Describe your work…simply
I recently had the pleasure of visiting Berlin and spending time with my partner’s extended family. I don’t speak German, and the older generations didn’t speak English. It was up to the younger generations to translate as best they could with their different levels of proficiency. I assisted by smiling a lot.
Inevitably, someone would ask me “what is your work?” or “what work do you enjoy?” (I love that phrasing!) These were surprisingly difficult questions to answer!
I am used to talking about my work. I have all sorts of bio’s and work with my clients to create meaningful personal intros. But this all takes place in English. My challenge was to describe my work as a coach and presenter in the simplest terms that would translate easily.
Here is where I ended up:
– I help people find work they enjoy (i.e., career coaching)
– I help people to be good leaders (i.e., executive coaching)
– I help people to work together well (i.e., presenting on all sorts of communications and leadership topics)
So, to summarize: I help people find work they enjoy, to be good leaders, and to work together well. I like it!
I’ve never described my work like that before. Because I was trying to be jargon-free and use simple, common words, I got a new perspective on my work – and an even deeper appreciation for what I do.
Imagine you are trying to tell someone from a different culture and with a different language what you do. How would you describe your work in the simplest, most uncomplicated – and easily translatable – way possible?
I’d love to hear what you come up with on https://www.facebook.com/jenfrankcoaching/. Hopefully you will be happily surprised and get a new appreciation for the work you are enjoying.
Gute arbeit und gut gemacht!