“One moment, the interpreter needs a repetition,” I said in English, followed by “Excuse me, could you repeat that for the interpreter?” in rapid-fire Spanish. It was about fifteen minutes into the interpretation, and the fourth time I had interrupted. I was feeling a bit...
The NAJIT Board of Directors wants to express our deepest appreciation to Giovanna (Gio) Lester for her years of service to the NAJIT Blog, which was re-branded as the NAJIT Observer under her leadership. Her tireless efforts have been a tremendous benefit and resource to...
Imagine this scenario. You’re having an argument (I know, I know, none of us ever argue, but just…humor me for a moment). For the sake of the story, we’ll say it’s an argument with a spouse. As tensions and voices rise, you can feel a...
This piece was first published in 2018. Not too long ago, I found myself at an arbitration in which one of the parties, John Doe, was attending by WhatsApp from across the globe. That was a first for me. I have already used Google Hangouts, Skype,...
7:30am I wake up with a quick, optimistic check to my inbox. No email. Oh well, I sigh. I wasn’t really expecting the results to come in that early. I roll over in bed. Thirty seconds go by. I check my email again. “It’s going to...
The Couch is a learning place, not only for its contributors but also for our readers who engage in the ensuing discussions. The pandemic demands that we adapt but not everyone seems to be willing to do so. Can you help our colleague communicate his concerns...
The Couch is a learning place, not only for its contributors but also for our readers who engage in the ensuing discussions. The pandemic has changed the way we practice our craft. How have you adapted? We have had to adapt to many things during this pandemic....
In response to the current crisis, The Couch is being proactive and providing a few resources for support and information during the quarantine. We hope this helps us all stay collected, healthy and supportive of each other. Small business loans from the SBA It is called Economic...
Interpreters face somewhat of a conundrum upon entering the profession. That is, we are expected to have “native-level” discourse and comprehension skills in all of our languages. Advertisements boast “perfect fluency,” and respectable interpreting courses necessarily steer their content away from language acquisition. Yet, of...
We have another Guest Post. This time, our guest is Ryan Bridges a contributing writer and media specialist for the Presentation Training Institute. Ryan regularly produces content for a variety of business and presentation blogs, based around the transitional challenges that come with communication and...