text: Culture, Religion, News, Events, Reports and Services etc: BE MUCH MORE THAN JUST A TRANSLATOR AND/OR INTERPRETER
  Some of the people who should never take off the cap of humility from their heads are those of us in management positions wherever we work. Once given a position of responsibility over others, some of us start to behave as if we had just been dropped out of heaven. We start to lord it over others. Colleagues of yesterday suddenly become stiff-necked bosses of today, hardly even greeting the people with whom they worked before being appointed supervisors.
  Le us recognize our limitations
  My simple advice to him – which he did not visibly appreciate -- was to concentrate on translating into his 'A' language (French), letting others, more competent in English and Spanish, to handle translation into those languages. Then I told him that even though I had been immersed in Spanish studies in Madrid and French studies in the Sorbonne before proceeding to Georgetown University in Washington DC for my translation/interpretation studies, I still did not feel competent enough to translate from English to French, except where no French-speaking colleague is within shouting distance. More often than not, I call on a French colleague to handle translations into French while I concentrate on those into English. Or, if I have to translate to French at all, I always make sure that a French-speaking colleague quality controls the final product before it drops on the customer's lap. I openly recognize my limitations, and so should we all. Why? Because the more you highlight the strengths of others, the more your own strengths as a good translator or interpreter stand out for admiration as well.
  Why do we not always readily admit our limitations? Greed is a principal culprit. We want all the money for ourselves because when I call on a French colleague to handle translation into French for my customer, I literally surrender three quarters of the proceeds to him or her, which is how it should be since the translator in question does all the translation for me. What is the effect of such greed? When we do work for which we are not competent the result is shoddy at best. The customer is dissatisfied and chances that such a customer would come back to us are slim. It is, therefore, not only the individual translator who loses, it is our profession as a whole.
  I wish translators and interpreters were always as willing as oil engineers to come together, when the need arises, to share their knowledge and resolve work-related. What generally happens with us, though, is that we compete with each other, instead of cooperating with each other. We denigrate each other, not exalt each other's performance. We stab our colleagues in the back rather than support and encourage them. Cooperation, not cutthroat competition, holds the key to success in any enterprise. The earlier Cameroonian translators and interpreters know this, the better for our profession.
  It is always surprising to me that many colleagues still find a skill as basic as typing quite challenging, especially those working in government services. You have secretarial pools that handle all your typing for you, and this has created a massive class of typing-illiterates among translators and interpreters in this country. Translation work is still, for the most part, painfully written long hand and given to secretaries to type before the translator corrects/revises it. Come-on! This is the 19th century work, not the 21st!
  We sent him work for translation and were waiting for him to send it back to us by e-mail, but I was shocked when he showed up the next day with a pile of papers with neatly written inscriptions on it. What was that? I asked. He looked visibly surprised by my question because it was the work I had given him to translate. And why was he bringing it to me handwritten? He looked baffled. He was bringing it to me to hand over to my secretary to type for his review.
  Our man strongly believed that typing was a demeaning job, which only women should be doing. He took great offence when I asked him to type it himself. Why would he, of all people, sit down over a typewriter? What were women secretaries made for? At the Presidency of the Republic and the National Assembly, he loudly boasted, the women secretaries were falling head over heels to type his work for him. Occasionally, he would toss a five hundred franc coin on their lap and they would literally fall down to worship him. How could I dare ask him to type his own work? He left in a murderous rage and he's now busy telling anyone, who cares to listen, what an insolent fellow I truly am! But, learning to type is a skill every translator or interpreter should, and must acquire. Why? It gives you complete control of your work. It enables you to edit it at will as you translate. This gives you complete mastery over your own product.
  That sounded sacrilegious to their ears and I nearly had a strike on my hands. A delegation from the journalists came to see me to tell me that nowhere else in the country were journalists typing their stories themselves. They cited Cameroon Tribune, Le Messager, La Nouvelle Expression, etc. They all had secretaries to type stories for journalists; so why would L'Effort camerounais be different? I told them we were setting the pace for others to follow.
  I was with one of our senior colleagues, Mr. Roland Ngong, the other day who was reading all the novels of one of Africa's, nay, the world's greatest writers, Chinua Achebe. He was painfully noting down all those beautiful expressions and proverbs of which only Achebe has the secret. Why was he doing that? I asked. He said it was always such a delight when an opportunity presented itself when he is interpreting to use them. He would always see African delegates lift up their heads and smile, looking around to see where the interpreter is speaking from and occasionally giving a thumbs-up to him. What can be more satisfying than to have your customer express appreciation for your work! Roland continuously invests in his own training by reading the works of a great master of the craft, and using the proceeds to enhance his work. The example of this seasoned and senior colleague is worth emulating.
  Even if we cannot all stream to the Cameroonian Red Cross facility, or to an accredited hospital to part with our precious blood – which would not be a bad idea, by the way – we can at least each find the time to participate in an activity that benefits our society, without necessarily expecting monetary reward in return. What of participating in a clean-up campaign in our neighbourhood, if any exists? If, on a Saturday morning, people were to see a senior translator or interpreter from the Presidency, or the National Assembly, or the Prime Minister's office, in shorts, a spade and a broom in hand, actively participating with others in cleaning his/her neighbourhood, word goes round that translators and interpreters care about others.
  Why, you may wonder, have I been telling you all these things, especially with such passion? It is because, as an old hand in this profession, I have gained enormously by striving, in my own way to be much more than just a translator and interpreter. When you pay attention to your family life, show respect and concern for others, especially, but not exclusively, your colleagues at work, participate fully in the socio-political, religious and cultural life of your community, you stand tall in your and others' minds. As admiration for your personal and community life grows, your professional life inevitably glows in the sight of all. And with it, the financial rewards we all yearn for. Thank you for listening to me.