URGENT: been asked to interpret, zero experience

lee roth wrote:

If you believe in yourself and are confident, you can do it !

Good luck !

[Edited at 2012-02-04 03:51 GMT]

Parrot wrote:

You're a volunteer, and it has happened -- to you. You're the person on the spot.

In the spirit of volunteer work, you're there to help. The best way to fuddle it now is to become self-conscious because you're not one of the best that money can buy; but in that sense, the situation is not too far-removed from others that have spontaneously popped up in refugee camps, for instance, where the UNHCR has resorted to the willingness of recent graduates to ease its work and, yes, even certified this kind of field experience. And the worst time for an interpreter to lose confidence is a time of need. Forget yourself and concentrate on the others who need you, shortcomings and all.

And if you don't think you can, back out. That's all I can say. Hope it helps.

neilmac wrote:


You can always try the old public-speaking trick of visualising your audience as all naked, or as giant prawns...

Oksana Zoria wrote:


Good point, Marina!
I wouldn't go, if I wasn't paid, for it would be like going to a living hell for free (Katalin's description was very accurate).
There was a discussion recently of whether the students should be paid for translation jobs, and the general opinion was that they should, although the rate should be different from the professional one. The same should be true for the interpreters.

Christian Str wrote:


3. chuchotage= whispering So if there's only one fellow who doesn't know the main language then all you have do do is to whisper what will be discussed at the table and of course translate for the other what that fellow may have to say.

I'm not an interpreter, although I've done this kind of job 2 or 3 times for 2-3 days as I can remember and at the beginning I was also nervous until I familiarized with the people, subject and environment.

So...go go go!!!

Hope I could be of help!

Best regards,
Christian
GERMAN-ROMANIAN TRANSLATOR

Arnando Koswara wrote:



Hi..

You said that they know you're still inexperience in interpreting so it means that what you will do is not very important (no offence) otherwise they won't let you do it. I think what you are offered here is a good opportunity for your profile so my answer is take it. but it all depends on you.. if you think you can do it, why don't you? don't let fear beat you. You never know how it is if you don't try..
what if.. let's say you don't take it.. and then next week you get another similar project like that. I bet you won't take it either. but it could be different if you've already felt the ride.
In my Experience, don't worry to much about the results that haven't come yet... just enjoy the process. so, I'll say again... if you feel you can do it, well by all means, take it and learn from it

peninsular wrote:

Hi!

The fact that you have approached people for guidance shows that you are inclined to do the assignment. You have the desire but you are hesitant. Go ahead and take the job. You have to start somewhere.

Prepare well. Compile a glossary of terms that you expect will be figuring in the conversation. The people who have asked you will gladly help.

Remember, people who are conversing at the gathering with each other are not completely dependent on the interpreter. They know the subject and will extract what they want to know. If you go wrong, they will know that the flow of conversation has been broken and will correct you.

It will be a good experience.

Wish you all the best!

Yeshwant

Musa Issa wrote:

I can sense some confidence at underneath all that apprehension. I think you should go. Here's what you need to do :

1. Prepare a glossary of terms that will be used. Ask the organizer to give you some material that will be used at the meeting, however informal.

2. Consider getting a more experienced colleague to come with so that you two can help each other out during the interpretation process from time to time. He could do 2 hours, and you could do an hour, and that way, you break up the task into small manageable tasks.

3. Sometimes in life, you must dive into those murky waters head-first. Do not be intimidated by that inner voice that tells you you cannot do it. I believe that you can do this and you will surprise youself at how good you are at this.

4. A few days before the event, you might want to start interpreting everything you come into contact with - the news on television, people's conversations etc - so that you may get your brain used to the task that is coming.

I believe in you. Do it and do not look back. I am speaking from experience as a novice - I once had to do this. I did not think I could, but I eventually went above and beyond my expectations.

You will do great! All the best.

Alma Ramirez wrote:

Don’t do it! Interpreters have a huge responsibility and there is some liability involved too. If you do not know what to do, you better refrain from doing it.

You mentioned the opportunity to meet people from the association. You will have the opportunity, but if you do not do what it is expected, you will be remembered as the “bad interpreter”, and they will not think that it was because you were a student or because it was your first job as an interpreter.

Even if you are a student, I suggest you being professional and make good decisions on what you are able to do.

You also mentioned that you only have a week to prepare. One week is plenty of time for them to get a professional interpreter, how can they be desperate if there is still a lot of time to get the right person for the job?

Katza wrote:

Hi again,


It sounds like you're already leaning towards going at this point, so here's a few practical tips, on top of everything else that was suggested (all very good tips):

1. Bring a bottle of water with you, because speaking for hours can get your throat very dry. And the reverse of that, go to the bathroom right before the start of the meeting.
2. Try to stay calm and collected, or at least project that image.
3. Be confident in your ability to do the task at hand, keep telling yourself that you can do it and that it's not such a big deal. It helps.
4. Keep eye contact with people, as much as you can and smile - that helps project confidence and it helps you feel more relaxed.
5. If you see someone frowning or shaking their head at what you say, don't panic and don't focus your attention on that person. I had someone like that in a test I was taking, she had a very serious face, never smiled once and was always shaking her head - it was very distracting for a while, because it gave me the impression that everything I was saying was utter rubbish, until I decided to completely ignore her and then everything went much better. Came to find out later on that this is what she did when she was concentrating, go figure
6. Just in case, bring a notepad and a pen - maybe the person who doesn't speak the language will want to say something and you can't do whispering for 14 people.
7. Talk to the contact person beforehand to find out what to do in case you need a break.
8. What works for me when I do interpreting at high-level meetings is repeating the mantra that they're just regular people and they make mistakes like the rest of us. When you have a vivid imagination, imagining them naked proves to be too much of a distraction) The important thing is to find out what works for you.
9. If you do make a mistake and you realize it, smile, apologize and make the correction right then and there. It's a little embarrassing, granted, but it avoids potential larger embarrassments if the thing snowballs.
10. Don't try to interpret everything. You might not be able to, particularly if there are several people speaking at the same time. Instead, focus your attention on one or two (the most vocal) and interpret what they're saying.
11. Don't panic if you don't know a word. Don't forget you're interpreting ideas, not words, so even if you skip a few words, the important thing is to render the idea and most of the time you can get the idea even if you don't know a particular word.

That's all I can think of for the moment. Oh, and the answer to your last question, if you would still have to interpret during coffee breaks is yes. It's not patronizing - that's what you're there for, to make sure that the one person who doesn't speak the language does not feel excluded. It's a tricky balance sometimes, because on the one hand you're supposed to be his shadow, but on the other you don't want to intrude too much on his personal space. One solution is to ask him what he wants, another is to tell him that you'll be by the coffee table if he needs you.



Good luck, try to have fun, and do come back and tell us how it went
Katza