{"id":127,"date":"2014-10-31T23:58:02","date_gmt":"2014-10-31T23:58:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/?p=127"},"modified":"2017-08-13T01:42:48","modified_gmt":"2017-08-13T01:42:48","slug":"making-the-most-of-networking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/2014\/10\/31\/making-the-most-of-networking\/","title":{"rendered":"Making the Most of Networking"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bianca Bold (PLD Assistant Administrator)
\nOriginal publication: PLDATA, Volume XXII | Issue 4 | October 2013
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

As most seasoned and down-to-earth translators and interpreters probably know, networking is a crucial part of our life and career. However, not all of us know exactly what to do and how to behave around fellow translators and potential clients at large events, such as the\u00a0ATA Conferences<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve decided to interview an expert in the field and share some insight with our readers. I spoke to\u00a0Walethia Aquil<\/a><\/strong>, a coaching professional who specializes in business etiquette, personal\/professional branding, networking skills and other interesting stuff.<\/p>\n

Walethia shared advice on how to network effectively and explained that it is not just handing out a bunch of business cards \u2013 as I\u2019ve seen colleagues do. She emphasizes that networking is all about interacting with like-minded business people in order to\u00a0(1)<\/strong>\u00a0build new business relationships and\u00a0(2)<\/strong>\u00a0create new business opportunities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are eight tips I believe to be the most useful to translators in the conference environment, where opportunities to interact face-to-face with successful, like-minded colleagues are countless. Experienced professionals probably have heard of and used most of these strategies, but it is always a good idea to revisit them every now and again, especially while warming up the engines for another industry event. Besides, newbies can always benefit from this sort of advice, whether they are first-time attendees or completely new to our profession.<\/p>\n

Walethia\u2019s top networking tips<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n
    \n
  1. Take a positive and deliberate approach to networking. An extra level of attention makes it easier to establish relationships.<\/li>\n
  2. Exude energy and passion to command respect and grab attention.<\/li>\n
  3. Remain standing as much as possible. People will see you as more approachable.<\/li>\n
  4. Allow others to have the spotlight. Do not monopolize the conversation and do not talk too much about yourself.<\/li>\n
  5. Perfect and use your \u201c30-second commercial\u201d \u2014commonly known among translators as an \u201celevator speech.\u201d<\/li>\n
  6. Be honest about what you can do and cannot do.<\/li>\n
  7. Focus on following up and following through while you are still at the event.<\/li>\n
  8. Make an effort to remember people\u2019s names.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    \"networking\"<\/p>\n

    If you are planning to attend the next ATA Conference or another T&I event, you will probably be happy to know that, despite the wonders of modern technology, face-to-face interaction\u2014according to Walethia\u2014still results in the most powerful connections.<\/p>\n

    So, how about working on your elevator speech? I suggest you check out Lillian Clementi\u2019s article, \u201cPromoting Your Practice in 60 Seconds or Less: Mastering the Elevator Speech<\/a><\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n

    If you\u2019re going to the ATA Conference for the first time, you could certainly benefit from this ATA webinar: \u201cTips for Navigating Your First ATA Conference<\/a><\/strong>\u201d \u2013 it\u2019s available online 24\/7 and, best of all, it\u2019s FREE!<\/p>\n

    Make sure you are ready to get out there and seize all precious opportunities in every event you attend.<\/p>\n

    Walethia<\/strong>\u00a0is a leading expert in professional branding as the CEO of Grace and Charm. Her\u00a0Grace and Charm<\/a>\u00a0Success System has gained international attention and is used by professionals all over the world. She has helped thousands of people, including attorneys and linguists, \u201ctransform from invisible to impeccable.\u201d Connect with Walethia onFacebook<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

    Bianca<\/strong>\u00a0holds a B.A. in Translation and an M.A. in Translation Studies. A native speaker of Brazilian Portuguese, she has worked with English, Spanish, and Italian since 2001, offering translation, interpreting, editing, subtitling, and courses in translation for subtitling. She is currently the PLD Assistant Administrator (2013\u20132015). Find more information on her\u00a0website<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Bianca Bold (PLD Assistant Administrator) Original publication: PLDATA, Volume XXII | Issue 4 | October 2013 As most seasoned and down-to-earth translators and interpreters probably know, networking is a crucial part of our life and career. However, not all of us know exactly what to do and how to behave around fellow translators and potential […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,10],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-127","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-events","7":"category-good-oldies","8":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":128,"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127\/revisions\/128"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/PLD\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}