An over-simplified view of our profession will have you believe that a translation is the mechanistic rendering of the source text into the target language, as if the human element barely matters at all. You pour text in, text gets spouted back out, how hard can it be, right? After all, we've already got machines … Continue reading Why You Should Choose Your Translator Carefully
Category: COMMUNICATION
The Key to Leadership Communication
Spoiler alert: it's the pronoun "we" (or "us"). But how do we turn it into a livable reality? When discussing leadership communication, plenty of texts and materials out there will have you believe that it has everything to do with a leader’s personal qualities (such as charisma and interpersonal skills), their professional ability (competence, reliability, … Continue reading The Key to Leadership Communication
What an Amazing Weekend!
The “wow factor” was definitely there in #Timisoara this opening weekend of the European Capital of Culture 2023! Lots of foreign tourists, high-ranking guests and culture lovers, too. And, obviously, so were we!
#visittimisoara #interculturalcommunication #multiculturalism #kulturschaffende #languages
Our storytelling travel guide #TIMISOARA23: 23 Secrets was launched on February 18th at the Cărtureşti bookstore in the throbbing heart of Timisoara – only one of the 140+ cultural events taking place this weekend in this year’s European Capital of Culture! (It is now sold out at Cărtureşti, but you can still find it on Amazon or – if you visit Timisoara – at La Doua Bufnite in Union Square (Piata Unirii), Matei Corvin St.)
See for yourselves and come on over: #visittimisoara #timisoaraiscool 😉
#europeancapitalofculture2023 #romania
My Interview with RFI Romania
A few days ago, I was interviewed by Otilia Ghitescu from RFI Romania about our travel guide TIMISOARA23 and the European Capital of Culture 2023. You can read or listen (in Romanian), here: https://www.rfi.ro/cultura-152184-timisoara-2023-pregatita-sau-nu-de-turisti-multe-asteptari-si-un-ghid-cu-secrete Our stories about Timisoara and the Banat region, beautifully illustrated by Claudia Tanasescu, can be ordered on Amazon, in paperback or … Continue reading My Interview with RFI Romania
Happy holidays!
Just a quick line to wish you all a happy and peaceful holiday season and to introduce you to my most recent project, a non-fiction book that uses storytelling to bring my hometown of Timisoara, Romania, European Capital of Culture 2023, closer to potential visitors. There's still time to order the paperback or download it … Continue reading Happy holidays!
What is Rhetoric? Age-old Sources of Persuasion
How's your Latin? And what about your Greek? Because to answer the question in the title, we need to go back to the Ancients. Aristotle, to be more exact, and his book Rhetoric. Rhetoric means 'ars bene dicendi' - or, in translation, the art of speaking well. Not 'correctly' (that's grammar), not 'truly' (that is … Continue reading What is Rhetoric? Age-old Sources of Persuasion
Business Communication: Getting off to a Good Start
A brief interaction with lasting consequences: such is the power of the "first impression". Studies show that the first 7 seconds of an encounter are crucial for forming opinions, and that those impressions - those labels - can stick for a surprisingly long time. Nobody wants to disappoint. So, are there any "universal" rules about … Continue reading Business Communication: Getting off to a Good Start
Quote of the day
Today, I'm going to trust you with some German, but you can always use ModernMT, DeepL or Google Translate to figure it out 😋 - and also check how good Neural Machine Translation has become in the meantime. (Not kidding, please evaluate, compare, and let me know your thoughts on this. How much post-editing do … Continue reading Quote of the day
Ideologies – What Are They and How Do They Come to Be?
"We are faced with the curiously appalling trend of modern thought, in which the absolute which was once a means of entering into communion with the divine, has now become an instrument used by those who profit from it, to distort, pervert, and conceal the meaning of the present.“ Karl Mannheim - Ideology and Utopia … Continue reading Ideologies – What Are They and How Do They Come to Be?
On Nation Branding and Competitive Identity
"National reputation truly cannot be constructed; it can only be earned. Imagining that such a deeply rooted phenomenon can be shifted by so weak an instrument as marketing communications is an extravagant delusion. As Socrates observed, ‘the way to achieve a better reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear’." SIMON ANHOLT … Continue reading On Nation Branding and Competitive Identity