A Journey of War, Love and Entrepreneurship with Ana and Jordi Vidales

What happens when love and resilience intersect in the midst of chaos? Ana and Jordi Vidales found themselves in the heart of civil war in El Salvador, their lives forever changed yet intertwined by fate. As high school sweethearts torn apart by conflict, their journey eventually led them to Chicago, where they rekindled their connection and built both a family and a business. Their story is one of overcoming adversity and finding strength in each other, a testament to the enduring power of hope and community.

Ana and Jordi's foray into the world of language services began serendipitously but quickly evolved into a shared mission for language justice. They took their diverse experiences from El Salvador and the United States and transformed them into a thriving interpretation and translation business. With Ana's cautious planning and Jordi's adventurous spirit, they navigated the complexities of freelancing and established JAV Language Solutions. Their commitment to inclusivity and community engagement shines through their work, making a tangible impact in the communities they serve.

In this conversation, Ana and Jordi also shed light on the delicate balance of being both business partners and life partners. They open up about the strategies that keep their professional lives distinct from their personal ones, ensuring both flourish. From addressing everyday challenges to celebrating successes, their journey emphasizes the importance of clear communication and mutual respect.

Join us as we explore the Vidales' inspiring narrative, one that champions the cause of language justice and offers invaluable insights into building a successful partnership grounded in love and purpose.

Connect with Ana & Jordi:
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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome back to another episode of Brand the
Interpreter podcast.
Happy end of November.
Every time, I pause for what Ifeel is a brief moment.
An entire month has passed byand now here we are, at the
brink of the end of the year.
If you're new to this podcast,welcome.
I hope you enjoy it and becomea returning listener.

(00:27):
If you're one of my faithfullisteners, welcome back.
And hey, if you celebratedThanksgiving, I hope you had a
beautiful time surrounded byfriends and family Folks.
I have some news to share withyou.
Get closer, as I'm about toshare an insider secret.
Next year, in 2025, I'll belaunching a brand new show
titled Echoes of an Interpreter.

(00:49):
Unlike my current show, thisnew series will bring real
stories of interpreters to lifethrough compelling narratives
enhanced by voice actors andimmersive audio production.
As I prepare to launch Echoesof an Interpreter, I'm reaching
out to you, my incrediblelisteners.
Do you have a story from yourinterpreting journey that has

(01:10):
stayed with you, a moment thatperhaps challenged you, moved
you or even changed how you seethe world?
This new show is about bringingthose stories to life, your
stories.
So, if you're ready to sharethose stories to life, your
stories, so if you're ready toshare?
Visit the link in the episodenotes.
All right, and now on with theshow.
Today we bring you anextraordinary story of

(01:32):
resilience, love and purpose.
Meet Ana and Jordi Vidales, acouple whose journey begins as
high school sweethearts inwar-torn El Salvador, separated
by the Salvadoran Civil War.
Their paths crossed again inChicago, where they turned their
shared experiences into athriving partnership, both in

(01:53):
life and business.
From navigating thehigh-pressure world of
interpretation to promotinglanguage justice in their
community, anna and Jordi'sstory is one of strength in
their community.
Ana and Jordi's story is one ofstrength, collaboration and
passion.
Get ready to be inspired bytheir heartfelt tale of
overcoming the odds andamplifying voices that deserve

(02:13):
to be heard.
Let's dive into a journey ofwar, love and entrepreneurship
with Ana and Jordi Vidales onlyon the podcast that shares your
stories about our profession.
Let's get started.
Ana and Jordi, welcome to theshow.
Thank you so much for beinghere today.

Speaker 2 (02:34):
Thank you, Amadeus.
We're so excited to be here.
Thank you.

Speaker 1 (02:37):
Absolutely Well.
Usually the conversation isbetween myself and one other
individual.
Every so often I do get theopportunity, such as today, to
speak with more than oneindividual, so in this case, I'm
going to ask if you would be sokind as to just introduce
yourselves, and then we're goingto get started with the
conversation.

Speaker 2 (02:59):
Yes, well, I'm Ana Ana Rueda de Vidales.
This is my better half, jordiVidales.
We've been together for a longtime.
We're high school sweethearts.
We met in school an Englishclass, by the way.
He was a year older than me,but because we both were fluid

(03:19):
in English, they kind of putlike the different levels and
that's when we started, you know, developing a friendship.
And a friendship became intohim being my best friend and a
year later we were dating.
Where are you guys from?

Speaker 3 (03:34):
We have been stuck together.

Speaker 2 (03:36):
Yeah, we're from El Salvador, san Salvador.

Speaker 1 (03:41):
Oh wonderful, okay, yeah, eventually, and we'll get
to that Eventually.
There's a whole story actuallyinvolved, so why don't we just
get into that story first,before we talk about the
eventually?
But what?
How did you end up actuallyhere getting together?

Speaker 2 (03:59):
When we just started dating, there was kind of like a
funny story.
Well, there was kind of like afunny story.
Well, there was a attack, likea final attack in the civil war,
that the guerrillas came intothe city and definitely we had
to spend shortly that day.
The day that that attackstarted, he went and visited his
brother for three months.
He was going to spend summervacation with him and, uh, I had

(04:23):
to stay in san salvador and itwas really scary.
I mean, we were like one week wewere in a, in a walk-in closet.
There wasn't, no, we couldn'teven wander through the house
because we were afraid maybe a,you know a last bullet would hit
us.
So, um, I just my grandparents,decided to bring me to san sal,

(04:43):
to san Francisco, you know, toget me out of that danger.
And when I get to San Francisco, they tell me so you know what,
because you weren't coming thisyear, we were thinking of
visiting your aunt, so do youwant to come with us to Chicago?
So we ended up meeting eachother in Chicago and I don't
know if you already want to jumpin a little, yeah definitely
Meeting each other in Chicago,and I don't know if Jordi wants

(05:04):
to jump in a little.

Speaker 3 (05:05):
Yeah, definitely.
When I arrived that same day toChicago, it was surprising how
many Salvadorians were at thegate, even though I took two
planes to be able to arrive.
I had a connection in Miami andthen what happened was that
people knew about the finaloffensive, called Ofensiva Final

(05:26):
to San Salvador.
Then what happened is that alot of families that didn't
speak English were trying tocommunicate with the passengers
that were coming from thatconnection that came from Miami,
thinking that they were peoplethat were from San Salvador,
trying to know what was going on, because the news were really

(05:48):
scattered.
That was my first time where Iconfronted people, really fellow
citizens, that were making aliving through here in Chicago.
They were trying to know whatwas going on.
They were speaking Spanish to alot of Americans that didn't

(06:11):
understand them and they weresaying what are they asking us?
What are they asking us?
Some of them were crying and mybrother came with two fellow
neighbors with him, and theywere telling us hey, they're
trying to talk to you.
They were talking in the line,in the line getting out of the
airport, and then we didn'tunderstand what they were asking

(06:33):
us okay at all, and so it waskind of impactful to go through
that.
We didn't understand at all, Ididn't realize what will be a
last offensive, and then Istayed with my brother.
All of a sudden I received acall from Ana and telling me
that she was coming to visit.
It was quite a surprise.

(06:55):
It was a big surprise for me.

Speaker 1 (06:57):
Did you know by then that what was happening?
I imagine so, but did you knowwhat was happening back home and
that Ana was there andeverything that was going on?

Speaker 3 (07:08):
When we were driving back from the airport it was a
long drive to the suburbs inChicago the two neighbors were
hearing the radio and the newswere coming on the radio.
My brother and I were speakingso all of a sudden the neighbors
caught our attention.
Hey, there's something going onin el salvador, because it was
a.
It was a big thing.

(07:29):
It was a big thing.
They were trying to take overthe control of the capital.
The guerrillas, uh, the right,the right way, the right wing
was trying to defend the capital.
So in that moment, uh, we noticehow you can get disconnected
from me here, even here in theradio, when you're speaking in
your own language.
You know, and it was.
It was impactful to us rightaway.

(07:51):
We called our parents and weknew that was that was going on.
That vacation turned into forme at least five months staying
in Chicago, and my dad thoughtabout leaving me there in
Chicago.
And my dad thought aboutleaving me there, but my mom
said, no, I want him back and Iwant my sister as well.

(08:12):
She was sent to Guatemala aswell, but we went back.
We knew what was going on andthen she came and we spent time
going to all the museums and allthat.

Speaker 2 (08:27):
It was fun.
Yeah, it was fun.
And you have to remember, maria, that it was 89, 1989, no
internet, no Facebook, noTwitter, nothing.
So it was all phone, it was allnews.
So, yeah, it was.
It was scary.
It was scary at first for me.
That stayed um.
It was really, at the end, niceto be able to meet up.

Speaker 1 (08:48):
It was right, yeah after such turmoil I mean in the
experience, because itpre-recording anna, you were
mentioning that, um, you were,you and your family were all at
a wedding yes, we were.

Speaker 2 (09:01):
Yeah, we were at a wedding and we were all dancing
and then suddenly I just seethis lady run in and stop the
band and she just tells us theCapitol's under attack.
And then we all ran to thewindows and the balcony and we
could hear it.
It was really terrible.
So we were really close by tothe venue.
We were able to walk back home,back home, but a lot of people

(09:25):
had to stay the night therebecause there were roadblocks.
They couldn't reach theirhouses.
Their kids were alone home.
Yeah, funny story is my grandpa.
I mean, he got drunk bysmelling liquor.
He was old and he was annoyedbecause he was mad and he was a
military, he was a colonel, andhe was like why did they stop
this party here?
It's boring?
And he would grab my hand andsay let's go back to the party.
And I'm like, grandpa, we'reunder attack.

(09:47):
And then he comes out and hebrings his rifle and he says,
annie, I can't see well, butyou're going to help me, I'm
going to go kill these people.
And then we're going to go backto the party and my mom is like
no.
So yeah, he's like, oh, my God,how boring.
And then he fell asleep, but itwas yeah, it was scary.
It was like one week of us alltogether in one, walking closet.

(10:10):
Then we were able to go toGuatemala and then from
Guatemala is that I traveled toSan Francisco and yes, I did.
I remember I stayed about fourmonths also and I also decided
to come back.
My father and my grandparentswere trying to tell me to stay
also, but I think we both wantedto come back.
I mean, we had just starteddating.
We wanted to continue suingeach other, so we went back to

(10:33):
El Salvador.

Speaker 1 (10:38):
So you guys did go from Chicago back to El Salvador
, but then you did come back tothe States eventually.

Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yes, we did, but we did many years later because we
got married, we had two kids, sowe traveled to el salvador, we
tried, we moved to united states2012.
Yeah, so not that long ago.
So we traveled with my twooldest uh children, uh, my
chihuahua even the chihuahuamade it, even the chihuah made

(11:04):
it, yeah, and when we were herewe came here in August and in
February I found I was expectinga gift.
Yeah, the worst surprise ever.
I just didn't understand why atthis moment, because we thought
wait, I mean, our kids areolder, they were 10 and 15.
So we don't have to deal withdaycare.
I was even thinking of goingback to my legal career.

(11:27):
I enrolled in a paralegalcourse because that was my idea.
But then when I got pregnant,I'm like, oh, I have to rethink
things.

Speaker 1 (11:38):
Oh, and what was the decision then?

Speaker 2 (11:41):
Well, jordi started working as a bail bondage.
So I mean, it's a a goodbusiness, it's lucrative.
And he told me you know what ifyou want to go back to?
But then they started giving mesome translations.
I had another friend thatstarted interpreting.
So we decided that the firsttwo years I was going to stay in
study, I was going to get myinterpreting, and then, um, I

(12:03):
was going to start working whenmy I was going to get my
interpreting, and then I wasgoing to start working when my
daughter was two.
Yeah, so Jordi worked for thosetwo years while I studied and
prepared, and I started workingexactly two years after.
And I mean being a bail bondagent, you can imagine that the
people you see is not the best,it's not like the best
environment.

(12:23):
So he started thinking aboutchanging.
And that's when he told me andI said well then, what do you
want to do?
And he says, you know, I likewhat you do and I'm like, really
there's such a broad world outthere.
Do you want to do what I'mdoing?
Because at the beginning I justcouldn't imagine ourselves
working together.

Speaker 1 (12:42):
Yeah, Okay, so let me ask.
So, so let me go back a littlebit to you were introduced to
the world of interpreting by afriend that was also
interpreting, and you, in inyour, in your day-to-day job,
were being asked to translatesome documents, potentially, or
how did you?

(13:03):
How did you even start to dosome work in it?

Speaker 2 (13:06):
No, actually I have a cousin who's a lawyer and she
started giving me sometranslation documents and that's
when I decided I enrolled inUCSD.
So I did the two-year coursewhile I was at home taking care
of my baby and then, after Ifinished, is when I started
looking.
I think a little bit before Ifinished I started looking.

(13:28):
I got a call from a hospitalthat they needed a contract
interpreter and that's how Ikind of started getting more
into interpreting than intotranslation.
And then you know, you makeother people, you get called by
agencies and you start gettingwork and I had an overflow and I
was always rejecting jobs andhe noticed that.
He says why don't I just starttaking your overflow?

Speaker 3 (13:52):
I was doing graveyards, but even my
graveyards.
I started in graveyards as abail agent.
I passed the insurancecommissioner test for at once
the first time that I took it,something that it's rare.
There was a lot of pressure.
She was pregnant.

(14:12):
So we were in a jiffy.

Speaker 1 (14:15):
So we just got here.

Speaker 3 (14:16):
So for me, interpretation happened in El
Salvador.
We just got here.
So for me interpretationhappened in El Salvador.
Definitely I kept my English.
And then the last two years Iworked in the industry that is
there in El Salvador Now it hasovergrown that is, the call

(14:38):
centers, and I used to managethe interpreter lines, the
landline, the interpreter lines.
So I was handling that.
You know, when differentcompanies would have the request
of having an interpreter, Iwould be the interpreter but I
wouldn't be able to write downwhat is being said, so it was
easier to say to Spanish what itwas being, what it was being

(15:02):
written.
So that was my first encounteron that, when I came here to the
United States and passed mytest.
So 60 to 70% of the clientswere Hispanics because I was in
graveyard.
So people that definitely theydon't obey the laws as a regular

(15:23):
American because they don'tknow about them or they come
from countries thatunfortunately they don't obey,
and then they find themselves ina DUI domestic violence, things
that over there are prohibitedas well but are more common and
then they have to workForeigners that as well have

(15:45):
been brought here by high-techcompanies.
So it was a good experience aswell.
I was translating the contracts,because that's what I did
Analyze, evaluate, give a loan,pass a loan.
But it was to evaluate the risk.
But I had to translate thedocuments to the co-signers.
Some of them were familymembers that were fluent in

(16:07):
English, had a good job, goodcredit, and then I was
translating to them okay, thisis what it says in English.
So it was an on-sitetranslation of all the documents
.
When I had an overflow, Iwanted to get out of that
because it was really, reallyhard.
You know, the weekends I wouldbe working and then then for me
it was kind of fun when I wouldcome and before I fall asleep in

(16:30):
the morning she was telling mewhat, what had been her day
before.
So I was kind of interested onthat.
I knew that it was going to bestart.
It was going to be a slow startbuilding of of, you know, the
flow of the jobs that you canget.
So but hey, we wanted to changethat.
We wanted to change that lifethat we had, you know.

Speaker 1 (16:52):
That's great.
Yeah, I like the way that itjust Anna gets into it and then
is bringing back the stories ofwhat she's doing, and Jordi's
already thinking aboutpotentially, if something else
you know could come into thepicture and is intrigued by the
stories that you're sharing onnow and then, and then the

(17:15):
decision is made at some pointwe're joining forces.
Was that?
Was there something that youwere picturing in terms of how
you would work together?
Or tell me a little bit moreabout that.
How did you decide?
Yeah, we're just going to doright now, jordi, you just take
my overflow.
Or what was the initial thoughtbehind that, if there was any,

(17:39):
because sometimes I think wemight make decisions and we just
go with the flow, or sometimesthere's some intention there.
Were you thinking let's growtogether, as you know a company
of two, or what were youthinking?

Speaker 2 (17:52):
Well, at the beginning it was just, you know,
working with agencies workingtogether, doing our overflow.
Jordi is like a pusher hepushes, he takes more risk.
I'm a little bit more cautious.
I'm like, oh, are you sure youwant to do this?
And like we had a retreat wherewe met one client, referred us

(18:16):
to the other, and then, you know, word of mouth.
We just started getting a lotof clients and sometimes they
would ask us do you have yourequipment?
And we haven't invested in that.
And he was like we have toinvest in that.
I'm like, are you sure?
It's a lot of money.
But at the end we did it and weare so happy we did because
that was one of the things thatallowed us to grow more, because
you know, it's just morecomfortable.

(18:37):
You know we come with theequipment, it's easier for the
client, it's just like one stop,we do everything.
And you know he's always beenpushing let's do this, let's do
that.
Or, for example, we have tocreate an LLC and little by
little, at the beginning wewould say that it was maybe 40%
direct clients, 60% agencies,but now I think we're almost to

(19:00):
a 95% with direct clients and wejust barely work with one or
two agencies that we still havekind of like a relationship in
sometimes, and of course there'salso city councils and courts,
but mostly we do have a lot ofclients that are nonprofits and
school districts.

(19:21):
So I don't know.
We just little by littlestarted growing, pushing each
other, planning.
I really both of us agree thatif we wouldn't be together, I
don't think we would have grownas much as we've grown, because
we kind of like respect he hasparts that he's really good at.
I have other things that I'mgood at.
We would have grown as much aswe've grown because we kind of
like respect he has becauseparts that he's really good at,
I have other things that I'mgood at and we try to make

(19:43):
decisions together well, thebiggest doubt was from my mom.

Speaker 3 (19:47):
Oh, yeah anna.
are you sure you want to workwith him?
You're gonna end up divorced,sweetie, you should think
thoroughly about she didn't tellthat to me, she told that to
her.
Are you sure you're gonna be?
Because my mom was concernedthat, okay, I have a strong
character, definitely a reallystrong character.

(20:08):
I'm a risk taker, I'm ago-getter.
If that's the, that's the,that's the industry that I was,
and in Salvador I was in salesand I was a sales manager.
So before going into the callcenters for a very long time.
So when you sell I see this asyou're selling yourself as a

(20:29):
good interpreter Definitely youhave to prove that you're a good
product for what you're beingasked to.
So I see it that way.
Thank God that we don'tadvertise ourselves.
Definitely we show that to theclients and we're so thankful of
that that they give us theopportunity.
But definitely, to be someonethat has to go to a place, I

(20:52):
don't mind driving an hour, anhour and a half to get to a
place, as long as what I can doit is for the benefit of the
community and definitely it ismutual, a mutual agreement of
both.
Both parties benefit.
Definitely.
I like to try, I like to drive,so I'm the one that I see.
If the go-getter go to to SanFrancisco, go to King City

(21:16):
that's our long distance or goto even Santa Rosa it's an hour
and a half, two hours drive aslong as we are able to provide a
service to our clients if theyneed us there.
Sometimes it's online, sodefinitely we work as a team.
She doesn't want to drive, Iwill go, even though it was her

(21:37):
assignment, I will do the, the,the assignment and the
advantages.
Yeah, that's one of the greatand I think that that is exactly
what makes a couple grow notnecessarily a husband and wife,
couple, interpreters, but maybea partner in business.
That we don't see it.
We have recommended that to alot of people.
Work as a, as a couple, partnersometimes, but you have to

(22:02):
dispose yourself of all those.
Oh no, I don't want to do this.
I don't want to do that.
You have to see yourself as acouple, that you're going to do
it for the benefit of the otherend and comes back.
You know that can work alsoalso for partners and
interpretation, and I think thatthat is a great way to grow in
any business, in sales, ithappens.

(22:24):
It happens that if you're able,someone has some advantages.
I'm not explaining.
I wasn't a shoemakingmanufacturer.
I was really detailed intomanufacturing shoes so I could
sell the products.
I was really detailed intomanufacturing shoes so I could
sell the products.
Other sales agents were moreknowledgeable of timing, cost

(22:44):
effective and everything.
So we would come together to aplace, and that is how I see it
now.
We come together and we bringour learn, expertise.
She's really accurate, I'mreally fast, and we're
Salvadorians.
We tend Salvadorians tend tospeak too much and too quick.

Speaker 2 (23:05):
Yeah, no, and we cover more ground Because the
thing is that if we have bothour time, sometimes we realize
that his meeting is ending atthis time, but mine starts at
this time.
So sometimes we kind of like hejumps in, finishes mine, I
start his, so we're able tocover more ground.
You know, provide more serviceto our clients and you know it

(23:27):
just makes it easier, becausesometimes you do get like these
last minute calls and I said,okay, let me see if I can fix it
.
I see my schedule.
I say would you take this stepfor me so I can do this one.
And then we organize ourschedule to be able to fit as
much as we can and we alsosubcontract.
We have a I mean we have a lotof interpreters that work with

(23:48):
us and if we see that we cancover this, if we subcontract
here, we arrange our schedule tobe able to provide as much
service as we can to our clients.

Speaker 1 (23:55):
It's a difficult decision to have, I imagine to
have the consistency of onepartner's income and diving into
something such as freelancingwith agencies, let's say, to
suddenly go to removing thatcertainty component and jumping

(24:19):
in, like Jordi says, intosomething that you don't really
know.
There is no certainty at thatpoint.
What was your intention, jordi,to say?
I know you come from thatbackground and that mentality,
but what were you thinking first?
This is what I'm going to do toensure that, you know, we don't
find ourselves in a situationwhere, oh no, I left the day job

(24:41):
right for this and now look atus.
What were you thinking?
In that sense, because I say it, thinking of, potentially,
maybe, other couples that mightbe thinking the same but might
be dealing with that.
You know that uncertaintycomponent.
What would you suggest there?
What were you thinking?

Speaker 3 (24:57):
Well, in my case, I came in.
What I would suggest it is thatI came from a background of
sales, so you have a base salarythat I became a manager and
then I had a big salary, butstill I had to look for the
benefit of the whole company.
Then when I came here, it waslike, okay, you're going to have
your base and you're going tohave your commission.
So I have been exposed to that.

(25:20):
Definitely, it is reallycomfortable when you get to a
point that you're there, you gotthere base, commission, and
then you're making a salarypractically and you're quite
sure, but you're quite tired ofthe life that you have.
You're working for others, butyou're quite tired of the life
that you have.
You're working for others.
Still in life, I believe thatyou work for others and yourself

(25:42):
, even though you have your ownbusiness.
Once you have your own business, it's more, you become a slave
of your trade.
Definitely, it is somethingthat you have to first of all
understand that, uh, that onceyou become your owner who has a
in?
In spanish there's there's asaying who has a tienda que la

(26:04):
tienda, whoever has a store,take care of it.
And that is, that is my motto.
That was my first.
First of all, that I would sayonce you realize that you want
to come into your own business,okay, the stores or any business
has to evolve through regularclients.
Okay, those are the agencies.

(26:25):
And then you start to spreadyour wings, try to get people to
know you, and then you get yourown clientele, your own clients
.
And then, what I do believe,and I still even yesterday I was
having a conversation with oneof the owners of the agencies
and I tell them hey, I treatyour client as it was mine, give

(26:48):
the same 100%, even though it'san agency, because that's your
name and you're going to be thefirst call.
Once you get clients,definitely they're going to say
they're the best.
First of all, think about that.
Think about this is acommitment by both of you.
If you're going to go into thisor the three partnership, it is

(27:12):
going to take time.
Definitely Get as much contextas you can of the agencies At
the beginning.
You're going to start workingfor agencies and it's a great
thing to do because you learn,you commit mistakes.
You don't get there on timebecause you didn't calculate the

(27:33):
distance, or something happenedor the traffic, because you
didn't calculate the distance,or something happened, or the
traffic, or the traffic, or eventhe appointment got extended,
yeah, parking, yeah, that'sanother thing.
Or something failed.
But then you learn, but youlearn with the money of others.
You're not learning with yourown money and you're still

(27:54):
getting paid.
Appreciate that I still, up tothis moment, I take some from
now, and then I still feel that,okay, I haven't got to my, my
quote, because that's how we,anna and me, work we have to get
to a quote monthly.

Speaker 2 (28:12):
We have a healthy competition.
Every week we see a week more.

Speaker 3 (28:17):
Yeah, who?
And then at the end of themonth we we say, okay, we got
there.
And but if I, if I didn't makeit in a week, then I call an
agency and definitely, hey, I'mavailable, and I know that that
agency is going to send me to aplace that I know I'm going to
surpass what I needed.
Definitely that's my sacrifice.

(28:37):
Be willing to do that, becauseto be on your own it's
incredibly.

Speaker 2 (28:45):
It's a satisfaction, but it takes a lot of risk.
I mean it takes a lot of work.

Speaker 3 (28:49):
I meant to say and definitely I can say that maybe
sometimes it's kind offrightening because you don't
have that certainty of an incomeand you know you have your
family, you know you have yourbills to pay and everything.
But once you become free, Icould have never expected on the

(29:10):
end of my life because, I seeit, this is my last job that I'm
going to have being aninterpreter and I'm free.
I don't respond to no one buther and she's the owner of what
I do.

Speaker 2 (29:26):
But still, we have an inside joke.
He says I'm the boss and I sayI'm your boss when it's
convenient to you.

Speaker 3 (29:33):
When it's not, I'm your secretary, or you know, or
accountant or your accountant,yeah, yeah, but definitely I see
it that way.
All our life we worked withsomebody you know and you have
that frighten of getting fireand the fear of not making it.
With this report, now we onlyhave to worry of of study more,

(29:53):
expand your wings, have morevocabulary, be more precise.
She recently was fearful of ourinvestment in new equipment,
but we got the advice inBerkeley through a conference
that was given for a week of AIand we did that.
And what were we told?
What we were told hey,distinguish yourselves.

(30:17):
You're already the best, so tryto be the best, improving your
sound.
You know the guy told us.
You know what you need toimprove and definitely still at
this age, you don't want toinvest in new equipment.
You don't want to be expendingthat, but we just saw the
benefits of doing that.

(30:37):
There are things that you willhave to do.
Either you want it or not.
Yeah, you will have to uh,acquire new equipment.
Uh, leave a client because yousee, hey, this is not being
beneficial to me.
The management have changed.

(30:58):
They don't have the same valuesthat I have.
They just fill in the box.
They're not here for languagejustice and luckily we can say
that we are with the clients,that we are because they know
how important it is to havelanguage justice, how important
it is to have language justice.

Speaker 1 (31:18):
That's actually an excellent segue into the next
topic.
I like what you just said,jordi, about working with
companies or individuals thatalign with your own values.
I think that is absolutelyfundamental as you begin to, as
you say, grow and expand, beingable to sort of make the

(31:41):
decision of no longer workingwith individuals that don't
align with your own values,that's important.
I feel it's definitely one ofthose very foundational, I feel,
almost elements of any companyis number one, knowing what
those values are and a lot ofthose values have to do with

(32:02):
your own personal values thatcarry over to the business
values and then making thealignment with the people that
you will be collaborating withor working with.
I'd heard Ana say earlier thata lot of your niche areas or
companies that you work with areactually nonprofit
organizations.

(32:22):
Talk to us a little bit aboutyour experiences, first and
foremost, with nonprofits, andthen bring us into the topic of
language justice in thatspecific area, sure.

Speaker 2 (32:36):
Well, it is just so inspiring to work with them.
They're working so hard tobetter the community.
They do so much.
They work so hard because thecommunity needs these leaders,
needs people to help them getahead.
So it's really important for uswhen they have their plans or
their actions.
I feel like it's ourresponsibility.
They work hard on doing theirjob.

(32:57):
It's our job to be able to haveeverybody on the same page, so
we're really passionate aboutthat.
We're really passionate aboutmaking sure that everybody is
really understanding what'sgoing on, because that's the
only way to move things forward.

Speaker 1 (33:09):
You know.

Speaker 2 (33:10):
So like, for example, there's going to be a training,
have the materials translatedahead of time, having, like, for
example, the opportunity toreally being able to uh, you
know, speak in both languages,like they can express themselves
in the language that they feelmore comfortable.
Uh, recently, with theinvestment we did, we we are

(33:32):
able to.
For example, we have two bases.
One base goes to all theenglish speakers, the other goes
to the spanish speakers.
That way they don't have to beputting, and it's kind of the
Spanish speakers, that way theydon't have to be putting in.
It's kind of like a Zoom inperson, so they don't have to
put up and down their microphone, their headphones, I'm sorry so
they can just listen andwhenever they want to talk,
we're the ones that areswitching, they're not.
So that's really something thatit makes it like more seamless.

(34:01):
We're going back and forth allthe time, you know.
So they know that everybody'sgoing to be able to speak, and
in real time.
So anybody that's monolingualhas a headset.
So we're just going back andforth.
We don't do consecutive, we dosimultaneously and everybody can
express themselves however theywant.
And it's really important, it'sreally important that that that
communication really flows,like, for example, I think a lot

(34:22):
of awareness came up with COVID, because I think that before
people would like if they don'tunderstand, well, it's fine, I
mean, but with COVID if theydon't understand, we don't
flatten the curve.
So I think it's kind of likethe same thing, like if they're
realizing that if interpretationis not provided and there's not

(34:43):
really language justice, thingsare not going to move forward.

Speaker 1 (34:45):
Give us an example of what that looks like, Ana,
Sorry, what is language justice?
I think I heard you say rightnow which it's such an amazing
example of just that feelinginclusive.
Right, that you're in aninclusive space when everyone is
wearing headsets monolinguals,you know, or non-English

(35:07):
speaking alike everyone'swearing headsets.
That's you're feeling likeeveryone's the same.
I'm like everyone, as opposedto, maybe, someone not wanting
to put on their headsets becausethey have the fear of what it
might look like or it's singlingthem out, maybe if they're the
only person there with headsets.
And in this case, you know,it's a great example of an

(35:28):
inclusive environment whereeveryone, everyone's wearing
headsets.
But what does language justicelook like?

Speaker 2 (35:36):
as an example, Well, there's many places like, for
example.
One thing that I really like incity council is when they
really allow the public to comeand do the public comment and
really express themselves.
They're not cutting their time,because when there's
translation, let's face itinterpretation there's going to
take more time than somebodythat's speaking in English.
So, for example, we have theblessing to work with some city

(35:59):
council that even allow peopleto come and speak in indigenous
languages.
For example, they come, theyspeak in Mixteco, and that is
really impactful because allthese meetings are being
broadcasted to YouTube, so theMixteco community is hearing
what they're saying.
Then they do it in Spanish andthen I interpret it into English

(36:20):
.
And I'm not cutting their time,I'm not cutting their train of
thoughts.
I'm taking notes and I'mletting them talk.
You know, because when you'recutting them, you're kind of
making them lose their train ofthought.
So they're able to expressthemselves freely, regardless of
time, and then I'm able toreally convey.
You know, so that for me it's areally good example of not just
giving them the opportunity tocome and talk to the council

(36:43):
members but really express whatis going on, you know, and when
there's spaces where they reallylike, give the time that they
need because, for example, youknow that the indigenous
community, they take longer toexpress because they don't have
that many words.
You know there's a lot of wordsthat they have to explain
because they don't exist intheir language.

(37:03):
So when they interpret theyhave to have more time to
express themselves.
English and Spanish is going tobe quicker, but Mixteco needs
more time and to be aware ofthat, give them more time.
You know, put them in the same.
You know all of us really haveto understand what is going on
and, for example, in thecommunity meetings, when we're

(37:24):
in action, you know, alloweverybody to speak, everybody to
understand.
Like, for example, we'rescreening the room and if we see
that somebody kind of like islike a face like this, or we go
to them and says is somethingwrong?
Is the headset not working?
Do you want me to change theheadset, or maybe your batteries
are low?
You know, to that detail,because for us it's really

(37:45):
important that everybody that'sthere really understands what's
going on, the example beingthese public hearings or public
events where they're giving time, specific time for public

(38:06):
comment.

Speaker 1 (38:06):
Usually it's three minutes or something around,
right?
Are you saying that there areagencies that not language
agencies but institutions inthis case, let's say, city
council events that allow forthe full three minutes for the
speaker in addition to theinterpretation, and then there's

(38:27):
others that do not.

Speaker 2 (38:29):
Yep, yes, In our region it happens Well there's
different city councils, there'sdifferent board of supervisors,
there's differences, and youcan see when a city council or
government is really really intune with the community and is
really hearing them, and you cansee when they're like not
really allowing them to expressthemselves that they should, and

(38:50):
that's that's across the board,because there's also like
non-profits or organizations orschools or everything that when
we get there we see that likethere's like, for example, they
hire us for an event and it'sthey say, ok, it's going to be
an event, there's going to belike 75 or 100 people, and when
we get there, nobody shows.

(39:10):
And then we ask them did you puton the flyer that there was
going to be interpretation?
And they're like oh no, shouldwe?
And I'm like, of course, I meanso a lot of things that you
think that it would be likelogical no.
Or, for example, they're goingto have a trainee and they're
going to do some exercises, orthey're going to resolve some
questions or surveys and theydon't translate it ahead of time

(39:34):
.
But they're not.
They don't want to give the youknow, the Spanish speakers or
the other language more time towork on it.

Speaker 3 (39:43):
That that's not language access, that's just
checking the boxes that's justsaying we had an interpreter
there I do believe that justicecomes when you include someone
that hasn't been included in thetalk for a very long time or in
those trainings.
If you are gonna, you're gonnado a big conference about how to
eat more healthy definitely whyyou shouldn't include the ones

(40:06):
that are producing uh, thosethose uh products, so you can
eat more healthy?
Definitely they are the onesthat they are one of the
stakeholders on our table.
Definitely they should beinvited and they should be
notified, not only say we'regoing to check the box, we're
going to get the bestinterpreters that we can get,

(40:28):
the ones that we know.
But you have to let them know.
That is justice, that iscommunicating, even go the extra
mile, facilitate transportationfor them, because we know that
they don't have a way.
They don't have a way and wewant to have them, we want to
hear them the struggles thatthey go through producing the
manufacture of everything in ourregion as well.

(40:51):
There are instances that youthink, okay, we are here in a
region that we are lacking aswell in all California housing.
So in one region that we live,definitely they're into it, they
understand it.
But in the big city, hey, whatcan we do about it?

(41:12):
But the big city has more moneyto be able to make affordable
homes.
So what are they thinking about?
They're giving up the spaces,but they're not hearing the
struggle of people.
They're going to say, okay,they're going to be displaced.
Yeah, we have our first client,one that we truly feel a lot of
love for them, especially Anna.

(41:33):
She sees her as their firstchild, and now it's a huge
collective and we have thecomplete collective in our hands
as clients and we value uh thejob, the work that they have
done.
They have empowered and theyhave given uh justice and access

(41:56):
to members of the community tobe able to form co-ops, to
evolve in their own business, sothey can stay in the east side
of the city where they live,even though it's the most
marginalized red linings area ofthe city.
They're able to be there, butthey have formed something that
is beautiful and they have beenable.

(42:20):
They have always been anon-profit, but all the members,
all the neighbors, are theleaders.
As they say, nothing's moved.
The needle doesn't move if weall agree into it.
Okay, not the ones that head ofthis organization, no, the
whole neighborhood.
So that is where you feel thatokay, okay, now they don't need

(42:42):
me that much because now they'reholding their meetings in
spanish, but you feel proud thatthe work that was done you know
it was done a long time ago.
Now they invite me to the mainevents that they have or the
meetings that they have with thecouncil members or the city to
be their interpreter and youfeel proud of what you have

(43:02):
accomplished as a human being,giving them that justice, that
fair play to all.

Speaker 1 (43:10):
As a company working with other companies or working
with other for-profitorganizations, let's say, or
just institutions that arepublic facing, do you provide
that feedback?
When you see that it's verymuch a checkbox being checked
off, Do you provide thatfeedback?

(43:31):
And what has been yourexperience, if that is the case,
with how they receive thatfeedback?

Speaker 2 (43:38):
You know, most of our clients are aligned with us and
they understand and, forexample, there have been
situations where maybe they'reorganizing an event in a way
that interpretation is not goingto work call it weather, call
it placing, call it whatever.
But when we're doing the tryout, we're trying to start the
system.
We see that something is notgoing to work before the meeting

(43:59):
, so we immediately alert ourclient.
And there's been situationswhere we've been brushed off
like, ah, who cares?
But we immediately go to ourclient.
We say, hey, this is not yourvalues, this is not what you
stand for.
You're here and you know thatthe only way that something is
going to work is that everybodyis involved, because they hear
the community voices, they heareverybody and that's the way

(44:22):
it's going to work.
So we have stood up to clients.
We have stood up to people.
We have told them hey, this isnot going to work, something is
missing, we need this, we needthat and we give them the
feedback.
And maybe at the beginning wedid have like a very bad
experience where we feel like weweren't able to do our job.
And that's when I tell you whensomething goes wrong, where,

(44:43):
for example, we're situated oryou know, in a place where maybe
the bad, you know, theequipment is not, we're not
going to be able, it's not goingto be able to reach, because
maybe we're at a wall that isnot allowing the, the sound to
go out.
You already can explain thatbetter than I.
But when that that happens,nobody's going to say, oh, you
know what, they were placedagainst that wall.

(45:04):
Most likely that's why it's not.
No, they're going to sayinterpretation did not work, we
did not hear.
And, as you say, having a badinterpretation is like not
having anything.
So we're not giving languagejustice.
So that's when we really haveto think do I really want to
continue working with somebodythat is going to not really?
You know, just do it to checkthe boxes and nobody's going to

(45:26):
really hear what we're saying.
So, yeah, we do stand up, we dotell them this is not going to
work.
We should do this.
Your values are always thateverybody should understand.
And an interesting thing Iremember sometimes we say we
give voice to people that don'thave voices.
But that's not true.
We don't give voices to peoplethat don't have voices.
We give voices to the peoplethat haven't been heard in the

(45:48):
past.
They've always had a lot to saybut they haven't been heard.
So that's really important forus, that they really hear them.
And the thing is that nothingis going to change if not all of
us give our input and I thinkthat's really something that's
raising that awareness,community input.
If they want something tochange.
Everybody has to be on board,because maybe I have a problem

(46:12):
that you don't know about, butif I don't hear you, we're not
going to fix it.
Everybody has to be on board,and language justice is one of
the first pillars of that.

Speaker 1 (46:22):
Yeah, I like what Jordi said earlier.
Language justice is communityempowerment.
You know it goes hand in hand.
You provide language justicethe correct way, right?
Like you said, it's not justabout providing an interpreter,
hopefully a trained interpreterat that, but it's not even just

(46:42):
that.
There's so many other elementsthat come into play which result
in, just like any PR companythat focuses on the audience who
are they serving?
What is the audience?
How do they?
How do they bring in everyone?
Bring in everyone, you know thepotential clients.
If they find that, oh, it's aHispanic market, let's start,

(47:08):
you know, creating PR thatfocuses on the Hispanic market
and then revenue starts toincrease.
It's the same way when we'retalking about bringing in
individuals that are part of ourcommunities.
How do we involve them all?
And being able to provideappropriate services, which
entails more than securingsomebody to interpret or someone
to translate documents.

(47:29):
I think that it goes withexactly what Georgie said being
able to empower the individuals.
And I love what you said, ana,about it's not that they don't
have voices, you know.
They just haven't been heardbefore.
You're providing the abilityfor them to actually, for
someone to understand what theyhave to say, which is very

(47:51):
different because, absolutely,they definitely have a lot to
say.
The communities that we serve,they can absolutely be empowered
and we can help make thathappen.
I want to go back to theconversation of you know, as we
get ready to close out ourepisode on being able to work
with your lifelong partner increating and managing a business

(48:13):
.
So I'd like for us to sort of goback to some of the
conversations about makingdecisions together and how
potentially someone that isagain thinking about, or maybe
even already there, what shouldthey be looking out for?
What are some of thoserecommendations that you would
say you should be focusing onthis, or allow the partner to do

(48:38):
that, because I'm thinkingabout myself.
I'm, I'm very I want to.
I want to be able to see what'shappening in every, in every
aspect and know what's happeningand be able to, well, yes,
provide feedback, even maybe thedecision-making component.
But in pre-recording on that,you said what's what really

(48:59):
makes this a balance is thatJordi has his strengths, what he
brings to the table, and thenyou have yours.
So talk to us about how you'reable to sort of balance those
out to ensure that you have asuccessful business in light of
the fact that you're.

Speaker 2 (49:19):
You're a married couple as well yeah well, I mean
I'm gonna kind of lie, wehaven't.
We've had our fights.
I mean, we had our like.
When we're going to anassignment, we're like, oh, you
know, like, but we always keepit professional.
Once we get to the place, it'slike nothing had happened.
But I think one of the and, andyou know, and even the event
helps us to forget what happenedbefore we got there.

(49:39):
But I think for me, one of theimportant things is never making
an important decision withoutasking him first.
Like, for example, if a clientcalls me and he wants I don't
know a special price orsomething like that, I always
tell him hey, you know what?
I have to ask my better half,because if he does not agree,
I'm not only getting in troublewith my business partner but my

(50:03):
life partner.
So I really have to ask.
We make the decisions like, forexample, how much we charge,
what we're going to do, whowe're going to serve.
All of that we do it togetherand I think that's important.
When they call me, I'm like no,I have to ask first.

Speaker 3 (50:22):
And center your values.
What are your values as apartner, as a couple, as an
associate?
What do you stand forDefinitely?
What do you want to berecognized for as an interpreter
?
Definitely he's good, he'sexcellent, he's good, but he's
mean.
Definitely, center your values.

(50:43):
Definitely, we're there toserve.
You're giving customer service,you're providing, but you have
to give out.
Both ways.
Either way will be Anna, oreither will be me, will be the
best experience for the clientfor the participants and for the
client, for the participantsand for the community.
Definitely, because they're aproud community, Make them feel

(51:08):
proud of the interpreter thatthey got, that they gave voice
to their thoughts in English, orvice versa.
So for me, centering yourselfon what you want to give and
what you want to get.

Speaker 2 (51:26):
And really analyzing and analyzing because, like, for
example, there have been timeswhere we have reached a decision
that maybe I'm not too I don'tagree with it, to be honest, and
I'm like okay, so why are youmaking the decision based on
what?
Is it because you really thinkthis?
Or it's okay, give me the facts?

(51:47):
Is it because this is becausethat?
And if I think if we give thefacts he gives me are solid
enough, I say, okay, let's gothat, but if not, we continue
until we get to a point where wecan both feel comfortable with
that decision yeah, and be andbe truthful to yourself, because
sometimes we have been like Isaid no, because of this

(52:10):
experience that we live withthis client I don't want to
provide a service, and I'm firmand all.

Speaker 3 (52:17):
And we're truthful, we're saying, okay, I don't want
to do this because of this.
And then when I go to the next,the next assignment, all of a
sudden I find that client andI'm able to give the truth of
why I want to work with youdirectly.
I don't want to go throughorganizers.
I want to go through you,definitely, directly, and have a

(52:39):
clear vision on both sideswhere you want to get and how
you want to deliver your bestexperience to them.
That is, set a clear goldenvision that you want to have.
Which area do you want to focusin?
If it is going to be at court,it goes the same way.
One day another one will be inanother place.

(53:02):
Maybe we can switch and if yourpartners you both recognize
that are good and try to levelup, you know, like, level up our
game.
Definitely she will be good atcertain things, I won't, but, uh
, those differences have to beseamless.
You have to try to be both atthe same level of where you are.
She likes to study a lot, shelikes to have all the titles and

(53:27):
everything.
That's fine, definitely.
But I have to be at the samelevel of knowledge of what we're
doing, that work.
That moment.
You're not dragging someone,you're bringing someone aside
and if that people advance, feelproud of that, feel that, hey,
this is what we haveaccomplished, definitely.

(53:49):
And I feel proud of her beingable to do certain things that
I'm not able to do.
I'm not able to do longconsecutive.
She can write down five minutes.
Someone saying something Ican't, but she's able to do long
consecutive.
She can write down five minutes.
Someone saying something Ican't, but she's able to do it
and I feel proud of that.
That is what she can give anddefinitely she's the special and
I even I tell it to the clientsshe's, she's the right one, I'm

(54:13):
the right one in another things, and recognize that and and
tell your partner or your spouseor whoever you decide to make a
collaborative effort to do abusiness, create this business
to be in an association with.
Tell them that this is what Iexpect from you and this is what

(54:38):
is it that you expect from me.

Speaker 1 (54:40):
How do you separate that?
Like, how do you, for instance,for the two of you you
mentioned earlier on, let's saythat you're you're, you're
griping about something betweeneach other when, when two people
work in separate spaces, theycan say, hey, whatever happens
at work, you leave out the doorat home, and then you know
whatever happens at home.
You leave out the door at homeand then you know whatever

(55:02):
happens at home, you leave outthe door at work, sort of thing.
But how do you do that with abusiness you know at home?

Speaker 2 (55:07):
I don't know what is your strategy there.
Um, I think, when, when wedon't agree on some things, we
do try.
I mean, we work a lot together,but not all the time.
Like, for example, he has hisassignments, I have my
assignments.
We do work soon by.
You know, he has his office, Ihave mine.
But we try to like stay awayfrom each other until things
calm down a little.
But to be honest, I mean, yes,we've had our, our disagreements

(55:32):
.
That would be a lie, you know.
But to be honest, I, of courseI we were going to have a lot
more.
We have been able to likemanage.
I mean, we both respect eachother.
You know I, he knows that I dolike the accounting and the
invoicing.
My daughter works with us Also.
She helps us with all theinvoicing, so we give her the

(55:53):
invoices, she's the one thatsends them out.
So we've created like a systemthat we both, you know, each
knows what we have to do.
And I don't know, and I thinkone thing that he said about us,
you know, making the otherperson better.
That's really important because,like, if he looks good, I look
good you know, because we're thecompany and that way we can

(56:14):
really give each other like very, very honest feedback without
getting upset, and that'ssomething maybe with another
interpreter you wouldn't dare todo that because you don't know
how they're going to take it,but with him we can be honest
and also we know each other sowell we've been together for a
long time so that like whenwe're interpreting together and

(56:35):
a word comes out, I just have tolook at him and he knows the
word that I need and he searchesit up and then he comes and we
do it both ways.
So I don't know, it just works.
I don't know it works.

Speaker 1 (56:47):
Well, you make it work.
I think there's effort right.
It doesn't.
I don't think it's necessarily.
I don't anticipate somethingsuch a big decision, at least
for it to be automatic.
I think you find these areas tomake it work and it is very
strategic.
Also, I love your notion of thehealthy competition and setting

(57:10):
quotas and for the two of youto sort of have these healthy
competitions just to get to thatquota.
I think that's great.
I can see the sales componentcoming in there, jordi, and
being able to establish a quotaand do this healthy competition
but also creating just thosehealthy boundaries around.
That's work-related, that's notus-related, and being able to

(57:34):
have that clear and I think thatdefinitely has been something
that it sounds like has added somuch value to the expansion of
of your business.
Because, as you mentioned inthe beginning, you feel that
Jordi, coming on to you know,working alongside you and being

(57:56):
a part of the business, hasexpanded that and you don't
think you would have grownwithout him.
So it's clear, you knew, inother words, where you were
trying to head, which is whatJordi was saying earlier.
You set those objectives andthen you work together to try to
work towards that.

Speaker 2 (58:15):
Yeah, no, we feel very blessed.
We feel very, very blessedbecause we love what we do.
We're passionate, we're bothjust as passionate.
I mean, it's not strange thathe's in one meeting and I'm in
another.
And when it finishes we calleach other and he says you know,
this happened and that happened.
And we're always like talkingabout things that happen and how
we feel Like, for example, thatthere's a policy, that our,

(58:40):
that our you know clients havebeen working for a long time and
it finally passes.
We celebrate with them.
No, for us it's kind of likeyay, you know, we we really get
the goosebumps and we really getthe tears and we're like so
excited and when some things gowrong, we feel sad next to them
too, because we've been part ofthat journey for so long that we

(59:01):
feel like their success is oursuccess, you know, oh and once
you get there, you feel that youwant to clone yourself.
You just oh, yeah, you can'tserve all of them.

Speaker 3 (59:10):
And and from monday from four.
And from monday to friday, fromfour to eleven, because in our
case that is our life.
We work really hard from a fouro'clock to 11 o'clock.
Many times all the weeks arethe same and we know that that's
the price that we have paid.
But we got into a point in lifethat we are already in our 50s.

(59:37):
We're're not going to go outand party every night.
We don't have to wake up earlyas others do.
And definitely you want to giveout more, but you can Once you
get there.
You're there Because an uncleof Annie told me where are you
right now in the business?

(59:57):
You're not able to give out asmuch as you would like because
you are the only two.
That's where you want to be.
You want to be asked.
You want your client to ask youhey, when are you available?
And and that's the place thatyou want to get hey, you didn't
call me on time.
I'm not available that day, butyou can say it about I'm

(01:00:19):
available this day and theythink, and they will think, hey,
I'm willing to change it onceyou get there and with the
relationship with your clients,because you have gone there,
you're able to not dictate howthey're gonna do the things, but
even in way of hat time, youcan tell you hey, put aside the
date, and that's where you wantto get it's a collaboration at

(01:00:42):
that point right it's it's, yeah, it's that healthy dance
together, yeah I know, and thething is that we get to know
their story, you know.

Speaker 2 (01:00:49):
So sometimes we're even their memory.
It's happened like on oneoccasion I remember that they
were looking for some slidesthat they could not find and
they were about to put them inthe presentation and and I said,
oh, I have them and I sent itto them because I have their
story or they sometimes theydon't remember, and I said, no,
this happened in this, in thismeeting.
And the thing is that becausewe serve certain areas, like we

(01:01:10):
serve San Jose, we serveMonterey and Santa Cruz, we're
across the board.
So sometimes, like they'rethinking, what happened in that
meeting?
Did city council approve it?
And we're, yeah, it did, it didpass, it did pass.
So we're at the point that wesometimes come and tell our
clients did you find out thatthis happened Because we were

(01:01:31):
interpreting in this meeting andthey approved your funds, you
know.
So it's incredible, I mean it'sreally a big blessing.

Speaker 3 (01:01:38):
Every niche is different, definitely In the
world of nonprofit and citycouncils and a board of
supervisors is still differentthan in court.
It's still different thaneducational.
Never, never, think that youhave gotten there.
It's always a learning curve.
Definitely, every area hastheir endowments.

(01:02:01):
Definitely, and this is one ofthe one of those areas of of
trade that we have.
Definitely things are changing,things are evolving, new
technologies are coming, so usethem into your own best and best
advantage.

Speaker 2 (01:02:17):
Definitely we see what's coming out down the pipe,
so use it to that best of yourability to improve yourself and
that is an important message too, because sometimes, like for
example, there are other citycouncils that the community is
so involved.
They're there, they'redemanding good interpretation.

(01:02:37):
They they're demanding, youknow, to documents be translated
, versus others that there's notthat much community involvement
.
So what happens?
I mean, we've been hired forother communities or for other
city councils that nobody comesto the meetings and we're just
sitting there.
And what has happened there?
Ai has taken over.
Now they're using word earlyfor the city council

(01:02:59):
interpretations, but why?
Because the community did notget there.
Ai has taken over.
Now they're using Wordly forthe city council interpretations
, but why?
Because the community did notget there.
So I think it's something thathas to go hand in hand.
The community also has to speakup and say we want this, but if
the city council has nobody totell them what they want,
they're just going to givewhatever they can.
So I think it's something thatif we really want to keep this,

(01:03:22):
we really want to like continueproviding good interpreting,
good language, justice.
Also.
The community and people haveto get involved.

Speaker 1 (01:03:31):
Absolutely Well, ana Jordi.
It has been such a greatconversation.
I think I've been inspired togo find me a partner myself just
to start, just to bring them onboard as well, but I really
appreciate your insights and allof the recommendations that

(01:03:53):
were given.
I'm sure that there are plentyof individuals that are
listening to us currently, thatare already in business with
their lifelong partners as welland they've gotten potentially
more ideas or agreeing witheverything that you say.
Or maybe there's individualsthat have been thinking about it
and haven't been so sure and,thanks to today's conversation,

(01:04:13):
hopefully they got some ideasand some inspiration on which
direction to take.
I want to thank you so verymuch for the opportunity to have
this conversation and, as I endall my episode with all my
guests, is there anywhere thatour listeners can find out more
about you and the work that youdo?

Speaker 2 (01:04:33):
Well, yes, we have our website.
It's wwwjavls LanguageSolutions.
That's the name of our company,jordiana Vidalis Language
Solutions, but we call it JAVand we also there.
You can see the links to ourFacebook and our LinkedIn.
So, basically, those are theplaces where you can, you know,

(01:04:56):
know a little bit more aboutwhat we do.

Speaker 1 (01:04:59):
Fantastic, Jordiana.
Thank you so very much.

Speaker 2 (01:05:02):
Thank you, Maria.
It's been a really greatexperience.
Thank you so much for invitingus.

Speaker 3 (01:05:06):
Thank you for inviting us.
Thank you.