The new year is a representation of endless possibilities and a time for celebration. Around the world, traditions to ring in the New Year are nothing short of unique. Here are four New Year’s traditions to know about:
 
Bermuda – Onion Drop
 
Onions have always been of significance to Bermuda as it is one of their biggest crops and a culinary staple in their diet. On New Year’s Eve, the count down to the new year is celebrated by dropping a paper-mache onion which is covered in lights, from the roof of the town hall in St. George's. Individuals also enjoy local food and music and wait for fireworks while waiting for the drop.
 
Spain – Las doce uvas de la suerte tradition
 
In Spain, at the stroke of midnight, locals will eat exactly 12 grapes which symbolize each strike of the clock. The grapes must be eaten in a matter of seconds as they need to be gone by the time the clock finishes striking midnight. This is done in hopes that it will bring about a year of good fortune and prosperity.
 
Philippines – Serving round fruits
 
On New Year’s Eve in the Philippines, it is customary to display and serve 12 round fruits. Round fruits such as apples, plums and grapes are believed to represent prosperity in the coming year because of their shape which mirrors coins.
 
Greece – Hanging an onion outside of the door
 
It is a tradition to hang an onion outside your door in Greece. The onion is believed to symbolize rebirth, fertility and growth and it is hung to promote growth and good luck throughout the new year.
 
Tell us where you are from in the comments below and let us know how you ring in the New Year!

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• We are a one-stop shop.
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• We’ve already vetted all the interpreters on our team, so you don’t have to do background checks. We save our clients time by taking care of the preliminary work.
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• We provide a guided list of steps and tips for the success of events requiring in-person and virtual interpreting – from start to finish.
• Those who work with us attest to our professionalism, reliability and service quality.

 
What else do you look for when partnering with an interpreting service provider?
 
Connect with us at pm@rmclanguages.com for more information.

​Earlier this year we posted an article about the benefits of foreign language acquisition. Some of the benefits included having access to new business opportunities, access to a wider range of job opportunities and improved cognitive function, to name a few.

As the new year is almost upon us, you may want to improve or pick up a new skill and what better skill to have than speaking a foreign language?

We know that learning a foreign language can seem like a stressful task; however, all you need are the right tools, habits and attitude. Here are 5 tips to make your language-learning journey easier: 
 
Set language goals. Having specific goals can help us determine the best way to achieve success. Ask yourself questions like:
 
“Why am I learning this language?”
 
“What do I want to achieve?”
 
“By when do I want to achieve this?”
 
Asking these questions can help you stay on track and achieve your goal of having a basic conversation with a stranger, for example. When planning your language-learning journey, you should set some short- medium- and long-term goals which will help to keep you motivated and on the path to your desired level of fluency.
 
Practise speaking. Sometimes when just starting out, you may feel intimidated to speak in front of others; however, a crucial part of language learning is being able to communicate effectively. Speaking with natives is an excellent way to improve your language skills. In addition, speaking to yourself, practicing vocabulary out loud and recording yourself speaking can help you to gain confidence and improve your oral proficiency, as well as your listening abilities.
 
Consume media in foreign languages. Consuming media in foreign languages, whether it be music, books, videos, TV shows or movies is an integral part of language learning. By consuming various media, you are able to gather a vast amount of information about a language and culture such as understanding and picking up on various accents, gestures, and cultural references, which all contribute to successful communication and functioning in a language and culture.
 
Take a class or work with a tutor. There are many ways to learn a language. Some people prefer to try and learn by themselves and others may prefer to learn from someone. Taking a language course and working with a tutor is an excellent method and is highly recommended. A tutor is able to guide and work with you in achieving your desired goals and fluency. The tutor is also readily available to answer any questions or assist with something you may not understand, which may not always be the case when learning on your own. Working with a tutor is also an excellent way to improve your oral proficiency as they are able to take the time to assess where you may need some help, as well as correct and encourage you along the way.
 
Be patient with yourself. Language learning never ends and every day you learn something new. The key to successful language acquisition is to be patient with yourself and to keep going. When you feel dejected or as if you are not making any progress, ask yourself this question: “Do I know every word and its meaning in my mother tongue?” Chances are you may not and so you must give yourself grace. Remember that Rome was not built in a day, however, its lasting beauty is splendid.
 
As Charlemagne once said, “To have another language is to possess another soul.” Speaking a foreign language can open so many doors and opportunities and there is a whole other world to explore and bask in.
 
We at RMC are ready to help you start or continue this exciting and rewarding journey. Email us at admin@rmclanguages.com for more information and let us know in the comments below if you have learned a language and what practice was most beneficial for you.

After attending a LinkedIn live by Jarrod Best-Mitchell and Jaime Rampersad on Monday on the things that keep us women back from doing video, I know that I am not alone. These include worrying about / not having enough time for:
 

• Make up
• Hair
• What to say
• What if no-one shows up
• What platform is the best place to go live
• What time is best

 
We were reminded that we, women, are our biggest critics.
 
Jaime Rampersad spoke about perfection being an excuse for procrastination.
 
Everything that could go wrong in her first live did, but she did not give up.
 
She looked at the replays of her first few lives, kept going and improved each time.
 
Here are my takeaways from both Jaime’s and Jarrod’s tips.
 
Content Ideas:

• You can re-post the best performing content as your audience grows.
• Put yourself in your client’s shoes – what questions do they ask? What do they want to know?
• What pain points do you solve?
• Check out a site called “Answer the public” – if you search what you do, you will see what clients ask about your industry. You get two free questions a day.
• Structure content – Jaime uses an Excel spreadsheet where she notes her topics as they come to mind
• Be consistent in your live activity – go live on the same days / at the same time

 
Makeup – if you must:

• You can do makeup in 10 minutes by laying out a tray with only the stuff you need, instead of digging through a makeup bag
• Then, create videos in one go
• Every single person who filled out her form got added to a WhatsApp broadcast list

 
Equipment:

• Phone
• Tripod
• Two LED lights at 45 degrees in front OR ring light

 
You should know what to say to your leads:

• When people interact with your content who fit your ideal client profile, you send them a #videomessage

 
Best time to post?
Look at Meta Facebook analytics and it tells you best time to post.
 
How often?

• Once a week
• For a specific campaign – every day for a period of time
• If you run out of ideas – ask your audience what they would like to hear
• Also observe what your competitors are posting – what are people commenting?

 
What if no one shows up?
Most people watch lives on the weekend – not during the live – so don’t worry about it. If you have one person in your audience, that could be one new client!
 
The impact that videos and going live can make on your business is huge.
 
For translation (editing, proofreading), interpreting, intercultural coaching and language tuition, email us at pm@rmclanguages.com.

At RMC Language Consultancy Limited, we help our customers to communicate, negotiate and transact business in foreign languages and develop intercultural skills for success when relocating and working with global teams.  To date we have:

• Served over 160 companies
• Translated over 8 million words
• Have clients in 8 countries
• Coached over 110 global leaders (to be successful on assignment)
• Delivered over 300 hours of language classes 

 
We have been supporting private and public organisations locally, regionally and internationally for the last 10.5 years by providing:

• professional document translation
• simultaneous and consecutive interpreting (verbal translation) 
• cross-cultural business coaching services
• language tuition (to adults and children)

 
Some of the customers we serve include:

• Government ministries and agencies
• Export and investment promotion agencies
• Multinational organisations
• Private lawyers offices
• Conglomerates investing in Latin America and the Caribbean
• Local banks with branches in foreign countries
• International financial institutions
• Companies in the energy sector
• European bodies
• Individuals seeking official translation of their documents for immigration applications
• Funeral homes and customers seeking to repatriate the remains of their loved ones      (from non-English-speaking countries).

In addition, we are recognised as an official translation and interpreting provider by the Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs and the Immigration Division of Trinidad and Tobago, among other official bodies.
 
Do you need your documents officially translated and certified? Let us translate for you.

Would you like to speak with partners, colleagues and stakeholders in another language? Let us interpret for you.

Are your global leaders relocating on assignment? Let us support the adjustment process with intercultural services.

Need to become proficient in a foreign language? Let us teach you.
 
Connect with us at pm@rmclanguages.com.

We recently turned down the opportunity to work on a translation job because the client’s deadline was unrealistic. It was a very difficult one to turn down, because the subject matter – financial statements –is a topic with which I am intimately familiar.
 
You see, I have done work as the treasurer of two organisations. I did accounting at the ordinary level (fifth year of secondary school) and advanced level (seventh year of secondary school) and I have been serving on the board of a financial institution for some years now and we review accounts monthly. In addition, I interned at two banking institutions and have 10+ years’ experience translating various financial documents.
 
So you could understand my disappointment when I could smell and taste this project, but knew that it would not be a good fit for us because of the unrealistic timeline for delivery. It was not just interesting for me to work on, but it was a beautiful, sizeable project, so it would have been a lucrative opportunity.
 
There are sometimes disappointments that I face as a business owner, but I have to assess situations and opportunities before me and make decisions that benefit both the client and the RMC team.

If I were to accept a job which I knew fully well we would not be able to deliver within the limited timeframe, I would be:

1. extremely stressed out;
2. disappointed if the client’s deadline was not met; and
3. I am sure that the client would be disappointed or lose trust in our ability to do what we say we can.

 
For these reasons, we chose to say no to this project. This is just one of the tough decisions that had to be made, but I can safely say that it was done to the benefit of both the client and our company.
 
I hope that the client recognises that we made the best decision that we could, and as professionals, we would not accept a project if we did not think we could deliver quality on time.
 
Have you had to make tough business decisions? Do you turn down opportunities that are not the right fit for both you and the client? Please let me know in the comments.

Email us at pm@rmclanguages.com for more information on how we can help you translate sensitive and confidential documents into another language.