By Mary B. Bader
When it comes to being fearful of sending realtime translation to the judge or anyone else, you will never meet a bigger chicken than I am. Unlike many of you who share my dread, I have no choice. My judge demands it. Not only does my judge require realtime, many judges across my district ask for it. If they are used to having realtime in their courtrooms, they want it, whether you are their assigned reporter or not. Could I say, “No, your Honor, sorry, but I do not have to do that”? Sure I could, but to what end? Why are we so afraid of realtime?
In a locker-room speech, the immortal Vince Lombardi spoke these words to his team: “Gentlemen, we will chase perfection, and we will chase it relentlessly, knowing all the while we can never attain it. But along the way, we shall catch excellence.”
Excellence. Why are we not satisfied with excellence? Why must we always keep striving for perfection, especially since we know we can never achieve it? Many of us who chose court reporting as our career did so because we are perfectionists. That trait is one of our greatest assets, but it is also one of our biggest faults. From my own experience, the more I try to be perfect, the worse things get for me. Always striving to be better is what we need to do to improve our skills. In no way am I suggesting that we not keep trying to reach that unattainable goal of perfection, but we cannot get lost in that struggle in our journey to excellence.
If you are constantly striving to improve your realtime skills – and I know you are – you have what it takes to make that giant leap and start sending realtime to your judge, to the clerk of court, or to your clients in a deposition. Give yourself a break. You are a professional, and you are good!
I am sure you have heard this advice before, but it is so true: Let your first hook-up be to someone with whom you are comfortable. Let your trial run be on your terms. Do not wait until your employer demands it. I know you will be amazed by how dazzled they are by your skill. Only you see your flubs. They see your brilliance.
How will we ever know how good we are and how much our skill is appreciated by others if we never give ourselves the chance to find out? Make the commitment to hook up and send out your realtime. You can do it. Throw caution to the wind, and just roll with it, baby!
Mary Bader, RPR, is an official based in Eau Claire, Wis. She can be reached at marypat.42797@gmail.com.
