If you are an interpreter, you must know the true meaning of words. This is a rule that needs to be taught in interpreting courses.   When we learn about terms related to a particular subject we tend to read…

The ‘equ…’ what?   Yes, the word is not a buzzword like being ‘mindful’ or doing ‘meditation’ but equanimity should be a word every interpreter should look into.   What is equanimity all about?   Equanimous (adjective) means calm and…

If you are an interpreter, you must know the true meaning of emotions. Everyone has expectations and ideas (grand or otherwise) of themselves – this leads them to feel and act in certain ways.   Notice I did not say…

Intellectual boundaries  Knowledge is power and having too much of it might interfere and/or impact our interpreting. Our knowledge and principles can cause trife if we disagree with those we interpret for. Inspecting our intellectual boundaries will prove useful to stay…

The interpreter and Boundaries, Boundaries, Boundaries – Part 2   In our quest for healthy boundaries, I would like to explore expectation boundaries in more detail. As I said before the choices we make may be cultural, religious or simple…

While we all seem to understand fairly well the concept of privacy and personal space it seems yet again that personal choices where boundaries are concerned may be impacting on interpreters at such a deep level that I would like…

Being impartial is a professional choice (not a rule), and as my colleague Phil Muriel repeats and insists, “what matters is not what we are doing, but how we are perceived”. Those watching us do not know what we are saying, which…

As an interpreter trainer, my aim is to raise standards and for interpreters to do some introspection into the motives behind actions that can compromise their reputation. After all, if our work ethic was beyond reproach the Ministry of Justice…