I've often dealt with a particular home improvement contractor named Don, who is a rare breed. He listens to what you want, then applies his experience and know-how, and comes up with the best possible way to do things; even when they're a little bit different from what you originally had in mind. I've been happy with all of the work he's done for me, and it's stood up to time and wear, because he focuses on doing what's right.
Unfortunately, when I wanted to put on an addition a few years back, he wasn't available. I did some research, and came up with another local guy, who came highly recommended.
But, even though I thought I had let him know exactly what I wanted, the results were somewhat lacking; because he failed to give me what I really needed. I'm in the process of getting onto Don's spring schedule to have him redo some of what the other guy did poorly...
Martin Cross, an expert patent translator, wrote about this issue recently on his blog Translating Patents. Written for attorneys, inventors and other translators, Martin's article explains that there are times when a patent he's translating has errors, omissions, or is poorly written, but if he were to try to "fix" them, and give them a gramatically proper, polished piece; he would inaccurately portray the original patent, and therefore not give his client what they need. Martin writes:
"Our clients would not be well served if we added matter to fill in the gaps in an incomplete disclosure, or if we took on the role of editor so that the translated claims seemed better supported by the specification than they were in the original. And though it might be tempting to unify disparate terminology, by doing so, we could be denying our client a useful argument against the patent or — if our client is on the other side — producing a false sense of security that risks being shattered by a more accurate translation when used in court." Read Martin's entire post here.
So the next time a client tells you what they want, and you think that they won't be happy with it, take heed; and instead give it the thought, time and effort necessary to deliver the results they really need.
-Susan Martin, Business Coach NYC.
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