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9th ProZ.com Translation Contest: "Business" » English to Serbian

Competition in this pair is now closed.

Source text in English

I remember reading once that some fellows use language to conceal thought, but it's been my experience that a good many more use it instead of thought.

A businessman's conversation should be regulated by fewer and simpler rules than any other function of the human animal. They are:

Have something to say.

Say it.

Stop talking.

Beginning before you know what you want to say and keeping on after you have said it lands a merchant in a lawsuit or the poorhouse, and the first is a short cut to the second. I maintain a legal department here, and it costs a lot of money, but it's to keep me from going to law.

It's all right when you are calling on a girl or talking with friends after dinner to run a conversation like a Sunday-school excursion, with stops to pick flowers; but in the office your sentences should be the shortest distance possible between periods. Cut out the introduction and the peroration, and stop before you get to secondly. You've got to preach short sermons to catch sinners; and deacons won't believe they need long ones themselves. Give fools the first and women the last word. The meat's always in the middle of the sandwich. Of course, a light butter on either side of it doesn't do any harm if it's intended for a man who likes butter.

Remember, too, that it's easier to look wise than to talk wisdom. Say less than the other fellow and listen more than you talk; for when a man's listening he isn't telling on himself and he's flattering the fellow who is. Give most men a good listener and most women enough note-paper and they'll tell all they know. Money talks -- but not unless its owner has a loose tongue, and then its remarks are always offensive. Poverty talks, too, but nobody wants to hear what it has to say.

The winning entry has been announced in this pair.

There were 8 entries submitted in this pair during the submission phase, 5 of which were selected by peers to advance to the finals round. The winning entry was determined based on finals round voting by peers.

Competition in this pair is now closed.


Entries (8 total; 5 finalists) Expand all entries

Entry #10342
Winner
Voting points1st2nd3rd
347 x43 x20
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.663.69 (13 ratings)3.62 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 6 "like" tags
  • 5 users agreed with "likes" (10 total agrees)
+2
prikrili
Good term selection
прикрили
Ana Sunaric
+2
Pravila kojima podležu poslovni razgovori treba da je manje i da su jednostavnija
Flows well
Milica Maravić
+3
da ne bih imao posla sa zakonom
Good term selection
Miomira Brankovic
+1
Kada svratiš kod devojke ili ćaskaš sa prijateljima nakon večere, možeš da vodiš razgovor kao da ste na đačkom izletu na kom povremeno zastajete da berete cveće.
Flows well
Milica Maravić
+1
Zapamti i
Good term selection
mnogo bolj​e nego "za​pamti, tak​odje,..."
Milica Maravić
+1
podilazi
Good term selection
Milica Maravić
Entry #10387
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
193 x43 x21 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.473.62 (13 ratings)3.31 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 5 users entered 12 "like" tags
  • 9 users agreed with "likes" (21 total agrees)
+1
životinje koju nazivamo čovekom
Flows well
Milica Maravić
+3
Smisli šta hoćeš da kažeš.
Flows well
Tamara VB
Smisli šta hoćeš da kažeš.
Flows well
sofijana
Kaži to što si smislio.
Flows well
sofijana
Ućuti.
Flows well
sofijana
+1
dok zastajkuješ da nabereš stručak cveća
Flows well
osim "stru​cak", ne u​klapa se t​oliko doda​vanje uz s​uvi poslov​ni stil.
Milica Maravić
+2
Grešnike moraš loviti na kratke propovedi
Flows well
Tamara VB
+1
a čak ni đakone nećeš ubediti da su im potrebne dugačke besede
Flows well
Milica Maravić
Upamti, takođe, da je lakše mudro izgledati nego mudro govoriti. Govori manje od drugih i više slušaj nego što pričaš;
Flows well
sofijana
+7
Novac govori hiljadu jezika
Flows well
Sanja Mihailovic
+1
a čak i onda su njegove opaske gotovo uvek uvredljive.
Flows well
umetnute r​eci dobro ​prenose zn​acenje iak​o odstupaj​u od tona ​teksta
Milica Maravić
Entry #8543
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
92 x401 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.922.92 (12 ratings)2.91 (11 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 4 "like" tags
  • 4 users agreed with "likes" (6 total agrees)
  • 2 users disagreed with "likes" (2 total disagrees)
+3
Разговор пословног човека треба да буде уређен мањим бројем једноставнијих правила него било која друга функција „животиње зване човек“.
Flows well
elitence (X)
-2
+2
2
у канцеларији ваше реченице морају да буду најкраће могуће растојање између две интерпункцијске тачке
Flows well
elitence (X)
+1
Шунка је увек у средини сендвича. Наравно, танки слој бутера са обе стране неће шкодити уколико је сендвич намењен човеку који воли бутер.
Flows well
elitence (X)
Шунка је увек у средини сендвича
Good term selection
Lingua 5B
Entry #9427
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
601 x24 x1
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry3.203.00 (10 ratings)3.40 (10 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 2 users entered 5 "like" tags
  • 4 users agreed with "likes" (4 total agrees)
  • 1 user disagreed with "likes" (1 total disagree)
da govori pre nego što zna šta hoće da kaže i nastavi da priča nakon što je rekao šta je imao trgovac će završiti pred sudom
Flows well
Milica Maravić
+1
Ovde imam pravnu službu i ona me mnogo košta, ali ona služi da izbegnem parničenje
Flows well
elitence (X)
+2
sasvim je na mestu
Good term selection
Milica Maravić
privukao
Good term selection
Milica Maravić
-1
+1
1
I siromaštvo govori, ali niko ne želi da čuje šta ima da kaže.
Flows well
elitence (X)
Entry #10697
Finalist
Voting points1st2nd3rd
201 x20
Rating typeOverallQualityAccuracy
Entry2.812.85 (13 ratings)2.77 (13 ratings)
Entry tagging:
  • 3 users entered 5 "like" tags
  • 3 users agreed with "likes" (3 total agrees)
  • 2 users disagreed with "likes" (4 total disagrees)
Ovde imam i pravnu službu koja me košta puno para, ali mi pomaže da nemam posla sa zakonom.
Flows well
Lingua 5B
-1
+2
1
U redu je kad razgovaraš s devojkom ili prijateljima posle večere i pričaš naširoko i nadugačko kao da si na nekom školskom izletu, gde zastaneš da ubereš po neki cvetić.
Flows well
Lingua 5B
+1
očitaš kratke propovedi
Flows well
Sanja Mihailovic
-1
1
Fil se uvek nalazi u sredini torte.
Good term selection
Tamara VB
-2
2
Novac sve kaže -- ali ne ako njegov vlasnik ima dugačak jezik, jer su onda komentari uvek uvredljivi
Flows well
Lingua 5B