June 28, 2024 • 69 mins
Join me, as I kick off Season 7 of Brand the Interpreter with a heartfelt recount of a challenging period that saw me lose my voice for over a month. This unexpected hiatus taught me the critical importance of listening to our bodies and taking necessary breaks. Amidst this, I navigated significant personal and professional changes, including a sudden move to the East Coast and embracing a new role. This season, I return with renewed energy and an unwavering commitment to bringing you insightful and inspiring content.
This opener boasts an enriching conversation with Denise Bobadilha, a Portuguese conference interpreter who has carved a unique niche in broadcast interpreting. Denise shares her fascinating journey from journalism to interpreting at CNN Brazil, revealing the passion for world events that drives her. We delve into her personal growth, including her battles with imposter syndrome and the invaluable lessons she’s learned along the way. Denise’s story is a testament to the power of preparation, risk-taking, and continuous learning, offering invaluable insights for anyone looking to excel in this field.
As we explore the high-pressure world of live broadcast interpreting, Denise provides a candid look at the emotional and psychological toll of covering sensitive events like the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. We discuss coping mechanisms and the profound human connection inherent in our work. This episode is a poignant reminder of the resilience required in our profession and the crucial role interpreters play in connecting people and improving lives. Tune in to explore these themes and more as we embark on another exciting season.
This opener boasts an enriching conversation with Denise Bobadilha, a Portuguese conference interpreter who has carved a unique niche in broadcast interpreting. Denise shares her fascinating journey from journalism to interpreting at CNN Brazil, revealing the passion for world events that drives her. We delve into her personal growth, including her battles with imposter syndrome and the invaluable lessons she’s learned along the way. Denise’s story is a testament to the power of preparation, risk-taking, and continuous learning, offering invaluable insights for anyone looking to excel in this field.
As we explore the high-pressure world of live broadcast interpreting, Denise provides a candid look at the emotional and psychological toll of covering sensitive events like the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. We discuss coping mechanisms and the profound human connection inherent in our work. This episode is a poignant reminder of the resilience required in our profession and the crucial role interpreters play in connecting people and improving lives. Tune in to explore these themes and more as we embark on another exciting season.
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Thanks for tuning in, till next time! 👋
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Intro (00:01):
Welcome to Brand the Interpreter, the podcast for
language professionals aroundthe world.
It's about time.
By the way, it's 75 years.
I've been the same old, sameold, day in and day out.
There was the Bernie Sandersevent, where we both interpreted
from behind the bar.
Wait, really.
I say go for it.
(00:22):
I second that your new drivetime podcast Brand the Inter.
Second that your new Drive Timepodcast Brand the interpreter
your stories are profession.
Hey, thanks for tuning in.
Hook (00:35):
Once during the war on Ukraine, maybe the first week or
the first 10 days of war, therewas a piece that was absolutely
crushing, that was terrible,and it was a father that learned
that his wife and two childrenhad died in an explosion.
(00:56):
And he learned that seeing apicture on social media.
Welcome back to a brand newseason, season seven of Brand.
The Interpreter.
This is Mireya, your host, andI am so excited to be able to
(01:19):
repeat these words and even moreso excited that you are here
joining me.
If you are new here, welcome.
I very much hope that today'sepisode is enjoyable and that
perhaps it inspires you tolisten to previous episodes of
all the great guests that havebeen on the show since the
beginning of this podcast.
If you are a returning listener, thank you.
Thank you for your continuoussupport.
(01:41):
Thank you for the messages thatcame through asking if I was
going to come back.
I think for any content creator,regardless of the size of our
platforms, whether you aresomebody that has a huge
following or someone that has avery close knit following, it
makes a difference to know thatindividuals are actually not
(02:02):
only in support of your work, toknow that individuals are
actually not only in support ofyour work but look forward to
your work.
So thank you for beingsupportive of this podcast.
I had other individuals thatsaid I've caught up with all
your episodes.
I was behind and now I'm caughtup and ready for more.
So here it is, here's more.
Take just about a minute tosort of give you what was going
on, an idea of what was going onbehind the scenes, just so you
(02:26):
know why there was a delay orwhat occurred, in case you're
curious.
So in the beginning of the year, right before I was getting
ready to launch, I lost my voice, an experience I had never had,
not to this level at least,where I had little to no voice
for over a month, and that wasthe very first time I've ever
(02:47):
experienced that.
And in conversations quoteunquote conversations with
someone, they had mentioned thatsometimes there is reason why
our bodies do what they do andwe've talked about this on the
platform as well in terms ofbeing able to pause long enough
to identify some of these signsthat we get in, perhaps in
(03:11):
response to what we're goingthrough.
And indeed, at the time I wasgoing through some changes, both
personal that I moved from theWest Coast to the East Coast,
which was a very drastic move,very sudden move for a variety
of reasons, but it was a verysudden move, something I did not
(03:33):
have planned.
So that in and of itself was adrastic change.
There was also professionalchanges the onset of a new
responsibility, of a new roleand then a new project that came
my way an unexpected newproject and and, of course, the
podcast.
(03:54):
And so, anyway, I felt thatthere was a reason at that point
now, especially after thisindividual said, especially
after this individual said thatcould potentially be the
universe's way of saying youneed a pause.
And so that was theunintentional pause of the
podcast, because, I mean, I hadno other choice, I had no voice,
(04:17):
so I allowed myself theopportunity to really sit in
that decision and saying, okay,maybe this was my forced pause.
I need a pause because therewas a lot of things coming at me
from different angles.
Professionally, there was anopportunity for a different role
that I decided that I wanted totake.
(04:39):
I wanted to experience that ina different setting, and so,
professionally, I took on a newrole.
But then came a brand newproject, and it was going to be
a pretty big project for myself,which hopefully at some point
I'll be able to share more about.
But that meant a very limitedamount of time, and so I had to
(05:03):
make the decision that I neededto step away from those things
that I had control over, beingable to step away in order for
me to be fully present and andbeing able to take on or do the
things that I really like fully,not, as they say, have fast.
I want to make sure that I amdoing things because I love to
(05:27):
do them, because I want to dothem and I can do them with
great intention, and that'sreally the podcast for me.
The podcast is something that Ilove to do and I don't want to
ever get to the point where Ihate it because I'm doing too
much.
Currently, the podcast is setup where I'm your producer, I'm
(05:47):
your host, I'm your editor, I'myour content creator for it.
Eventually hopefully soon thatwon't be the case, so it is very
time consuming.
Anyway, all that to say that Ihad to be intentional about the
use of my time and what I wastaking a part in.
I still am.
I'm always very intentional intrying to say, if I'm invited to
(06:08):
be a part of something, thatthat something has good merit to
it, that there is somethingthat I can contribute to it, if
I'm going to contribute my time,that it's something that I can
contribute to it fully, and ifnot, then I do decline.
So, anyway, that was the twomain reasons Pretty big.
(06:29):
Like I said, one of them.
There was absolutely no choice.
I can't have a podcast withouta voice.
That would be an interestingjust an interesting podcast to
have without a voice and theother.
It was very intentional for meto say I need to be able to step
away and use my time wisely andavoid getting to the point of
(06:53):
burnout.
But it looks like now I am in aplace where I can come back to
it, fully embrace it.
I feel like I'm just giving mypodcast this big, amazing hug
after not being with it for sucha long time.
It feels like and just reallyenjoying the conversations and
(07:15):
having that feeling again ofhaving fun while doing it and
being excited to broadcast a newepisode, to broadcast a new
episode.
So let's jump right in where weleft off.
I love to start the beginning ofthe new seasons of the podcast
with an episode that helpsinspire us, that helps to remind
(07:36):
us about the importance of thework that we do and potentially
even be able to inspire us forgrowth.
I feel like I try to bring thatin in every episode, but this
particular episode, I'm excitedfor it to be the very first,
because it talks about thegrowth and the expansion both in
personal and the professionallife.
(07:57):
And since I'm starting thestart of the new season in the
middle of the year, I can'tbelieve I'm saying that it's
already June.
We're like halfway of the year.
I can't believe I'm saying thatit's already June.
We're like halfway through theyear.
That's incredible.
Anyway, I'm hoping that ifyou're in a bit of a slump, or
maybe you are thinking aboutwhether or not this continues to
(08:19):
be something that you want tocontinue doing, or if you're
just starting and are unsure,maybe, how to begin, maybe this
episode will help re-inspire youinto continuing in this
profession or maybe evenexpanding in the profession.
So let's continue where we leftoff.
(08:39):
Today's episode brings us DeniseBobadilla, a Portuguese
conference interpreter thatspecializes in broadcast
interpreting.
We had a wonderful conversationabout her experiences, of
course, as an interpreter, butalso her experiences in
journalism, and how these twoworlds collided with each other
(09:00):
and sort of fused and havehelped her to be in the place
where she currently is as aconference interpreter
broadcasting live events.
But of course, as per usualwith my conversations with the
guests on the show, we not onlytalk about interpreting.
We also spoke, in Denise's case, about the imposter syndrome.
(09:21):
We spoke about situations inwhich we have to make a decision
, and these decisions ultimatelylead to personal or
professional growth theexpansion moment, if you will.
She shares with us impactfulstories of her day-to-day as a
broadcast interpreter,particularly for CNN, and we
(09:42):
delve into all kinds of othertopics, of course.
So, without further ado, pleasewelcome Denise Bobadia to the
show.
Denise, it is a pleasure tohave you here on this new season
of Brand the InterpreterWelcome.
It's a pleasure and an honor tobe here.
Thank you for inviting me.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
Thank you, Denise.
Would you share with theaudience where you're joining us
from today?
Speaker 1 (10:09):
Today I'm in a city called Ubatuba, which is just on
the beach here and in the stateof Sao Paulo, but I live in Sao
Paulo, so it's a beautiful dayhere.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
It's autumn, but it's hot and it's a beautiful day,
amazing, joining us all the wayfrom Brazil.
Denise, would you mind sharingwith us a little bit more about
little Denise, sharing perhapswith us a fond childhood memory
of where you grew up?
Speaker 1 (10:40):
Well, I'm from a working class city in the
outskirts of Sao Paulo and mymom is a teacher, was a teacher.
She's retired.
My father was an accountant.
He died very early.
I was 10 when he died.
I have an older brother and ayounger sister and we had a very
(11:03):
family-closed, neat environment.
We used to go to the countrysideto visit relatives and I
developed my passion for theEnglish language very early
because I liked to listen tomusic uh, the beatles or pop
(11:26):
music.
And then I went to rock musicand when I was 13 I guess, I I
was completely crazy about thesmiths, the british band, and I
started translating their lyricsand I was some sort of a
reference during my high schoolyears as someone who knew
(11:52):
everything about music and etc.
And then I studied journalism,I became a journalist, a
journalist, and when I graduatedand I was already working in
the market.
But I decided to move to Londonfor a while to live the music,
so to speak, and to, as I callat the time, to finish my
(12:17):
English studies and I realizedthat I would never, ever finish.
It's a work in progressthroughout my whole life but it
was a fantastic time to livethere and a fantastic time for
music too.
Today.
I'm not so tuned in music as Iwas, but I think that's what
(12:38):
drove me back then.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
So what was it about journalism?
You think that caught yourattention to the point that you
wanted to pursue it as a career.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
I like to write and I think I'm a good writer.
I like to make storytelling ofeverything and that's one of the
aspects.
But I'm also very connected toworld events and I I've been
(13:10):
always like that my whole life.
So once I said I think I was atthe very beginning of my career
that my dream job would be toto win the lottery, and spent my
life going to different placesworldwide covering issues from
election in Japan to a bigfestival in the US and etc.
(13:35):
And just going covering andwriting articles.
It was sort of a crazy jobbecause it was about working,
but it was.
It is something that is verydear to my heart and, funnily
enough, here I am today workingwith a word events, breaking
(13:55):
news, et cetera.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
I won't tell anyone, but did you win the lotto?
Speaker 1 (13:59):
No, never.
So that dream is still pending.
Not the money part, not themoney part, not the money part.
I think I go today, I goeverywhere while working, but on
my screen, only Through myscreen, I would say yeah, many
(14:20):
of us can relate to that.
Speaker 2 (14:22):
Denise, share with us a memory you treasure from
London, once you made your wayout of your hometown, out of
your home country and into thiswe can call brand new world.
Is there something that youvividly remember?
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Ah, so many.
There are so many experiences.
I think I lived there for overtwo years and I was never tired
of exploring the city.
Someone once told me well, whydidn't you travel to I don't
know, to Thailand or to EasternEurope or whatever?
(15:00):
I said no, I had everything inLondon.
I was absolutely in love withthe city, absolutely in love
with the musical scene and thefriends that I had there.
But it was tough.
I was away from my family, Icould not work properly or could
(15:22):
not apply for a master's orsomething or another degree
because it would be veryexpensive for me.
So but when I was there, Iworked as a journalist for some
Brazilian outlets and theexchange rate was very good at
(15:46):
the time for Brazilian reais andBritish pounds, so the money
was worth it.
And then the inflation came andthe scenario today is totally
different.
But at the time I was verylucky to live there and I could
work for Brazilian outlets andlive there quite comfortably for
a Brazilian immigrant.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
You're there for a couple of years finishing your
studies, and then do you go backhome or do you travel elsewhere
after that.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
No, no.
I just came back to Brazil andI restarted my career as a
journalist and I took adifferent path.
Before I went to England, Iused to work in a daily outlet,
working mostly with police andcity issues and city issues, and
(16:52):
then I started working withtourism and more fancy stuff.
So I had experience all aroundin journalism, except for sports
Not my cup, not your cup of tea.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
No, no, no, no after having experienced so many
different sectors in journalism,had you developed a favorite uh
sector or one that youappreciated more?
Speaker 1 (17:16):
uh, music, I I music and cinema movies.
Um, at the time the, the mainbra outlet called Folha de São
Paulo had a correspondent in thecity but he was very tuned into
politics and economy and theeconomy and world events and he
(17:39):
was not at all concerned withcultural affairs.
So as a freelancer I got theassignments for everything that
was happening in London at thetime and it was a very fruitful
time the late 90s and I startedtranslating there too, because
(18:02):
the outlet had an agreement withthe independent and I could
translate as many articles asthey would like to.
So that's where my parallelcareer started as a translator
at that time.
Speaker 2 (18:18):
And thus begins your journey into the language
services sector, without youknowing, of course, at this
point, because it's at an ad hocbasis.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
So that was translation.
When were you asked tointerpret for the first time
that you recall, in a situationwhere you really said, wow, that
was actually a lot morechallenging than I had imagined.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
Actually, I hadn't had any experience in
interpreting before I realizedthat I could be an interpreter.
And it was quite shockingbecause I was looking for a
different path for my career,because in the early 10s,
journalism was in a very poorsituation and my husband is also
(19:10):
a journalist and we have twokids and I was just looking for
something else to do because Irealized that it wouldn't last
to be able to live out ofjournalism for longer.
But then I read about atraining for interpreters and I
(19:32):
was surprised because I thoughtthat interpreting was like a
given, a gift that ones had,like being a soprano, like being
a marathonist, and none ofthese three would require to
have a gift from god.
You can train to be amarathonist, you can train to be
(19:53):
a soprano and you can train tobe an interpreter.
And so I start studying thetopic and then I start
connecting all the dots in myhead about all the interpreters
that I met during my life.
That's, of course, denise,that's feasible.
And so I start studying.
(20:13):
I took the best course in Brazil.
We invested a lot in that, butI took the best course in Brazil
for interpreters, which is atwo year training, very intense,
called Alumni Brazil forInterpreters, which is a
two-year training, very intense,called Alumni, and also another
(20:34):
training that was a year longin the city of Curitiba, but in
specific weekends, not the wholeyear.
So I studied a lot and I studya lot too today.
I take at least two trainingsper year one long, one shorter
depending on the year, and sothat was that.
That was in 2015.
I started at Lumini course in2015 and finished in 2016.
(21:01):
And I started working in 2016with the general market, the
private market for business,corporate pharmacy, mining,
legal you name it.
So the corporate market is andeven some medicine assignments
(21:23):
too.
Speaker 2 (21:24):
Your specialty in interpreting is conference
interpreting.
Is that correct?
Yes, yes.
What was that first experiencelike for you, going out into the
field, now taking on your firstgig, your first assignment as a
trained interpreter?
How did you prepare or how didyou see yourself within the
context of?
Speaker 1 (21:56):
going into it as a trained professional interpreter
.
Experience during the coursesthat I, that I that I took at
the time, the real deal wasabsolutely tiring and it was.
It was an area that I'm trained, which is it was a corporate
(22:17):
communications event today, theythink, very long one with my
business partner.
She was then a friend, but we,from then, we started developing
a relationship and today she'smy business partner and and it
was also her first gig too, andI remember that when I, when I,
(22:39):
when I arrived at home, I was Idon't know a few meters away
from my family and they weretalking over dinner or something
, my husband and my children andI started listening to them.
I think is it English orPortuguese what they are saying?
Am I translating?
And they're, of course they'respeaking in Portuguese.
(23:00):
It was dinner, but my mind wasin Portuguese.
It was dinner, but my mind was,I don't know, it was a mess.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Ah yes, the mind of the interpreter right, and it
had not shut off yet after anassignment.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
Yeah, yeah, we are always trying to find this.
What is this sound coming from?
What is this language?
Come on, denise, it's just anormal conversation, don't worry
.
And that was it.
(23:34):
It was the word that I takefrom that, too, today is it was
tiring, it was tiring, yes, yes,all the preparation and then,
of course, the work itself, andthen the aftermath.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
right, your brain continues to move forward.
But in terms of that firstassignment and you, as a trained
interpreter, now being able tomake a connection with the
profession, do you recallthinking this?
Is it or was it more like whatdid I get myself into?
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Definitely I was, I was, I thought that I was,
although I was tired, I wasready and it was exciting and it
was.
I felt so happy.
I felt so happy and I was afterat the time, nearly two years,
because I was still training.
I felt I it was the rightdecision at the right time.
(24:23):
I had the best colleaguesduring my training.
Well, my business partner workswith me too today and I met her
.
I met her during the training.
So, yeah, it was fulfilling.
I was absolutely happy.
Speaker 2 (24:41):
Yes, that's wonderful .
Talk to us now a little bitabout what you feel, now that
you've been in the field for anumber of years.
What you feel to date was thatsignificant interpreting
assignment or assignments thathelp to take your interpreting
career to the next level, totake your interpreting career to
(25:03):
the next level.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
There are so many, I could not say just one.
I had a client for one year in2017-18.
He was the CEO of apharmaceutical company in the US
and he was trying to openmarket for his business in
Brazil and I was his interpreterall over the country and it was
(25:33):
challenging.
It was fun too, but it waschallenging because I had
meetings and I had all thepersonal.
But it was challenging becauseI had meetings and I had all the
personal things to deal withand I had to read the room of
the possible business partnersthat he was having conversations
with and it was a very althoughit was a very tense scenario.
(26:00):
It was also very relaxingbecause we are close.
I had a Brazilian businesswomanwho hired me and we are always
the three of us and all thepartners having all these
(26:21):
meetings and in beautiful placesall over Brazil, so I went to
fantastic hotels and restaurants.
Speaker 2 (26:29):
Brazil.
So I went to fantastic hotelsand restaurants and so it was
quite an experience.
Have you found that, in yourwork as an interpreter, your
experiences as a journalist orin journalism have come into
your work as an interpreterMeaning?
Have you found that, thanks tothose experiences, it has
supported you as an interpreter?
Speaker 1 (26:50):
Oh, yes, definitely.
I think we, as a journalist, wedeveloped what we call an
editor mindset, so we are alwaysediting what's going on in
terms of words, in terms offacts, in terms of realities
(27:12):
that are developing around us.
So this is very importantbecause, as interpreters, we are
communicators.
Too important because, asinterpreters, we are
communicators.
We have to learn how to bestsay something or to convey a
message in a way that will speakto the audience.
(27:36):
And as journalists, as I toldyou before, I worked in
different areas in journalism,from police and crime and the
most impoverished areas in SaoPaulo to the VIP travel luxury
side of it.
So I learned how to write forboth audiences for both
(27:59):
audiences.
And when we are interpreting,we have to take care of our
register to talk to the audiencein a way that they will get the
message as clear as possible.
So this editor in mind helpedme all my life in all areas as a
(28:21):
translator, as an interpreter,as a mother, as a businesswoman.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
So it's all around their quote-unquote past lives
is that we identify very manytimes a meeting point between
that past life, or those pastexperiences, and your current
life as an interpreter.
Share with us now how you gotinto interpreting for breaking
news or live broadcasting ontelevision.
Speaker 1 (29:00):
Well, as a journalist with a 20-year career
experience, I developed a lot ofrelationships, a lot of
relationships, and one of theclients the first client that I
had the corporate communicationevent that I mentioned was a
fellow from journalist that Imet years ago and I told him
(29:22):
well, I'm an interpreter now andif you had anything and he
offered me my first assignmentand I had this approach with
several colleagues, severaljournalists, and when CNN was
starting its operation in Brazilnot streaming, not broadcasting
(29:45):
, sorry, but starting to hirepeople and to have this word
around that they would soon beon air I spoke with some
colleagues and I decided that itwas something that I would like
to do and I would fight for itand I did.
(30:07):
We did, my partner and I.
We went there, we took testsand we had meetings and we
studied a lot for all the testsand then they choose us and it
was 2020.
Was february 2020?
The first yes, and the firstthe?
(30:32):
The day that the first day oncnn was march 15, 2020, and my
first TV interpretation on therewas a debate between Bernie
Sanders and Joe Biden.
It was the Democratic Partydebate on that day and from then
(31:00):
on, we just started coveringCOVID-19, the pandemic and all
the issues in politics and theUS elections.
And since it was the pandemicyear the worst of the pandemic
(31:21):
2020 and 2021, but also thefirst year of CNN Brazil we had
to go in person and it was scary.
All the safety protocols andall the health protocols and not
knowing what.
You never know if you're goingto be able to be there in one
(31:42):
day or two, and then you learnthat someone in the technical
department was suffering fromCOVID somewhere, or an anchor or
reporter, and it was very tense.
And sometimes we since theywere also, they were just
(32:04):
beginning sometimes we spentlong hours working in topics
that they would not cover todaywith the same strength that they
covered at that time, becausethey were learning too.
It was amazing.
It was amazing.
Speaker 2 (32:20):
I like how you said we decided to just go for it.
I feel that at this point in mylife, I have learned that those
are the moments of growth, ofexpansion, whether that be
professionally or personally.
Decide to go after whateverthat may be, in spite of the
(32:47):
fear, in spite of the potentialbelief that it's unreachable,
that those are the moments wegrow.
What do you feel thatparticular experience taught you
?
When you said I want to fightfor it, let's just do it?
What do you believe it's taughtyou?
Speaker 1 (33:02):
It was risky, but I thought it was so natural.
And then when I took that tosome other interpreters, they
told me you are crazy.
I would never do something likethat.
I would never be so exposed orso in an environment that you
(33:24):
never know what's going tohappen.
You know, without properpreparation, you are crazy.
And I thought, well, maybe I am.
And I would say that I'm arisky person and I don't care.
I take risks and I know thechallenges, but I know also that
(33:45):
the rewards that I can get fromthat.
I think it was worthwhile tojust go.
And Natalie, my businesspartner, she was also very into
it and she was never, neverscared.
And in this first assignments,from the very beginning, we
(34:08):
learned that there was nevergoing to be a due moment and
preparation was probably out ofour scope, because one day we
are, uh, you're scheduled to,maybe trump, donald trump, who
was the president at the time,would have a statement or
(34:31):
immigration, something like that.
And then all of a sudden, uh,there was an earthquake
somewhere and we'd have to shiftour minds and start building a
new vocab on an earthquake, ondisasters.
On this part of it wasn'tTurkey, turkey is recent, but I
(34:54):
would say Turkey and this partof Turkey and the name of the
cities and everything in onesecond.
We learned from that time, fromthat first year, because things
were developing very quickly.
Speaker 2 (35:09):
Yes, absolutely, and I feel that I mean that's
sometimes, in essence, what hasto happen if we're going to
expand on anything is number onetake that risk, because I think
that that's the threshold,potentially, that's keeping us
where we're at and have theability to grow and expand.
(35:30):
We take that risk and then takeon the challenges that come
with that risk in order for usto grow.
So it's not just about takingthe risk and all is well.
It's about then knowing how nowto navigate those particular
challenges.
In your specific experience, itwas about taking that leap.
(35:51):
And did you have to knock onthe door for this experience?
Or was this an opportunity thatwas open and you said I'm going
to decide, I'm going to, I'mgoing to decide to go for it?
Do you recall?
Is it something that theydidn't know they needed and you
went, sort of hypotheticallyspeaking?
You went knocking on the doorand said, hey, you might need
(36:12):
some interpreters.
Speaker 1 (36:13):
Both.
Both because, uh, I read abouttheir, their, uh, their
operations in Brazil from thevery start, so I was there.
I say, hey, you're going toneed interpreters.
Oh, yes, maybe, but that's agood idea.
And then later they say, oh,remember, they told us what
(36:38):
about you, come here and we havea meeting?
What about you, come here andwe have a meeting, and what
about we test you and test allthese interpreters too?
And then I think it was worththis first approach definitely.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
Most definitely, and I think that serves as for any
freelancers that are listening.
You know that that's sometimeswhat it takes, and when we, when
we think about it and thinkabout, did the opportunity come
knocking at your door or did yougo knocking at the, at the, at
the opportunities door?
And in this case, yes, you'reright, it was both.
(37:18):
However, you did sort of sayI'm here, right, this is who I
am and I'm here is mostsuccessful.
Speaker 1 (37:26):
It's about how I changed my career after 40,
because I started this processwhen I was I'm 51.
(37:49):
Today I was 44, 43.
And so I wrote about it and oneof the main topics was you have
to reach out for those whoworked with you in your previous
careers.
Maybe you are not close to them, it doesn't matter.
(38:09):
You just go there and say, hi,remember me, I don't care if you
don't, but I'm an interpreternow, or I'm a dentist now,
whatever.
And if you, maybe I know thatyour business does this and that
and interpreters are necessaryfor this and that situation in
(38:32):
your business.
So maybe we can I don't know.
I can send you some things oryou can even talk whatever.
Some things or you can eventalk whatever, and I had my
first clients from that approachand I think it works
beautifully, in whichever areayou are.
Speaker 2 (38:57):
Yeah, I feel like you know, I see that very
predominantly in, at least herein the States, our real estate
agents, where they're alwayssaying you know, or that you're
in real estate, so they tellthem to share with everyone that
(39:26):
they know just you know, in theevent that they might need to
purchase a home.
And then, of course, they'realways consistently asking for
that referral from you if youwere their client.
And I feel like that should beabsolutely the same approach,
especially if you arefreelancing is being able to
tell the world what you do.
And I love how, in thebeginning, you did say the the
(39:52):
my initial mentality, but it wasjust like a by default, a given
.
That's just something that youdo if you're by, you know
bilingual, if you know twolanguages or more, that you
write default and interpreter.
And I think it's important thatwe also recognize that.
If we think that before weactually get involved in what
the profession is actually likeand the amount of training that
(40:14):
goes behind it, imagine otherindividuals and their lack of
understanding of what a trueprofessional interpreter has to
go through or what it requiresso for us to be able to say, hey
, I went through training andthis is what I do now.
Think about that, Should youever need someone or should you
ever hear someone?
(40:35):
And it does go a long way,You're absolutely right, Because
it plants the seed just inthinking wait a minute, I do
know someone actually.
And then the referral, such asyour corporate connection that
you had in the beginning.
Right, they ended up meetingsomeone.
Speaker 1 (40:49):
And I have a trainer which is also a friend.
She always says this andwhenever someone can approach
you to say oh, your professionis so beautiful, I cannot
imagine how you do that.
It's like magic, because youare listening and talking at the
same time and thinking and wehave to stress, it's training.
(41:13):
It's not a gift.
It's not something that I wasall of this world gifted for
that.
It's training.
It's about taking this veryseriously, as you do in other
professions.
It's about training, it's aboutcommitment and it's about
(41:36):
training.
Speaker 2 (41:38):
I love that.
That's so true.
It's like any other profession.
It's about training andcommitment.
You've had to interpret live nowsince that experience with CNN
and you've mentioned a couple ofpretty I feel would be pretty
impactful just type ofinterpreting encounters, and
(41:59):
it's impactful for anyinterpreter, given that you
might have an encounter likethat every so often, an
impactful encounter in whichmaybe the news that is being
shared or the topic is prettysensitive.
But I think that when you arelive, let's say you're
broadcasting live and for a newsbroadcaster, out of all things,
(42:22):
particularly in very specificmoments in time, that can be
very often that type of topicand theme can be quite often.
So I'd like to transition nowinto the conversation of your
particular experience withbroadcasting live, but
(42:43):
broadcasting with some of thesevery sensitive and just high
pressure environments beginningwith COVID-19, because you begin
not to say that it's your firstassignment simultaneous, but
it's your first assignment ofcontinuous assignments and live
broadcasting with something assensitive as health and we all
(43:08):
know everything that came forquite some time, one thing after
another.
Tell me what that experiencewas like and then bring us to
present day and what it is thatyou're currently having to
interpret when you'rebroadcasting and how that has
impacted your work andpotentially even yourself as an
(43:32):
interpreter, as a professional,I would say that the most
challenging aspect of coveringthe pandemic for broadcasting
was that we are living thesituation.
Speaker 1 (43:47):
We are all living that.
When I started interpreting thesituation in Gaza or in the
Ukraine, or an earthquake or amass shooting, I'm detached.
It can be absolutely crushing,but I'm detached While when we
(44:12):
were covering the pandemic,every time we had a breakthrough
in science or new numbers thatwere shocking, that was
affecting all of us.
So when we mentioned that maybea possibility of a medicine was
(44:41):
not right or the vaccine thatwe're waiting would take another
year to be developed orsomething like that, it was
something that I was translatingand at the same time, I was
feeling and I had to learn howto focus on the message and
consider the impact later and Ithink I learned how to do that
(45:07):
during the pandemic and notthinking about what I was
translating Just go, just go.
And this was helpful in morestressful situations that came
later, such as the war coverage,the Gulf Wars and the
(45:28):
withdrawal from Afghanistan,which was very traumatic Because
, although I was not there,anything could happen in one
second in front of my eyes in ahuge screen that I had in front
of my eyes, so I was justfocusing on words and just go
(45:51):
and you may think about thatlater or you just don't have to
think about that later.
Just do your job, justinterpret, just be truthful and
stick to the facts, and that'sit.
Speaker 2 (46:09):
Do you feel that, in a way, the journalism component
also came in and supported youduring these particular moments
in time as an?
Speaker 1 (46:20):
interpreter in situations of violence, of loss,
and I had to deal with that inperson and I had to deal with
(46:40):
then asking questions, not usingsomeone else's words but
pressuring for the words usingmy words, and it was difficult
and I was young and I was readyto, you know, to just go and
later I would say that after Ibecame a mother, I would never,
(47:02):
I would never do what I did as ajournalist at the beginning,
working with mass shooting,violence and everything that I
had to at that time, becausewhen you, when you have a child,
you just can't sleep afterseeing something that some, some
(47:22):
things that I, that I watchedin person.
But as an interpreter, it'sdifferent.
Speaker 2 (47:32):
At the beginning of our conversation you mentioned,
uh, uh, a moment that I think wecan all relate as interpreters,
which is the inability tosometimes shut off your
interpreting brain right, justtrying to just distinguish the
languages.
And how would you say that intothe other language?
(47:54):
How do you disconnect, if atall, from experiences of such
high pressure, to make thatdisconnection after you walk
away?
Because at the end of the day,we are human and it's really
difficult, particularly, I find,with the interpreting brain, to
really make that disconnection.
(48:16):
What do you do personally toensure that yourself is taken
care of, after havingconsistently been a part of
content that can be prettyimpactful, I would say, at times
?
Speaker 1 (48:35):
that can be pretty impactful, I would say at times.
Well, it's strange, but I don'thave any specific tool for that
.
I'm a very privileged person inthe sense that I live in a
green area, I'm surrounded bynature, I live in the outskirts
(48:55):
of the city, in the green beltof Sao Paulo.
I'm not rich far far from thatbut my house is surrounded by
trees and that's rich, and sothis connection with nature,
with my family, helps me and Iwork out a lot too, and I think
(49:18):
endorphin it's powerful.
But I don't have any specifictool to deal with secondary
trauma.
I should, but I shouldn't,because I just turn off and turn
on and I work and I stopped,and then I look at my
(49:42):
surroundings and let's go, yeah.
Speaker 2 (49:45):
No, that's great.
I actually feel that, perhapsunbeknownst or maybe not
intentional, but the beingsurrounded by beautiful green
nature is quite powerful,absolutely, and I completely
agree that physical activity andthe endorphins that that
(50:05):
produces, I'm certain that'squite helpful too.
So, perhaps not thinking aboutit, oh, I have to go out into
nature, I have to go exercise inorder to get this out of my
mind.
Maybe it's just the fact thatit's it's a common practice for
you that that may be potentiallywhat is helping you, at least
for your mind, not to dwell onsome of these topics, because
(50:28):
we've heard many interpreterexperiences, heard many
interpreter experiences.
Vicarious trauma is a realthing for many, many in the
field, and so I appreciate youeven having shared that, and
it's I feel many people do talkabout taking long walks in
nature, and that's in anyprofession, that's with anything
, just on being able to dealwith stress.
(50:50):
So, so that that's great.
Surround yourself with natureand include some physical
activity and listen to thesilence.
Speaker 1 (51:00):
the crickets and the birds and the, the eventual you
know someone shouting somewhereor something, but just tune into
this, this silence, this is.
This is good.
I like that.
Tune into this silence.
This is good.
Speaker 2 (51:13):
I like that Tune into the silence and then you hear
things that you don't typicallywould hear in your day-to-day,
unless you pause andintentionally quiet that mind
and just you do.
It's like the crickets.
That would be something likebackground noise that you never
pay attention to.
But if you sort of calmyourself a little bit without
(51:34):
having to be so much in yourmind, you have the ability to
suddenly hear things that you'relike hey, has that always been
in the background?
Speaker 1 (51:42):
Yeah, and something that I just realized is that I
like to wake up very early,about 5 am.
Well, I have to drive mydaughter to school, so I have to
wake up early anyway, but Ienjoy that.
The silence of the morning, thefirst rays of light and the
(52:08):
realization of the day coming.
That's very therapeutic.
Speaker 2 (52:13):
Very therapeutic.
Yes, absolutely, Denise.
What would you say your craftmeans to you In this case, now
that you've had the opportunityof so many years of working in
this profession, of identifyingthat it is a craft that you
develop through the years ofpractice, of continuous training
(52:38):
, continuous improvement?
What do you feel this means toyou and I think, even if we
could make the connection now,at this stage of your life,
because I love that you sharedat one point making this
transition, sort of you knowwhat's the next chapter in my
life and being able to have thecourage to make that transition
(53:01):
what does this craft mean to younow, my thoughts.
Speaker 1 (53:03):
I think I like to tell stories and I like to
convey messages and I like tomake people connect with
themselves.
(53:24):
And I used to say that I'm amatchmaker for friends, not in
the romantic sense, but I havethis position for that, uh, for
that assignment, and I, I lovethis and, as an interpreter, I
think I'm I'm always conveyingmessages, uh, and doing this
(53:46):
match making of people, uh,learning something new that they
maybe they didn't, they didn'teven know that they were in need
for that, but I was themessenger, I was the, you know,
on broadcast.
I can do that because we arevery exposed.
(54:07):
So sometimes people reach me onsocial media and say that thank
you for doing that, because Iwould not know what's going on
there without your voice.
And I said, no, that's not true.
You have newspapers and youhave social media and you have
(54:27):
all the methods to learn that.
And then I said, no, denise,take that, Take that, that's
true.
You are saying live, what'sgoing on.
It's not you, it's your voice,but it is you.
You have to choose how to saythat to a Brazilian audience in
a way that can relate to them,that can relate to them and in a
(55:00):
way that even the most standardviewer of the of the network
will understand, because you areusing simpler words for
sometimes complicated stuff, andthat's when my editor mind
enters and solve, and so it's along answer, but I think it's
all connected this need to toconvey message in order to
(55:20):
connect people among them andmake this, make the world better
in a way.
In a very small, it's a very,very tiny part of it, but I
think I'm doing something toimprove people's lives somehow
(55:41):
huge.
Speaker 2 (55:41):
Without that message Many decisions would would not
be made perhaps, or informationwith perhaps simply may not be
(56:01):
received.
And I really liked the, the factthat you sort of recognize that
it's okay to receive thatfeedback or receive that
positive you know just feedbackas an individual and be able to
say yes, because I think itacknowledges, for one, the work
(56:25):
that you've put into this craft.
And, number two, itacknowledges the craft itself
that many individuals perhapsagain to.
It acknowledges the craftitself that many individuals
perhaps again may not recognizebecause you're so behind the
scenes, but if they hear yourvoice, even sometimes just by
the sound of your voice, it'slike okay, I know that I'm going
to receive the information thatI'm seeking just by the sound
(56:50):
of your voice.
So I like that moment very much.
And then I think it's alearning moment for us here as
well, being able to recognizethat it's important that when
someone says thank you, thatthat really is their way of
recognizing what you do and thatit's important that we're open
to that or that we makeourselves open to receiving that
(57:12):
Thank you.
Is that Take it yeah?
Speaker 1 (57:16):
Yeah, it's important because there's hate too, and
people, while while I'm on air,people saying, oh, this is awful
, this is horrible.
How can she say that?
Oh, bad translation Things thatyou on YouTube, you are exposed
to that because they badtranslation Things.
That you on YouTube, you areexposed to that because they
broadcast on YouTube too and youare translating and sometimes
(57:40):
you just it's just in the cornerof your eyes and I said, no,
this is not affecting me, I knowit's.
They would say they hateanything that would come because
it's part of social media andso I would better take this
thank yous that sometimes Ireceive and I have to ignore
(58:04):
this haters, because the hatersare going to hate anything.
Speaker 2 (58:10):
Exactly.
I have just a couple ofquestions left for you before
the close of today's episode,denise, and one of them is even
throughout the years ofexperience that you've now had,
and all of the differentencounters of interpreting,
encounters that you'veexperienced as a professional
interpreter, do you continue tohave some sort of imposter
(58:34):
syndrome to this day, and if so,what is that?
Speaker 1 (58:41):
Every single second, especially when it comes to my
delivery in English.
I feel very insecure about it.
I'm always correcting myself onverb tenses, prepositions, blah
, blah, blah.
And then I I'm working withthat in therapy and I'm thinking
(59:02):
well, the message is there,denise, calm down, calm down.
And sometimes I, when I finisha very important assignment, I
say wow, someone would do thisso much better, so much better
than I just did.
(59:22):
And I say well, but that I wasthere and that was it.
I cannot change that.
Speaker 2 (59:30):
But definitely, yes, imposter syndrome walks with me
every day, every day what issomething that you've learned
from therapy that has supportedyou with that particular topic
that you would be able to sharewith anyone that is listening,
that is also that also feels thesame way.
Speaker 1 (59:55):
My therapist.
She's amazing.
She says, denise, would you bethere until today If you were
that bad?
Would you be called by so manyclients?
Would you be cherished by yourpeers?
Or you'll be invited to speakin a podcast like yours.
(01:00:16):
And if you were that bad,really can you?
Can you?
Can you really look in themirror and say I'm, I'm awful,
I'm terrible with this, uh, withwith all this that you build?
Consider that.
And so every time that impostersyndrome knocks my door, I try
(01:00:43):
to calm down.
This is a side of you that istrying to push you down.
But remember, you were invitedfor a reason.
You are here for a reason.
You would not be here if youdidn't prove that you can do
that.
Speaker 2 (01:01:03):
I love that Such great piece of advice.
She's amazing.
Oh yes absolutely, it soundslike she is and I'm hoping that
that piece of advice is alsogoing to be able to support and
help anyone else that islistening with that same thought
process, present day person.
Say to the Denise that had juststarted as some advice Keep
(01:01:39):
studying, keep studying veryhard.
Speaker 1 (01:01:44):
It's a never ending task, it's for life.
When I went to London, when Iwent to something and I said I
had to finish my English, it wasan illusion.
And this is something that fitsall areas, not only my English,
(01:02:06):
but my interpreting skills, myinvestigative and journalistic
skills.
So keep studying, so keepstudying, just keep studying.
And take risks.
Yes, take risks, take boldrisks, safely, of course.
Do not risk your life, yourhealth or your assets or
(01:02:30):
anything like that.
But if you have two doors andone that you say, well, maybe
I'm not sure, go and try, ofcourse, without harming your
client.
You know, if you're notprepared for medicine, do not
(01:02:51):
take an assignment in medicine,you know.
But take risks and you'll seethat it's worth the rush that
you feel.
Speaker 2 (01:03:08):
Absolutely.
That's such great advice.
I love that you've had theconnections that you made
throughout your previous careerand how that sort of bridged
over into your new career hassupported you, has expanded you,
and I feel that that goes foranyone.
(01:03:28):
So, even if you are thinkingthat one thing does not relate
to the other, honestly I feellike everything is always
connected somehow, andespecially if, like Denise said,
you have two doors and you feeljust this n right, as long as
(01:03:53):
it's not harmful to you orothers, health-wise, of course,
that that is your little nudgethere that is telling you to
take that risk.
Denise, if there is something,a story, that you would like to
share at this point in time,just any story about your career
what would that be for thisparticular audience?
Speaker 1 (01:04:24):
I have a difficult one that I left as an
interpreter because peoplealways ask me what was the most
difficult assignment that youhad, most difficult piece that
you have to translate on TV?
And once, during the war onUkraine, maybe the first week or
the first 10 days of war, therewas a piece that was absolutely
(01:04:45):
crushing, that was terrible,and I had watched that piece
before because on CNN somereports go on air several times
a day, as in any newscast, andso I knew what was coming.
And it was a father thatlearned that his wife and two
(01:05:09):
children had died in anexplosion and he learned that
seeing a picture on social media, because they were trying to
live, I think, with Kiev, theyare trying to leave the city,
and they were using this sort ofpieces of luggage and they
separated.
He saw a picture of the piecesof luggage and he recognized
(01:05:33):
that and and the report hadpictures of this family
vacationing and they were thesame age, the children, the same
age as my children, and and theanchor she was, she was
destroyed TV I had to translateher, she was destroyed, crying
(01:05:57):
and crying with the pictures andeverything.
And then, the first time thatthis report went on air.
I told the editor this wasdevastating, it was terrible,
and he said yes, and then halfan hour later he said Denise, we
(01:06:20):
are going to broadcast that.
You have to translate it.
And at the time I had a boothpartner with me, renato, and I
said, Renato, we'll have to dothat part.
So I had a, my computer, I, Iwent to YouTube, put some cat
(01:06:41):
videos, a very long one.
I love cat videos, they arevery relaxing and so I I went.
When, when the the piecestarted started, I was listening
to the report but looking atthe cats and looking at cats
(01:07:01):
doing some messy stuff, and Iwent so I could go for that.
I don't know, maybe four, five,six minutes.
And when it finished I wasshaking, I could not speak
anymore, my throat was closedand I took five minutes coffee
(01:07:22):
and half an hour later wasworking again and that was it.
But it was the piece ofmaterial that I had to deal
differently.
I knew it would be devastatingand cats are very helpful.
Speaker 2 (01:07:38):
Yes, I knew there had to be some sort of maybe
technique that you use, eventhough it may not be something
you consciously think about, butI think that there are some
things that we can absolutely doto prepare.
In this case it was before,because it knew it was coming.
Thankfully, you knew it wascoming.
If we could be grateful forsomething so that you could put
(01:08:02):
together something to mentallyprepare for that impact, if you
would.
So thank you for sharing thatstory.
I think these are the storiesthat truly make our profession
in addition to everything else,but you know, there's real
people behind that story andthere's real emotions behind
(01:08:25):
these stories, which is what isso unique about our profession
and so lovely about it.
I definitely think that you arethe messenger matchmaker
Absolutely.
And I want to thank you so verymuch for the opportunity to be
here today with this audience,and it's been an absolute
(01:08:46):
pleasure.
Speaker 1 (01:08:47):
Thank you, it was such an amazing conversation.
It went to different parts andit was so rich and thank you so
much for having me.
Thank you Sorry about myEnglish and thank you.
Welcome to Brand the Interpreter, the podcast for
language professionals aroundthe world.
It's about time.
By the way, it's 75 years.
I've been the same old, sameold, day in and day out.
There was the Bernie Sandersevent, where we both interpreted
from behind the bar.
Wait, really.
I say go for it.
(00:22):
I second that your new drivetime podcast Brand the Inter.
Second that your new Drive Timepodcast Brand the interpreter
your stories are profession.
Hey, thanks for tuning in.
Hook (00:35):
Once during the war on Ukraine, maybe the first week or
the first 10 days of war, therewas a piece that was absolutely
crushing, that was terrible,and it was a father that learned
that his wife and two childrenhad died in an explosion.
(00:56):
And he learned that seeing apicture on social media.
Welcome back to a brand newseason, season seven of Brand.
The Interpreter.
This is Mireya, your host, andI am so excited to be able to
(01:19):
repeat these words and even moreso excited that you are here
joining me.
If you are new here, welcome.
I very much hope that today'sepisode is enjoyable and that
perhaps it inspires you tolisten to previous episodes of
all the great guests that havebeen on the show since the
beginning of this podcast.
If you are a returning listener, thank you.
Thank you for your continuoussupport.
(01:41):
Thank you for the messages thatcame through asking if I was
going to come back.
I think for any content creator,regardless of the size of our
platforms, whether you aresomebody that has a huge
following or someone that has avery close knit following, it
makes a difference to know thatindividuals are actually not
(02:02):
only in support of your work, toknow that individuals are
actually not only in support ofyour work but look forward to
your work.
So thank you for beingsupportive of this podcast.
I had other individuals thatsaid I've caught up with all
your episodes.
I was behind and now I'm caughtup and ready for more.
So here it is, here's more.
Take just about a minute tosort of give you what was going
on, an idea of what was going onbehind the scenes, just so you
(02:26):
know why there was a delay orwhat occurred, in case you're
curious.
So in the beginning of the year, right before I was getting
ready to launch, I lost my voice, an experience I had never had,
not to this level at least,where I had little to no voice
for over a month, and that wasthe very first time I've ever
(02:47):
experienced that.
And in conversations quoteunquote conversations with
someone, they had mentioned thatsometimes there is reason why
our bodies do what they do andwe've talked about this on the
platform as well in terms ofbeing able to pause long enough
to identify some of these signsthat we get in, perhaps in
(03:11):
response to what we're goingthrough.
And indeed, at the time I wasgoing through some changes, both
personal that I moved from theWest Coast to the East Coast,
which was a very drastic move,very sudden move for a variety
of reasons, but it was a verysudden move, something I did not
(03:33):
have planned.
So that in and of itself was adrastic change.
There was also professionalchanges the onset of a new
responsibility, of a new roleand then a new project that came
my way an unexpected newproject and and, of course, the
podcast.
(03:54):
And so, anyway, I felt thatthere was a reason at that point
now, especially after thisindividual said, especially
after this individual said thatcould potentially be the
universe's way of saying youneed a pause.
And so that was theunintentional pause of the
podcast, because, I mean, I hadno other choice, I had no voice,
(04:17):
so I allowed myself theopportunity to really sit in
that decision and saying, okay,maybe this was my forced pause.
I need a pause because therewas a lot of things coming at me
from different angles.
Professionally, there was anopportunity for a different role
that I decided that I wanted totake.
(04:39):
I wanted to experience that ina different setting, and so,
professionally, I took on a newrole.
But then came a brand newproject, and it was going to be
a pretty big project for myself,which hopefully at some point
I'll be able to share more about.
But that meant a very limitedamount of time, and so I had to
(05:03):
make the decision that I neededto step away from those things
that I had control over, beingable to step away in order for
me to be fully present and andbeing able to take on or do the
things that I really like fully,not, as they say, have fast.
I want to make sure that I amdoing things because I love to
(05:27):
do them, because I want to dothem and I can do them with
great intention, and that'sreally the podcast for me.
The podcast is something that Ilove to do and I don't want to
ever get to the point where Ihate it because I'm doing too
much.
Currently, the podcast is setup where I'm your producer, I'm
(05:47):
your host, I'm your editor, I'myour content creator for it.
Eventually hopefully soon thatwon't be the case, so it is very
time consuming.
Anyway, all that to say that Ihad to be intentional about the
use of my time and what I wastaking a part in.
I still am.
I'm always very intentional intrying to say, if I'm invited to
(06:08):
be a part of something, thatthat something has good merit to
it, that there is somethingthat I can contribute to it, if
I'm going to contribute my time,that it's something that I can
contribute to it fully, and ifnot, then I do decline.
So, anyway, that was the twomain reasons Pretty big.
(06:29):
Like I said, one of them.
There was absolutely no choice.
I can't have a podcast withouta voice.
That would be an interestingjust an interesting podcast to
have without a voice and theother.
It was very intentional for meto say I need to be able to step
away and use my time wisely andavoid getting to the point of
(06:53):
burnout.
But it looks like now I am in aplace where I can come back to
it, fully embrace it.
I feel like I'm just giving mypodcast this big, amazing hug
after not being with it for sucha long time.
It feels like and just reallyenjoying the conversations and
(07:15):
having that feeling again ofhaving fun while doing it and
being excited to broadcast a newepisode, to broadcast a new
episode.
So let's jump right in where weleft off.
I love to start the beginning ofthe new seasons of the podcast
with an episode that helpsinspire us, that helps to remind
(07:36):
us about the importance of thework that we do and potentially
even be able to inspire us forgrowth.
I feel like I try to bring thatin in every episode, but this
particular episode, I'm excitedfor it to be the very first,
because it talks about thegrowth and the expansion both in
personal and the professionallife.
(07:57):
And since I'm starting thestart of the new season in the
middle of the year, I can'tbelieve I'm saying that it's
already June.
We're like halfway of the year.
I can't believe I'm saying thatit's already June.
We're like halfway through theyear.
That's incredible.
Anyway, I'm hoping that ifyou're in a bit of a slump, or
maybe you are thinking aboutwhether or not this continues to
(08:19):
be something that you want tocontinue doing, or if you're
just starting and are unsure,maybe, how to begin, maybe this
episode will help re-inspire youinto continuing in this
profession or maybe evenexpanding in the profession.
So let's continue where we leftoff.
(08:39):
Today's episode brings us DeniseBobadilla, a Portuguese
conference interpreter thatspecializes in broadcast
interpreting.
We had a wonderful conversationabout her experiences, of
course, as an interpreter, butalso her experiences in
journalism, and how these twoworlds collided with each other
(09:00):
and sort of fused and havehelped her to be in the place
where she currently is as aconference interpreter
broadcasting live events.
But of course, as per usualwith my conversations with the
guests on the show, we not onlytalk about interpreting.
We also spoke, in Denise's case, about the imposter syndrome.
(09:21):
We spoke about situations inwhich we have to make a decision
, and these decisions ultimatelylead to personal or
professional growth theexpansion moment, if you will.
She shares with us impactfulstories of her day-to-day as a
broadcast interpreter,particularly for CNN, and we
(09:42):
delve into all kinds of othertopics, of course.
So, without further ado, pleasewelcome Denise Bobadia to the
show.
Denise, it is a pleasure tohave you here on this new season
of Brand the InterpreterWelcome.
It's a pleasure and an honor tobe here.
Thank you for inviting me.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
Thank you, Denise.
Would you share with theaudience where you're joining us
from today?
Speaker 1 (10:09):
Today I'm in a city called Ubatuba, which is just on
the beach here and in the stateof Sao Paulo, but I live in Sao
Paulo, so it's a beautiful dayhere.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
It's autumn, but it's hot and it's a beautiful day,
amazing, joining us all the wayfrom Brazil.
Denise, would you mind sharingwith us a little bit more about
little Denise, sharing perhapswith us a fond childhood memory
of where you grew up?
Speaker 1 (10:40):
Well, I'm from a working class city in the
outskirts of Sao Paulo and mymom is a teacher, was a teacher.
She's retired.
My father was an accountant.
He died very early.
I was 10 when he died.
I have an older brother and ayounger sister and we had a very
(11:03):
family-closed, neat environment.
We used to go to the countrysideto visit relatives and I
developed my passion for theEnglish language very early
because I liked to listen tomusic uh, the beatles or pop
(11:26):
music.
And then I went to rock musicand when I was 13 I guess, I I
was completely crazy about thesmiths, the british band, and I
started translating their lyricsand I was some sort of a
reference during my high schoolyears as someone who knew
(11:52):
everything about music and etc.
And then I studied journalism,I became a journalist, a
journalist, and when I graduatedand I was already working in
the market.
But I decided to move to Londonfor a while to live the music,
so to speak, and to, as I callat the time, to finish my
(12:17):
English studies and I realizedthat I would never, ever finish.
It's a work in progressthroughout my whole life but it
was a fantastic time to livethere and a fantastic time for
music too.
Today.
I'm not so tuned in music as Iwas, but I think that's what
(12:38):
drove me back then.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
So what was it about journalism?
You think that caught yourattention to the point that you
wanted to pursue it as a career.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
I like to write and I think I'm a good writer.
I like to make storytelling ofeverything and that's one of the
aspects.
But I'm also very connected toworld events and I I've been
(13:10):
always like that my whole life.
So once I said I think I was atthe very beginning of my career
that my dream job would be toto win the lottery, and spent my
life going to different placesworldwide covering issues from
election in Japan to a bigfestival in the US and etc.
(13:35):
And just going covering andwriting articles.
It was sort of a crazy jobbecause it was about working,
but it was.
It is something that is verydear to my heart and, funnily
enough, here I am today workingwith a word events, breaking
(13:55):
news, et cetera.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
I won't tell anyone, but did you win the lotto?
Speaker 1 (13:59):
No, never.
So that dream is still pending.
Not the money part, not themoney part, not the money part.
I think I go today, I goeverywhere while working, but on
my screen, only Through myscreen, I would say yeah, many
(14:20):
of us can relate to that.
Speaker 2 (14:22):
Denise, share with us a memory you treasure from
London, once you made your wayout of your hometown, out of
your home country and into thiswe can call brand new world.
Is there something that youvividly remember?
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Ah, so many.
There are so many experiences.
I think I lived there for overtwo years and I was never tired
of exploring the city.
Someone once told me well, whydidn't you travel to I don't
know, to Thailand or to EasternEurope or whatever?
(15:00):
I said no, I had everything inLondon.
I was absolutely in love withthe city, absolutely in love
with the musical scene and thefriends that I had there.
But it was tough.
I was away from my family, Icould not work properly or could
(15:22):
not apply for a master's orsomething or another degree
because it would be veryexpensive for me.
So but when I was there, Iworked as a journalist for some
Brazilian outlets and theexchange rate was very good at
(15:46):
the time for Brazilian reais andBritish pounds, so the money
was worth it.
And then the inflation came andthe scenario today is totally
different.
But at the time I was verylucky to live there and I could
work for Brazilian outlets andlive there quite comfortably for
a Brazilian immigrant.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
You're there for a couple of years finishing your
studies, and then do you go backhome or do you travel elsewhere
after that.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
No, no.
I just came back to Brazil andI restarted my career as a
journalist and I took adifferent path.
Before I went to England, Iused to work in a daily outlet,
working mostly with police andcity issues and city issues, and
(16:52):
then I started working withtourism and more fancy stuff.
So I had experience all aroundin journalism, except for sports
Not my cup, not your cup of tea.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
No, no, no, no after having experienced so many
different sectors in journalism,had you developed a favorite uh
sector or one that youappreciated more?
Speaker 1 (17:16):
uh, music, I I music and cinema movies.
Um, at the time the, the mainbra outlet called Folha de São
Paulo had a correspondent in thecity but he was very tuned into
politics and economy and theeconomy and world events and he
(17:39):
was not at all concerned withcultural affairs.
So as a freelancer I got theassignments for everything that
was happening in London at thetime and it was a very fruitful
time the late 90s and I startedtranslating there too, because
(18:02):
the outlet had an agreement withthe independent and I could
translate as many articles asthey would like to.
So that's where my parallelcareer started as a translator
at that time.
Speaker 2 (18:18):
And thus begins your journey into the language
services sector, without youknowing, of course, at this
point, because it's at an ad hocbasis.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
Yes.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
So that was translation.
When were you asked tointerpret for the first time
that you recall, in a situationwhere you really said, wow, that
was actually a lot morechallenging than I had imagined.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
Actually, I hadn't had any experience in
interpreting before I realizedthat I could be an interpreter.
And it was quite shockingbecause I was looking for a
different path for my career,because in the early 10s,
journalism was in a very poorsituation and my husband is also
(19:10):
a journalist and we have twokids and I was just looking for
something else to do because Irealized that it wouldn't last
to be able to live out ofjournalism for longer.
But then I read about atraining for interpreters and I
(19:32):
was surprised because I thoughtthat interpreting was like a
given, a gift that ones had,like being a soprano, like being
a marathonist, and none ofthese three would require to
have a gift from god.
You can train to be amarathonist, you can train to be
(19:53):
a soprano and you can train tobe an interpreter.
And so I start studying thetopic and then I start
connecting all the dots in myhead about all the interpreters
that I met during my life.
That's, of course, denise,that's feasible.
And so I start studying.
(20:13):
I took the best course in Brazil.
We invested a lot in that, butI took the best course in Brazil
for interpreters, which is atwo year training, very intense,
called Alumni Brazil forInterpreters, which is a
two-year training, very intense,called Alumni, and also another
(20:34):
training that was a year longin the city of Curitiba, but in
specific weekends, not the wholeyear.
So I studied a lot and I studya lot too today.
I take at least two trainingsper year one long, one shorter
depending on the year, and sothat was that.
That was in 2015.
I started at Lumini course in2015 and finished in 2016.
(21:01):
And I started working in 2016with the general market, the
private market for business,corporate pharmacy, mining,
legal you name it.
So the corporate market is andeven some medicine assignments
(21:23):
too.
Speaker 2 (21:24):
Your specialty in interpreting is conference
interpreting.
Is that correct?
Yes, yes.
What was that first experiencelike for you, going out into the
field, now taking on your firstgig, your first assignment as a
trained interpreter?
How did you prepare or how didyou see yourself within the
context of?
Speaker 1 (21:56):
going into it as a trained professional interpreter
.
Experience during the coursesthat I, that I that I took at
the time, the real deal wasabsolutely tiring and it was.
It was an area that I'm trained, which is it was a corporate
(22:17):
communications event today, theythink, very long one with my
business partner.
She was then a friend, but we,from then, we started developing
a relationship and today she'smy business partner and and it
was also her first gig too, andI remember that when I, when I,
(22:39):
when I arrived at home, I was Idon't know a few meters away
from my family and they weretalking over dinner or something
, my husband and my children andI started listening to them.
I think is it English orPortuguese what they are saying?
Am I translating?
And they're, of course they'respeaking in Portuguese.
(23:00):
It was dinner, but my mind wasin Portuguese.
It was dinner, but my mind was,I don't know, it was a mess.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Ah yes, the mind of the interpreter right, and it
had not shut off yet after anassignment.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
Yeah, yeah, we are always trying to find this.
What is this sound coming from?
What is this language?
Come on, denise, it's just anormal conversation, don't worry
.
And that was it.
(23:34):
It was the word that I takefrom that, too, today is it was
tiring, it was tiring, yes, yes,all the preparation and then,
of course, the work itself, andthen the aftermath.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
right, your brain continues to move forward.
But in terms of that firstassignment and you, as a trained
interpreter, now being able tomake a connection with the
profession, do you recallthinking this?
Is it or was it more like whatdid I get myself into?
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Definitely I was, I was, I thought that I was,
although I was tired, I wasready and it was exciting and it
was.
I felt so happy.
I felt so happy and I was afterat the time, nearly two years,
because I was still training.
I felt I it was the rightdecision at the right time.
(24:23):
I had the best colleaguesduring my training.
Well, my business partner workswith me too today and I met her
.
I met her during the training.
So, yeah, it was fulfilling.
I was absolutely happy.
Speaker 2 (24:41):
Yes, that's wonderful .
Talk to us now a little bitabout what you feel, now that
you've been in the field for anumber of years.
What you feel to date was thatsignificant interpreting
assignment or assignments thathelp to take your interpreting
career to the next level, totake your interpreting career to
(25:03):
the next level.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
There are so many, I could not say just one.
I had a client for one year in2017-18.
He was the CEO of apharmaceutical company in the US
and he was trying to openmarket for his business in
Brazil and I was his interpreterall over the country and it was
(25:33):
challenging.
It was fun too, but it waschallenging because I had
meetings and I had all thepersonal.
But it was challenging becauseI had meetings and I had all the
personal things to deal withand I had to read the room of
the possible business partnersthat he was having conversations
with and it was a very althoughit was a very tense scenario.
(26:00):
It was also very relaxingbecause we are close.
I had a Brazilian businesswomanwho hired me and we are always
the three of us and all thepartners having all these
(26:21):
meetings and in beautiful placesall over Brazil, so I went to
fantastic hotels and restaurants.
Speaker 2 (26:29):
Brazil.
So I went to fantastic hotelsand restaurants and so it was
quite an experience.
Have you found that, in yourwork as an interpreter, your
experiences as a journalist orin journalism have come into
your work as an interpreterMeaning?
Have you found that, thanks tothose experiences, it has
supported you as an interpreter?
Speaker 1 (26:50):
Oh, yes, definitely.
I think we, as a journalist, wedeveloped what we call an
editor mindset, so we are alwaysediting what's going on in
terms of words, in terms offacts, in terms of realities
(27:12):
that are developing around us.
So this is very importantbecause, as interpreters, we are
communicators.
Too important because, asinterpreters, we are
communicators.
We have to learn how to bestsay something or to convey a
message in a way that will speakto the audience.
(27:36):
And as journalists, as I toldyou before, I worked in
different areas in journalism,from police and crime and the
most impoverished areas in SaoPaulo to the VIP travel luxury
side of it.
So I learned how to write forboth audiences for both
(27:59):
audiences.
And when we are interpreting,we have to take care of our
register to talk to the audiencein a way that they will get the
message as clear as possible.
So this editor in mind helpedme all my life in all areas as a
(28:21):
translator, as an interpreter,as a mother, as a businesswoman.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
So it's all around their quote-unquote past lives
is that we identify very manytimes a meeting point between
that past life, or those pastexperiences, and your current
life as an interpreter.
Share with us now how you gotinto interpreting for breaking
news or live broadcasting ontelevision.
Speaker 1 (29:00):
Well, as a journalist with a 20-year career
experience, I developed a lot ofrelationships, a lot of
relationships, and one of theclients the first client that I
had the corporate communicationevent that I mentioned was a
fellow from journalist that Imet years ago and I told him
(29:22):
well, I'm an interpreter now andif you had anything and he
offered me my first assignmentand I had this approach with
several colleagues, severaljournalists, and when CNN was
starting its operation in Brazilnot streaming, not broadcasting
(29:45):
, sorry, but starting to hirepeople and to have this word
around that they would soon beon air I spoke with some
colleagues and I decided that itwas something that I would like
to do and I would fight for itand I did.
(30:07):
We did, my partner and I.
We went there, we took testsand we had meetings and we
studied a lot for all the testsand then they choose us and it
was 2020.
Was february 2020?
The first yes, and the firstthe?
(30:32):
The day that the first day oncnn was march 15, 2020, and my
first TV interpretation on therewas a debate between Bernie
Sanders and Joe Biden.
It was the Democratic Partydebate on that day and from then
(31:00):
on, we just started coveringCOVID-19, the pandemic and all
the issues in politics and theUS elections.
And since it was the pandemicyear the worst of the pandemic
(31:21):
2020 and 2021, but also thefirst year of CNN Brazil we had
to go in person and it was scary.
All the safety protocols andall the health protocols and not
knowing what.
You never know if you're goingto be able to be there in one
(31:42):
day or two, and then you learnthat someone in the technical
department was suffering fromCOVID somewhere, or an anchor or
reporter, and it was very tense.
And sometimes we since theywere also, they were just
(32:04):
beginning sometimes we spentlong hours working in topics
that they would not cover todaywith the same strength that they
covered at that time, becausethey were learning too.
It was amazing.
It was amazing.
Speaker 2 (32:20):
I like how you said we decided to just go for it.
I feel that at this point in mylife, I have learned that those
are the moments of growth, ofexpansion, whether that be
professionally or personally.
Decide to go after whateverthat may be, in spite of the
(32:47):
fear, in spite of the potentialbelief that it's unreachable,
that those are the moments wegrow.
What do you feel thatparticular experience taught you
?
When you said I want to fightfor it, let's just do it?
What do you believe it's taughtyou?
Speaker 1 (33:02):
It was risky, but I thought it was so natural.
And then when I took that tosome other interpreters, they
told me you are crazy.
I would never do something likethat.
I would never be so exposed orso in an environment that you
(33:24):
never know what's going tohappen.
You know, without properpreparation, you are crazy.
And I thought, well, maybe I am.
And I would say that I'm arisky person and I don't care.
I take risks and I know thechallenges, but I know also that
(33:45):
the rewards that I can get fromthat.
I think it was worthwhile tojust go.
And Natalie, my businesspartner, she was also very into
it and she was never, neverscared.
And in this first assignments,from the very beginning, we
(34:08):
learned that there was nevergoing to be a due moment and
preparation was probably out ofour scope, because one day we
are, uh, you're scheduled to,maybe trump, donald trump, who
was the president at the time,would have a statement or
(34:31):
immigration, something like that.
And then all of a sudden, uh,there was an earthquake
somewhere and we'd have to shiftour minds and start building a
new vocab on an earthquake, ondisasters.
On this part of it wasn'tTurkey, turkey is recent, but I
(34:54):
would say Turkey and this partof Turkey and the name of the
cities and everything in onesecond.
We learned from that time, fromthat first year, because things
were developing very quickly.
Speaker 2 (35:09):
Yes, absolutely, and I feel that I mean that's
sometimes, in essence, what hasto happen if we're going to
expand on anything is number onetake that risk, because I think
that that's the threshold,potentially, that's keeping us
where we're at and have theability to grow and expand.
(35:30):
We take that risk and then takeon the challenges that come
with that risk in order for usto grow.
So it's not just about takingthe risk and all is well.
It's about then knowing how nowto navigate those particular
challenges.
In your specific experience, itwas about taking that leap.
(35:51):
And did you have to knock onthe door for this experience?
Or was this an opportunity thatwas open and you said I'm going
to decide, I'm going to, I'mgoing to decide to go for it?
Do you recall?
Is it something that theydidn't know they needed and you
went, sort of hypotheticallyspeaking?
You went knocking on the doorand said, hey, you might need
(36:12):
some interpreters.
Speaker 1 (36:13):
Both.
Both because, uh, I read abouttheir, their, uh, their
operations in Brazil from thevery start, so I was there.
I say, hey, you're going toneed interpreters.
Oh, yes, maybe, but that's agood idea.
And then later they say, oh,remember, they told us what
(36:38):
about you, come here and we havea meeting?
What about you, come here andwe have a meeting, and what
about we test you and test allthese interpreters too?
And then I think it was worththis first approach definitely.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
Most definitely, and I think that serves as for any
freelancers that are listening.
You know that that's sometimeswhat it takes, and when we, when
we think about it and thinkabout, did the opportunity come
knocking at your door or did yougo knocking at the, at the, at
the opportunities door?
And in this case, yes, you'reright, it was both.
(37:18):
However, you did sort of sayI'm here, right, this is who I
am and I'm here is mostsuccessful.
Speaker 1 (37:26):
It's about how I changed my career after 40,
because I started this processwhen I was I'm 51.
(37:49):
Today I was 44, 43.
And so I wrote about it and oneof the main topics was you have
to reach out for those whoworked with you in your previous
careers.
Maybe you are not close to them, it doesn't matter.
(38:09):
You just go there and say, hi,remember me, I don't care if you
don't, but I'm an interpreternow, or I'm a dentist now,
whatever.
And if you, maybe I know thatyour business does this and that
and interpreters are necessaryfor this and that situation in
(38:32):
your business.
So maybe we can I don't know.
I can send you some things oryou can even talk whatever.
Some things or you can eventalk whatever, and I had my
first clients from that approachand I think it works
beautifully, in whichever areayou are.
Speaker 2 (38:57):
Yeah, I feel like you know, I see that very
predominantly in, at least herein the States, our real estate
agents, where they're alwayssaying you know, or that you're
in real estate, so they tellthem to share with everyone that
(39:26):
they know just you know, in theevent that they might need to
purchase a home.
And then, of course, they'realways consistently asking for
that referral from you if youwere their client.
And I feel like that should beabsolutely the same approach,
especially if you arefreelancing is being able to
tell the world what you do.
And I love how, in thebeginning, you did say the the
(39:52):
my initial mentality, but it wasjust like a by default, a given
.
That's just something that youdo if you're by, you know
bilingual, if you know twolanguages or more, that you
write default and interpreter.
And I think it's important thatwe also recognize that.
If we think that before weactually get involved in what
the profession is actually likeand the amount of training that
(40:14):
goes behind it, imagine otherindividuals and their lack of
understanding of what a trueprofessional interpreter has to
go through or what it requiresso for us to be able to say, hey
, I went through training andthis is what I do now.
Think about that, Should youever need someone or should you
ever hear someone?
(40:35):
And it does go a long way,You're absolutely right, Because
it plants the seed just inthinking wait a minute, I do
know someone actually.
And then the referral, such asyour corporate connection that
you had in the beginning.
Right, they ended up meetingsomeone.
Speaker 1 (40:49):
And I have a trainer which is also a friend.
She always says this andwhenever someone can approach
you to say oh, your professionis so beautiful, I cannot
imagine how you do that.
It's like magic, because youare listening and talking at the
same time and thinking and wehave to stress, it's training.
(41:13):
It's not a gift.
It's not something that I wasall of this world gifted for
that.
It's training.
It's about taking this veryseriously, as you do in other
professions.
It's about training, it's aboutcommitment and it's about
(41:36):
training.
Speaker 2 (41:38):
I love that.
That's so true.
It's like any other profession.
It's about training andcommitment.
You've had to interpret live nowsince that experience with CNN
and you've mentioned a couple ofpretty I feel would be pretty
impactful just type ofinterpreting encounters, and
(41:59):
it's impactful for anyinterpreter, given that you
might have an encounter likethat every so often, an
impactful encounter in whichmaybe the news that is being
shared or the topic is prettysensitive.
But I think that when you arelive, let's say you're
broadcasting live and for a newsbroadcaster, out of all things,
(42:22):
particularly in very specificmoments in time, that can be
very often that type of topicand theme can be quite often.
So I'd like to transition nowinto the conversation of your
particular experience withbroadcasting live, but
(42:43):
broadcasting with some of thesevery sensitive and just high
pressure environments beginningwith COVID-19, because you begin
not to say that it's your firstassignment simultaneous, but
it's your first assignment ofcontinuous assignments and live
broadcasting with something assensitive as health and we all
(43:08):
know everything that came forquite some time, one thing after
another.
Tell me what that experiencewas like and then bring us to
present day and what it is thatyou're currently having to
interpret when you'rebroadcasting and how that has
impacted your work andpotentially even yourself as an
(43:32):
interpreter, as a professional,I would say that the most
challenging aspect of coveringthe pandemic for broadcasting
was that we are living thesituation.
Speaker 1 (43:47):
We are all living that.
When I started interpreting thesituation in Gaza or in the
Ukraine, or an earthquake or amass shooting, I'm detached.
It can be absolutely crushing,but I'm detached While when we
(44:12):
were covering the pandemic,every time we had a breakthrough
in science or new numbers thatwere shocking, that was
affecting all of us.
So when we mentioned that maybea possibility of a medicine was
(44:41):
not right or the vaccine thatwe're waiting would take another
year to be developed orsomething like that, it was
something that I was translatingand at the same time, I was
feeling and I had to learn howto focus on the message and
consider the impact later and Ithink I learned how to do that
(45:07):
during the pandemic and notthinking about what I was
translating Just go, just go.
And this was helpful in morestressful situations that came
later, such as the war coverage,the Gulf Wars and the
(45:28):
withdrawal from Afghanistan,which was very traumatic Because
, although I was not there,anything could happen in one
second in front of my eyes in ahuge screen that I had in front
of my eyes, so I was justfocusing on words and just go
(45:51):
and you may think about thatlater or you just don't have to
think about that later.
Just do your job, justinterpret, just be truthful and
stick to the facts, and that'sit.
Speaker 2 (46:09):
Do you feel that, in a way, the journalism component
also came in and supported youduring these particular moments
in time as an?
Speaker 1 (46:20):
interpreter in situations of violence, of loss,
and I had to deal with that inperson and I had to deal with
(46:40):
then asking questions, not usingsomeone else's words but
pressuring for the words usingmy words, and it was difficult
and I was young and I was readyto, you know, to just go and
later I would say that after Ibecame a mother, I would never,
(47:02):
I would never do what I did as ajournalist at the beginning,
working with mass shooting,violence and everything that I
had to at that time, becausewhen you, when you have a child,
you just can't sleep afterseeing something that some, some
(47:22):
things that I, that I watchedin person.
But as an interpreter, it'sdifferent.
Speaker 2 (47:32):
At the beginning of our conversation you mentioned,
uh, uh, a moment that I think wecan all relate as interpreters,
which is the inability tosometimes shut off your
interpreting brain right, justtrying to just distinguish the
languages.
And how would you say that intothe other language?
(47:54):
How do you disconnect, if atall, from experiences of such
high pressure, to make thatdisconnection after you walk
away?
Because at the end of the day,we are human and it's really
difficult, particularly, I find,with the interpreting brain, to
really make that disconnection.
(48:16):
What do you do personally toensure that yourself is taken
care of, after havingconsistently been a part of
content that can be prettyimpactful, I would say, at times
?
Speaker 1 (48:35):
that can be pretty impactful, I would say at times.
Well, it's strange, but I don'thave any specific tool for that
.
I'm a very privileged person inthe sense that I live in a
green area, I'm surrounded bynature, I live in the outskirts
(48:55):
of the city, in the green beltof Sao Paulo.
I'm not rich far far from thatbut my house is surrounded by
trees and that's rich, and sothis connection with nature,
with my family, helps me and Iwork out a lot too, and I think
(49:18):
endorphin it's powerful.
But I don't have any specifictool to deal with secondary
trauma.
I should, but I shouldn't,because I just turn off and turn
on and I work and I stopped,and then I look at my
(49:42):
surroundings and let's go, yeah.
Speaker 2 (49:45):
No, that's great.
I actually feel that, perhapsunbeknownst or maybe not
intentional, but the beingsurrounded by beautiful green
nature is quite powerful,absolutely, and I completely
agree that physical activity andthe endorphins that that
(50:05):
produces, I'm certain that'squite helpful too.
So, perhaps not thinking aboutit, oh, I have to go out into
nature, I have to go exercise inorder to get this out of my
mind.
Maybe it's just the fact thatit's it's a common practice for
you that that may be potentiallywhat is helping you, at least
for your mind, not to dwell onsome of these topics, because
(50:28):
we've heard many interpreterexperiences, heard many
interpreter experiences.
Vicarious trauma is a realthing for many, many in the
field, and so I appreciate youeven having shared that, and
it's I feel many people do talkabout taking long walks in
nature, and that's in anyprofession, that's with anything
, just on being able to dealwith stress.
(50:50):
So, so that that's great.
Surround yourself with natureand include some physical
activity and listen to thesilence.
Speaker 1 (51:00):
the crickets and the birds and the, the eventual you
know someone shouting somewhereor something, but just tune into
this, this silence, this is.
This is good.
I like that.
Tune into this silence.
This is good.
Speaker 2 (51:13):
I like that Tune into the silence and then you hear
things that you don't typicallywould hear in your day-to-day,
unless you pause andintentionally quiet that mind
and just you do.
It's like the crickets.
That would be something likebackground noise that you never
pay attention to.
But if you sort of calmyourself a little bit without
(51:34):
having to be so much in yourmind, you have the ability to
suddenly hear things that you'relike hey, has that always been
in the background?
Speaker 1 (51:42):
Yeah, and something that I just realized is that I
like to wake up very early,about 5 am.
Well, I have to drive mydaughter to school, so I have to
wake up early anyway, but Ienjoy that.
The silence of the morning, thefirst rays of light and the
(52:08):
realization of the day coming.
That's very therapeutic.
Speaker 2 (52:13):
Very therapeutic.
Yes, absolutely, Denise.
What would you say your craftmeans to you In this case, now
that you've had the opportunityof so many years of working in
this profession, of identifyingthat it is a craft that you
develop through the years ofpractice, of continuous training
(52:38):
, continuous improvement?
What do you feel this means toyou and I think, even if we
could make the connection now,at this stage of your life,
because I love that you sharedat one point making this
transition, sort of you knowwhat's the next chapter in my
life and being able to have thecourage to make that transition
(53:01):
what does this craft mean to younow, my thoughts.
Speaker 1 (53:03):
I think I like to tell stories and I like to
convey messages and I like tomake people connect with
themselves.
(53:24):
And I used to say that I'm amatchmaker for friends, not in
the romantic sense, but I havethis position for that, uh, for
that assignment, and I, I lovethis and, as an interpreter, I
think I'm I'm always conveyingmessages, uh, and doing this
(53:46):
match making of people, uh,learning something new that they
maybe they didn't, they didn'teven know that they were in need
for that, but I was themessenger, I was the, you know,
on broadcast.
I can do that because we arevery exposed.
(54:07):
So sometimes people reach me onsocial media and say that thank
you for doing that, because Iwould not know what's going on
there without your voice.
And I said, no, that's not true.
You have newspapers and youhave social media and you have
(54:27):
all the methods to learn that.
And then I said, no, denise,take that, Take that, that's
true.
You are saying live, what'sgoing on.
It's not you, it's your voice,but it is you.
You have to choose how to saythat to a Brazilian audience in
a way that can relate to them,that can relate to them and in a
(55:00):
way that even the most standardviewer of the of the network
will understand, because you areusing simpler words for
sometimes complicated stuff, andthat's when my editor mind
enters and solve, and so it's along answer, but I think it's
all connected this need to toconvey message in order to
(55:20):
connect people among them andmake this, make the world better
in a way.
In a very small, it's a very,very tiny part of it, but I
think I'm doing something toimprove people's lives somehow
(55:41):
huge.
Speaker 2 (55:41):
Without that message Many decisions would would not
be made perhaps, or informationwith perhaps simply may not be
(56:01):
received.
And I really liked the, the factthat you sort of recognize that
it's okay to receive thatfeedback or receive that
positive you know just feedbackas an individual and be able to
say yes, because I think itacknowledges, for one, the work
(56:25):
that you've put into this craft.
And, number two, itacknowledges the craft itself
that many individuals perhapsagain to.
It acknowledges the craftitself that many individuals
perhaps again may not recognizebecause you're so behind the
scenes, but if they hear yourvoice, even sometimes just by
the sound of your voice, it'slike okay, I know that I'm going
to receive the information thatI'm seeking just by the sound
(56:50):
of your voice.
So I like that moment very much.
And then I think it's alearning moment for us here as
well, being able to recognizethat it's important that when
someone says thank you, thatthat really is their way of
recognizing what you do and thatit's important that we're open
to that or that we makeourselves open to receiving that
(57:12):
Thank you.
Is that Take it yeah?
Speaker 1 (57:16):
Yeah, it's important because there's hate too, and
people, while while I'm on air,people saying, oh, this is awful
, this is horrible.
How can she say that?
Oh, bad translation Things thatyou on YouTube, you are exposed
to that because they badtranslation Things.
That you on YouTube, you areexposed to that because they
broadcast on YouTube too and youare translating and sometimes
(57:40):
you just it's just in the cornerof your eyes and I said, no,
this is not affecting me, I knowit's.
They would say they hateanything that would come because
it's part of social media andso I would better take this
thank yous that sometimes Ireceive and I have to ignore
(58:04):
this haters, because the hatersare going to hate anything.
Speaker 2 (58:10):
Exactly.
I have just a couple ofquestions left for you before
the close of today's episode,denise, and one of them is even
throughout the years ofexperience that you've now had,
and all of the differentencounters of interpreting,
encounters that you'veexperienced as a professional
interpreter, do you continue tohave some sort of imposter
(58:34):
syndrome to this day, and if so,what is that?
Speaker 1 (58:41):
Every single second, especially when it comes to my
delivery in English.
I feel very insecure about it.
I'm always correcting myself onverb tenses, prepositions, blah
, blah, blah.
And then I I'm working withthat in therapy and I'm thinking
(59:02):
well, the message is there,denise, calm down, calm down.
And sometimes I, when I finisha very important assignment, I
say wow, someone would do thisso much better, so much better
than I just did.
(59:22):
And I say well, but that I wasthere and that was it.
I cannot change that.
Speaker 2 (59:30):
But definitely, yes, imposter syndrome walks with me
every day, every day what issomething that you've learned
from therapy that has supportedyou with that particular topic
that you would be able to sharewith anyone that is listening,
that is also that also feels thesame way.
Speaker 1 (59:55):
My therapist.
She's amazing.
She says, denise, would you bethere until today If you were
that bad?
Would you be called by so manyclients?
Would you be cherished by yourpeers?
Or you'll be invited to speakin a podcast like yours.
(01:00:16):
And if you were that bad,really can you?
Can you?
Can you really look in themirror and say I'm, I'm awful,
I'm terrible with this, uh, withwith all this that you build?
Consider that.
And so every time that impostersyndrome knocks my door, I try
(01:00:43):
to calm down.
This is a side of you that istrying to push you down.
But remember, you were invitedfor a reason.
You are here for a reason.
You would not be here if youdidn't prove that you can do
that.
Speaker 2 (01:01:03):
I love that Such great piece of advice.
She's amazing.
Oh yes absolutely, it soundslike she is and I'm hoping that
that piece of advice is alsogoing to be able to support and
help anyone else that islistening with that same thought
process, present day person.
Say to the Denise that had juststarted as some advice Keep
(01:01:39):
studying, keep studying veryhard.
Speaker 1 (01:01:44):
It's a never ending task, it's for life.
When I went to London, when Iwent to something and I said I
had to finish my English, it wasan illusion.
And this is something that fitsall areas, not only my English,
(01:02:06):
but my interpreting skills, myinvestigative and journalistic
skills.
So keep studying, so keepstudying, just keep studying.
And take risks.
Yes, take risks, take boldrisks, safely, of course.
Do not risk your life, yourhealth or your assets or
(01:02:30):
anything like that.
But if you have two doors andone that you say, well, maybe
I'm not sure, go and try, ofcourse, without harming your
client.
You know, if you're notprepared for medicine, do not
(01:02:51):
take an assignment in medicine,you know.
But take risks and you'll seethat it's worth the rush that
you feel.
Speaker 2 (01:03:08):
Absolutely.
That's such great advice.
I love that you've had theconnections that you made
throughout your previous careerand how that sort of bridged
over into your new career hassupported you, has expanded you,
and I feel that that goes foranyone.
(01:03:28):
So, even if you are thinkingthat one thing does not relate
to the other, honestly I feellike everything is always
connected somehow, andespecially if, like Denise said,
you have two doors and you feeljust this n right, as long as
(01:03:53):
it's not harmful to you orothers, health-wise, of course,
that that is your little nudgethere that is telling you to
take that risk.
Denise, if there is something,a story, that you would like to
share at this point in time,just any story about your career
what would that be for thisparticular audience?
Speaker 1 (01:04:24):
I have a difficult one that I left as an
interpreter because peoplealways ask me what was the most
difficult assignment that youhad, most difficult piece that
you have to translate on TV?
And once, during the war onUkraine, maybe the first week or
the first 10 days of war, therewas a piece that was absolutely
(01:04:45):
crushing, that was terrible,and I had watched that piece
before because on CNN somereports go on air several times
a day, as in any newscast, andso I knew what was coming.
And it was a father thatlearned that his wife and two
(01:05:09):
children had died in anexplosion and he learned that
seeing a picture on social media, because they were trying to
live, I think, with Kiev, theyare trying to leave the city,
and they were using this sort ofpieces of luggage and they
separated.
He saw a picture of the piecesof luggage and he recognized
(01:05:33):
that and and the report hadpictures of this family
vacationing and they were thesame age, the children, the same
age as my children, and and theanchor she was, she was
destroyed TV I had to translateher, she was destroyed, crying
(01:05:57):
and crying with the pictures andeverything.
And then, the first time thatthis report went on air.
I told the editor this wasdevastating, it was terrible,
and he said yes, and then halfan hour later he said Denise, we
(01:06:20):
are going to broadcast that.
You have to translate it.
And at the time I had a boothpartner with me, renato, and I
said, Renato, we'll have to dothat part.
So I had a, my computer, I, Iwent to YouTube, put some cat
(01:06:41):
videos, a very long one.
I love cat videos, they arevery relaxing and so I I went.
When, when the the piecestarted started, I was listening
to the report but looking atthe cats and looking at cats
(01:07:01):
doing some messy stuff, and Iwent so I could go for that.
I don't know, maybe four, five,six minutes.
And when it finished I wasshaking, I could not speak
anymore, my throat was closedand I took five minutes coffee
(01:07:22):
and half an hour later wasworking again and that was it.
But it was the piece ofmaterial that I had to deal
differently.
I knew it would be devastatingand cats are very helpful.
Speaker 2 (01:07:38):
Yes, I knew there had to be some sort of maybe
technique that you use, eventhough it may not be something
you consciously think about, butI think that there are some
things that we can absolutely doto prepare.
In this case it was before,because it knew it was coming.
Thankfully, you knew it wascoming.
If we could be grateful forsomething so that you could put
(01:08:02):
together something to mentallyprepare for that impact, if you
would.
So thank you for sharing thatstory.
I think these are the storiesthat truly make our profession
in addition to everything else,but you know, there's real
people behind that story andthere's real emotions behind
(01:08:25):
these stories, which is what isso unique about our profession
and so lovely about it.
I definitely think that you arethe messenger matchmaker
Absolutely.
And I want to thank you so verymuch for the opportunity to be
here today with this audience,and it's been an absolute
(01:08:46):
pleasure.
Speaker 1 (01:08:47):
Thank you, it was such an amazing conversation.
It went to different parts andit was so rich and thank you so
much for having me.
Thank you Sorry about myEnglish and thank you.
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