A translator bridging the understanding gap of culture and language helped explorers, teachers, leaders, sales people, families and all types of human occupations for a very long time.
A translator’s output is a function of their ability to comprehend context, language, tone, cultural norms, and attributes of two different culture (read: groups) and bridge the gap.
I translate. I attempt to communicate my ideas to you in ways you might comprehend. Some translations are insightful, others jibberish.
I translate for my team. I take business concepts and enable my team to understand and use these concepts in a way they understand.
I translate myself to different groups of people. At a church, I attempt to translate my ideas in a way that’s respectful of the norms and traditions of church goers. In a business setting, I attempt to translate myself in a way that business executives accept. In my family, I attempt to do the same.
You are no different than me. Our work every day is a work of translation.
Perhaps the way we navigate the complexities of social interactions is to learn all we can through immersion and active engagement with different cultures of people so that we can translate and authentically transmit ourselves to them.
That ancient skill whose value grows and compounds century-on-century.