Oh how I wish that I'd paid more attention at school!

I think that we all have one of those moments sometimes. A little less of a deficit in our concentration all those years back and we would have been able to accomplish some task that has suddenly loomed up in the present.

The task that faced me was that the company that I was consulting for, was evaluating a power construction deal in Spain. Not a problem in these days of EU standardisation, hi-tech communications and the universality of the English language I thought...well, how wrong can a guy be!

Ok...The relevant EU legislation was in place so there was no need to check that...I had to check the Royal Decree ratifying the legislation, but more importantly, I had to read over the contract that we were to sign with the Spanish power company.

This was going to be an important deal for our company and with the commissions riding on the successful completion of the deal, it was going to be important for us all.

Everything seemed to be shaping up well so far...I sent off an email requesting the relevant documents...and waited.

The next day the long awaited email came and I eagerly opened up the attachments...but wait a minute...SPANISH!

Ok, what did I expect...I suppose a major Spanish corporation issuing a standard contract, would issue it in their own language...and therein lay a major lesson in international trade for us all.

So how was I going to get around this? Well I had taken Spanish in school, years ago so maybe I could muddle through.

As I worked my way through the first two paragraphs I knew that I was hopelessly out of my depth...I needed help...and I needed it fast!

Scanning the internet for translation services I found myself faced with an array of choices. Some of these I managed to discount immediately, the rest I weeded out after a very short while...and then I was left with one.

Lingo24. They actually had everything that I was looking for. I could get a quotation by uploading my source document and order online 24 hours a day.

So how did it work out?

The translations worked out perfectly thanks to Lingo24...I received my completed documents in next to no time and the company was very helpful and communicative throughout the whole process.

The actual deal never went through in the end though. Thanks to a clear and precise translation, I picked up an obscure clause in the contract, a get out clause which could very well have sunk us if it had been exercised by the power company.

Well, if nothing else, I learned two valuable lessons from the whole venture. Firstly, always get professionals to handle any translations. Secondly...always pay attention in class!

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