No Man is an Island – John Donne or Jon Bon Jovi? From Rock star to SPLSU

Today’s tale starts back in late 2015, when I addressed an OeNB/JVI seminar in Vienna for translators from Central and South Eastern Europe. My presentation was about my first year of life translating at the FMA. I also spoke about the role of translation in the SSMThe Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM), housed at the European Central Bank, has been operational since November 2014 and is the mechanism under which Europe's largest banks are directly supervised by the European Central Bank - through Joint Supervisory Teams (JSTs) staffed by the European Central Bank and national competent authorities (NCAs). See the SSM Website for further information., and being directly embedded in a supervisory division. I recounted my experiences as a “party of one” in establishing language services at the FMA. In my slide deck that day, I alluded to John Donne’s “No man is an Island”. Hugh Grant’s character in the 2002 film adaptation of Nick Hornby’s “About a Boy”, Will Freeman, however attributed “No Man is an Island” to Jon Bon Jovi.

Fast forward to 2024, and John Donne’s poem celebrates its quatercentenary. Recently I talked to my development coach, about how well my job title reflects what I do and my professional aspirations. I explained how, if asked, I often answered that I was a “rock star” rather than a “translator”. Or occasionally a “rock star translator”. I had cultivated the image of being unconventional (e.g. by being directly embedded in banking supervision) and working directly at the “Wordface”. In translation circles, in the last three years “SPLSU” (pronounced: Spool-soo”) has become my go to term. It gets people interested and generates greater interest than replying “translator”.

Rockstar Stadium Tour: Cancelled? Postponed?

After a while of the “rock star translator” moniker, I decided that it didn’t fit. Why? It didn’t seem appropriate any more. I didn’t want to be in danger of becoming the “washed-up” rock star. Translators are resourceful types and grow and reinvent themselves: this approach is key to longevity as a translator. Offering premium services involves constantly learning and adapting. Rock star thrash out old favourites ad nauseam – sometimes until they are far too long in the tooth. Mind you, that doesn’t stop adoring fans from attending every farewell tour due to the fear of missing out.

Turn that noise down…

Similarly, daily tinnitus management efforts render me the antithesis of the rock star. Gone are the crashing electric guitar solos and amps turned up to eleven that go with the territory. Translation and its intellectual challenge continues to drive me. This is why I have sessions with a development coach, talk with premium translators, and why I attended an inspiring conference in Spiez. Self-improvement steps are necessary for skirting the doldrums about the state of the profession at the hands of the industry.

Or getting sucked into the whirlpool of gloom and doom. I’ve charted my course – I’m the “Expert in the Lead”, rather than a mere cog in a “Machine in the Loop” or “Human in the Loop”. This approach keeps me upbeat about the profession vs industry situation. If anything, being that “one-man show” plays to my advantage, in that I am incumbent and difficult to dislodge – like a barnacle, whereas amid larger teams headcount is a more frequent issue – particular when a retirement wave rolls into view. Now is the time to seize upon and consolidate my position of linguistic leadership – rather that resting on my laurels.

The elephant in the room

I am realistic that Machine Translation will impact my workflows at some stage, but made my peace with this eventuality by settling on an expert in the leadEITL/XITL advocates the expert human in the lead rather than in the loop. strategy. The situation would be vastly different, if I were to resign myself to being a mere Human in the LoopHuman in the loop is an approach advocated by the translation industry, whereby machine translation is used and the role of human translators is secondary - e.g. doing some kind of post-editing. It has become particularly prevalent with the rise of LLMs. My issues with HITL is that it reduces the role of a human (with no mention of their. When recently appraising a proposed MT solution, I actively choose to be realistic and objective, rather than protectionist and defensive. That being said, I was cautious in my appraisal of the solution, voicing concerns about it should be used properly, and with due care. My appraisal of the situation was far less binary than a simple yes/no view that a non-linguist might take.

Not the only inhabitant on the island

My work is a complex blend of new and repeat translations. Different areas of supervision result in different translation tasks. As a supervisory authority’s remit constantly expands, borders blur and fray, while new areas emerge. By working for different “customers” you are not nearly as “cut off” and remote as you think. In terms of knowledge and skillset, I might live on in a secluded part of the main island, away from the main settlement (those of a legal background), but the WordfaceA play on words with the "coalface". Translators could be said to work at the wordface and might suggest "Getting back to the wordface!" to mean get back to work. The term apparently originates from Terry Pratchett's "Going Postal". A few feet beyond there was the familiar wall of letters, packed as tight as rock strata. A watchman had been is not a multi-day trek from civilisation, food and water. Similarly, my customers can find me too, and most importantly, I don’t need a helicopter in a storm or rowing boat amidst choppy seas to get off the island.

It is easy to take stable island life for granted – it provides me with everything I need: shelter, food and water (and hopefully interesting wildlife!) However, it is important not to stop exploring or to allow the grass to grow under your feet. But it is reassuring to have a spot marked as your home. However, the moment you stop exploring you become complacent, and maybe even miss out on exciting new projects.

It is good to consider my island as not being miles from anywhere or out of sight over the horizon. It is probably more sensible to think of it as an archipelago, where I enjoy distinctly warm relations with the neighbouring islands. My lighthouse might not be the tallest, or have the brightest light, in an archipelago of language technology expertise. The neighbouring islands are frequently larger and more densely populated – the working groups, professional associations, freelance translators, fellow governmental translators and terminologists, the growing gaggle of language technologists.

Look over the horizon(s)

And then there are the contacts through blogs and social media whose “despatches” I tune into and regularly interact with. They might be a long way over the horizon, but whose message comes through loud and clear. And sometimes it is very useful to be use similar outlets to broadcast – even just to raise your flag to find out which way the wind is blowing.

Despite having a sheltered island life, it is essential to be actively involved in different communities – based on other (less) neighbouring islands. The communities on other islands help in my continuing professional development. A brief sortie can provide me with intensive training. They also provide much-needed “time off the island” in terms of working groups and speaking engagements. And of course you also have a view back to your island, rather than just the view from your island. These communities provide me with insights for understanding the sentiment of the profession and the industry. Professional alliances are essential for discussing issues of professional importance with kindred souls. They also bring together those who choose to excel, rather than subsist and stew in their own juices.

It’s good to explore…

In Spiez, Chris Durban gave an inspiring presentation. It was the first time I had heard her speak “live” after many Translating Europe Forum events online. She addressed the need for translators to visit “Clientland”. For me, Clientland involves trips away from my part of the island – and talking to the other islanders. Some work may materialise like a “message in a bottle” on the shore, but many projects need a spark. In Clientland, I push that translation should not be an “afterthought”, as it might be if outsourced. When I started out at the FMA, I highlighted a need to be agile, and move quickly between projects. Helping customers realise how, when, and why to use you is time well spent. It also prevents misunderstandings.

A man, a plan…

I returned from Spiez with a full reading list. On the flight back from Zurich, I also sketched a five point plan about getting into Clientland, based on Chris’ presentation. Here were some “quick fixes” I came up with.

• Translation to a brief. I looked through my Language Services HandbookA living document that I had to address all issues relating to language services. Abbreviated as LaSH. after I returned to the office. I saw that there was very little about translation briefs. I put together a non-exhaustive questions based on jobs from the last year from infrequent customers. This allowed me to compile a decent brief – especially about who you are really translating for. (It’s not Herr Schmidt or Frau Braun who e-mailed you that attachment!)
• Spell out how you can best be used. In-house translation isn’t just about massive projects, but also “quick and dirty” projects – a page here or two paragraphs there. Your customers might not be fully aware of all the possibilities.
• Highlight the premium nature of your service. Customers may use your services for low impact or low importance work – try to nudge them gently towards more substantial or higher impact work.
• Look forward not back. There is a temptation to try to look at an Annual Report to establish emerging territories. An Annual Report is frequently quite retrospective publication. It might highlight existing areas that are thematic blind spots. However, you should also explore reliable sources regarding forthcoming developments (e.g. legal policy blogs).
• Cut out the doom-scrolling. Rather than doom-scrolling through the “woe is me” content from LinkedIn or elsewhere, fill your commutes with content that enlightens, educates and informs.