewise, when customers that require a quality product receive varying price options, they assume that the translators with the lowest ones are less capable of providing that quality. In short, higher prices not only create more income per product but also may increase volume just like with wine.

Translators and providers of similar services need to focus their market, communicate with that niche, arrange the package elegantly and price it to complete that image. Lehaim, salut and nazdorovie to all.

*Picture caption help the blind full access the Internet.

Picture credit

Beautiful nothing

 

[picture of the Golan Heights from Ma'ale Gamla]

I just celebrated my birthday in a guest cabin (tzimmer in Hebrew) on the southern edge of the Golan Heights community of Ma’ale Gamla. The view from the porch overlooks a long barren slope leading down to the valley below with the fruit groves and water reservoirs and the eastern edge of the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret in Hebrew) to the left. In the far distance there are hints of Tzfat and other northern cities in Israel. Actually, due to the cloudiness and rain, everything was a bit grey and fuzzy. Aside from that, there is almost nothing there – no cars, no noise, no people and no tumult. In fact, the nearest restaurant is some 35 minutes by car. In short, aside from the fat garden cat (who has somehow avoided becoming lunch of the local wild dogs) and the resident birds, there was no action.

While for some this would be vacation from hell, for me, this is the place where merely being here makes me smile. I felt grounded there, at peace, undisturbed by the winds of real life. The nature is as unspoiled as you can get (and only 30 minutes from where I live). Bird song and cat meows filled any sound void. The quiet allowed my soul to relax. The pitterpattering of the rain on the roof was calming, reinforcing my determination not to anything forced. As for food, we brought our food, allowing us to eat whenever our stomachs so requested. As a couple, a few days away from the daily small annoyances of domestic life only reinforced why we are together. Work did not exist. As for what I did, the list is short: solved crossword puzzles, read le canard enchainé, stared at the Kinneret, slept, rested and ate too much chocolate; in short, I had a perfect weekend.

When I lived in Oregon, many moons ago, I knew factory workers who lived for their annual hunting trip, talking about it all year round and planning it in great detail. I now understand that type of thinking much better. These blessed moments of being where we want to be may be few and far between but they justify why we put up with the annoyances of work. I am lucky in that I have created a solid work balance and enjoy my routine. Still, balancing translation and teaching can sometimes be stressful in terms of time management and tasks. The knowledge that a few times a year I can do what gives me unadulterated pleasure makes life so much better.

There are those for whom heaven is an exciting day in a big city. For me, a quiet day in nature is much satisfying. Nothing can be so beautiful.

Entrepreneurial vision and uncertainty

 

[eyes in glasses*]

It is said that business success requires vision. While essentially true, the statement is more complex than it appears because, as in intelligence, multiple types of vision exist. Since no single person is born with the perfect multifocal to have ideal sight in all matters, sole entrepreneurs are at a disadvantage as compared to companies or partnerships. Consequently, freelancers need to harness their special vision and take into account their blind spots.

[man with magnifying glass]

One type of practical vision is the ability to quickly and intuitively identify immediate solutions for short-term problems. People with this talent identify the essential elements and ignore distractors. Clearly, careful analysis can provide solutions but requires more time. To demonstrate, Israel television (sorry, I cannot remember which channel and which time) interviewed an engineering student at Ben Gurion University in the Negev in Beer Sheva with a special talent for solving problems. Disturbed by pigeons on his balcony, he created a raven robot with visual sensors and combined it with a small water pistol. Whenever, a pigeon landed on the balcony, it received a wet welcome. This is one of countless robotic solutions he had invented. None of them were technologically complicated but all were imaginative and out of the box. Thus, this vision involves intuitively creating effective solutions to defined problems.

[eye glasses in dark clouds]

While less positive in both point of view and appreciation, some individuals have the ability to foresee issues that will cause problems in the future. There was an episode in the program The Twilight Zone in 1960 entitled The Purple Testament about a soldier that suddenly received the terrible ability to identify who would die in the next battle. In his case, this sixth sense was of no use even in preventing his own death but in business it is often quite important to identify and avoid negative and expensive issues in the future by applying simple means in the present. Most people find it difficult to distinguish exaggerated fears from reasonable assessments but a few truly know how to avoid minefields.

[boy with binonculars]

Finally, some people have the incredible ability to envision the future before others. In 1950, Ray Bradbury wrote the short story There will come soft rains in which the star is an automated house in which all functions are programmed, from cleaning the house to preparing food. The irony of the story is that its residents had been incinerated by a nuclear bomb and were no longer alive. More than 70 years later, this level of automation is not only practical but also already in existence. Inventors and startups depend on this ability to imagine a completely different future. Many claim to be prophets but only a few truly have the ability to see the future.

[cat with one eye]

Clearly, a special ability to focus on any of these three types of visions (or any other) involves a certain blindness in others, putting sole entrepreneurs at a disadvantage. Companies can hire as many talented personnel as their budget allows. Partnerships create synergy as in the musical partnership of Rogers and Hammerstein (Sound of Music and King and I, et al). Freelancers may have special talent in any single area but tend to be rather less skilled in others. For example, a person may be an excellent problem solver but lack any ability to even imagine what will be in five years. Thus, the lack of multifocal vision limits the potential of freelancers.

[Mr. Magoo cartoon image]

The partial solution is to recognize weaknesses, use outsiders, strive to improve and accept imperfection. The first step in solving in any problem is recognizing its existence. For example, there is no shame for a person to admit that long-term planning is not a forte. Once a person understands that there is an issue, two solutions, not exclusive to each other, are to enlist the assistance of another person either through outsourcing or community building, and work to improve the skills by reading, listening and studying experts. While maybe the skill not become  a strength, the freelancer will then be able to better decisions on those matters. Of course,  human beings always reserve the right of resignation, i.e., emotional acceptance of the inability and its consequences. If a person lacks the ability to foresee problems and is not willing to somehow overcome it for whatever reasons, the resulting waste of time, energy and money are acceptable prices, unavoidable if you will. While not ideal, this last option is the choice of many if not most people in the face of their incompetencies.

[see-no-evil kermit threesome]

Werner Heisenberg’s theory of uncertainty postulates that it is impossible to fully focus on position and speed at the same time, i.e., one certainty is at the expense of the other. Individuals may have perfect vision in one matter but often suffer from a certain degree of blindness in other matters. For companies and partnership, synergy is the solution. For freelancers, the solution is to strive to the best possible, get help if necessary and maybe accept one’s limitations. There is always a level of uncertainty in any business vision.

* Picture captions allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

All pictures via Pixabay except for the Mr. Magoo image