Despite the fact that my name sounds “typisch deutsch”, I am a native speaker of (American) English, born in 1977 and raised in Pennsylvania. I have spent the majority of my adulthood living, studying, working, and raising a family in and around Düsseldorf, Germany, with a three-year stint in the United States between 2007 and 2010. I financed my studies in International Business at Elizabethtown College (Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania) and Anglistics/Linguistics at Universität Duisburg-Essen by hustling and teaching English as a Foreign Language. I was on staff at Berlitz Germany for around eight years before going on family leave to raise my daughter when she was born in 2006.
Since then, I have focussed on growing my translation business and gathered thirteen years of translation experience across a broad range of fields, primarily for the technical and commercial sectors. My curious and inquisitive nature has made me an ideal partner for a wide array of businesses since I am keen to learn anything I can about each new field. Let’s put it this way: I now know an awful lot about financial reporting, socket outlets, kitchen sinks, bank regulations, aviation stairways, among many, many other topics.
Teaching was my first love, and I always return to it, be it training businesspeople the cultural aspects of working with Americans while honing their language skills, or drinking tea and chatting with customers while also gently improving their small talk. My many years of experience allow me to customize my lessons to reflect the specific needs of my customers. I have a rather unique passion for teaching grammar, and always look forward to digging in and explaining grammatical intricacies. At the same time, I aim to keep my training light and humorous, and the best compliment I can get is that you are learning without even realizing it.
Outside of work, my interests include keeping up on American news and politics, which helps to ensure that my command of English remains up-to-date, even while my German reaches near-native levels. I also enjoy reading, baking, and game nights with my family. I am passionate about photography, travel, and learning new languages, ensuring that I never forget how students can feel when they open up to improving their English with me.