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German to English translations [PRO] Bus/Financial - Human Resources
German term or phrase:Selbstständigkeit
Hi,
There has got to be something more suitable than "independence". I would also consider that self-reliance does not sound quite right here as the meaning is clearly not anything to do with confidence and having the necessary skills and resources that it takes to do the work on board but the ###ability to actually work and actually solve problems on her own without any guidance from her team or supervisors### which seems like a VERY slight but somewhat meaningful difference in sensitive HR communication. Also, as a non-native translator, I can only use English words that I master, and "self-reliance" or possibly even "self-sufficiency" is not quite one of those, I am afraid.
UK English needed -- American style not allowed this time around.
Question will be reposted at PRO level once an upvote to PRO level is submitted by any non-answerer. I hope doing so is lawful, ProZ =).
DECH: KURZPROFIL Meine Kenntnisse und meine fundierten Erfahrungen im kaufmännischen Bereich möchte ich gewinnbringend bei Ihnen einsetzten. Durch mein grosses Interesse an neuen Herausforderungen und meiner raschen Auffassungsgabe gelingt es mir stets, mein Wissen zu erweitern und neue Wege einzuschlagen. Ich bin sehr motiviert neue Tätigkeiten kennenzulernen und mein Know-how zu erweitern. Zuverlässigkeit und Belastbarkeit, dazu eine hohe ***Selbstständigkeit*** zeichnen meine Arbeitsweise aus, Stärken, die ich bereits in mehreren Stellen unter Beweis setzen konnte. Meine offene, aufgestellte und unkomplizierte Art tragen dazu bei, mich gut in ein Team zu integrieren.
Explanation: Obviously, how exactly you phrase it (work/working independently) depends on the broader syntax of the sentence, and how you structure it - but this is absolutely how we'd say it in English!
Why don't you put a note at the end of all your questions saying that your translations are checked by a native speaker? I didn't know this, and I'm sure people will stop commenting on your word choices if you do.
Oh gosh, I really didn't intend my comments as an "attack" - more as a friendly nudge about a couple of points that might have slipped through the net! (And if you ever need a native speaker with a little more time on her hands and no qualms about getting the figurative red pen out, you know where to find me!)
The text will be proofread by a native EN speaker. However, and this is important to understand in figuring out why I have not discontinued the DE EN pair in KudoZ Questions Asked, not even in light of continuous attacks on my ability to write English correctly in this pair-field combination in KudoZ, even after 10 years of living and working with a Brit: such checks will be exclusively done on the English with source text-related spot checks rather than by re-editing my version. She does not have the time it would take her to re-edit my version, you see - she is very busy 24/365. Thank you for your feedback on such translation, Jen.
"distinct ability" (or possibly, as Irene suggests, something subtly softer - "strong ability"/"marked ability" etc.) fits in nicely syntactically, but that opens up the issue of "ability" being repeated in a relatively short sentence - I'd be tempted to replace one of them with a synonym (capacity/capability/whatever you prefer) to fix that.
Are you going to have the text fully proofread by a native speaker? Possibly I am going crazy after many weeks in self-isolation, but I'd be tempted to make some quite major changes to the last sentence as you have it, and to the heading ("Short Applicant's Profile" - which to me rather comes across as a "short applicant", not a "short profile"...), as well!
Teangacha (X)
Ireland
12:37 Apr 8, 2020
'as well as a high degree of self-motivation.'???? The problem I would find with 'distinct' is that employers generally do not want you to be too independent!!! The ability is great, but too much of it is seen as a negative in a team setting. That is why on a CV you normally mention your ability for team work as well. Just my thoughts.
SHORT APPLICANT'S PROFILE I would be interested in putting my knowledge and in-depth experience in the commercial field to good use for your benefit. My great interest in new challenges, and my ability to pick up new information rapidly, enable me to continuously broaden my knowledge and pursue new routes. I am very motivated to become acquainted with new responsibilities, so as to extend my expertise. My method is distinguished by reliability and ability to cope with pressure, as well as a distinct ability to work independently - strengths that I have already been able to demonstrate in previous positions. With an open mind and a cheerful, pleasant personality, I, being easy to liaise with, will integrate well into any team.
Sebastian, could you post the whole sentence you've got drafted for this point? It's pretty hard to come up with something that will slot in naturally without knowing what's come before!
Sebastian, could you post the whole sentence you've got drafted for this point? It's pretty hard to come up with something that will slot in naturally without knowing what's come before!
That could potentially work (albeit with a slightly different emphasis from "selbstaendig") - though I would tend to prefer just "motivated" rather than "self-motivated", which may well simply be personal preference on my part!
@Sebastian - your version isn't quite right in EN, I'm afraid - give me a sec to come up with something that works.
Teangacha (X)
Ireland
12:20 Apr 8, 2020
Another way might be 'I am also a very self-motivated individual.'
I'm just wondering if there is a particular reason why you're not a fan of "independence" here? (Or rather, "working independently", as I'd tend to phrase it in this kind of context). As a native EN speaker, the concept of "working independently" sounds completely natural to me, and is very commonly used in CVs/cover letters!
Automatic update in 00:
Answers
6 mins confidence: peer agreement (net): +4
Autonomy
Explanation: Possibly
High degree/level of autonomy, able to act autonomously, etc
Mair A-W (PhD) Germany Local time: 05:15 Meets criteria Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 7