I’m in the business of getting people talking. To one another. About your product or brand. Or about how they can reach an international audience. My books "Being a successful interpreter: Adding value and delivering excellence" and "Interpreters vs Machines: Can Interpreters Survive in an AI-Dominated World?" are available online and in good book shops.
Jonathan Downie has hosted 60 Episodes.
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38: Interpreting for the EU
18 July 2019 | 1 hr 33 mins
hosts-only, institutions
Interpreting for the large political institutions of this world is quite separate from working on the freelance market. This is why in this episode, the Troublesome Terps take an extra close look at how working for the European Union really is. From the requirements, the scheduling, the different topics (and the lack of invoicing!), this is an episode stuffed to the brim with know how, insights and nuggets covering everything you ever wanted to know about being an interpreter at the EU.
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37: English as Lingua Franca w/ Karin Reithofer
20 June 2019 | 1 hr 13 mins
english, linguistics
Everybody can English - or: a story of ELFs and BSE! English is generally recognized as the number one language around the world, both in the world of business as well as for general communication purposes. Naturally, this begs the question, what impact does it have on the interpreting space? What is the underlying research?
Two thirds of the Troublesome Terps talk about this exact topic to Vienna based researcher and EU-accredited freelance conference interpreter Karin Reithofer-Winter - an interesting discussion worth keeping on! So let us know how English spoken by non-native speakers has impacted and/or influenced your interpreting career!
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36: Interpreting - This is a Woman's World
22 May 2019 | 1 hr 12 mins
gender, hosts-only
While the Troublesome Terps have covered gender in interpreting before already, it is a topic that will never not be relevant. For this reason, Sarah Hickey - conference interpreter and professional researcher at Nimdzi Insights - is joining us this episode to discuss the ‘feminisation’ of conference interpreting from female interpreters' perspectives.
An interesting, well researched and entertaining look into the gender dynamics of the profession! -
35: Talking Business with Florian Faes of Slator.com
17 April 2019 | 1 hr 12 mins
business
Sometimes it feels like language professionals forget that they are just that - professionals with a business "attached" to them. While being a wordsmith or having "a way with words" is perfectly fine, the economic elements must not be forgotten.
Enter Florian Faes, co-founder and managing director of slator.com, the language industries biggest (and only?) business focused one-stop-news-shop. The Troublesome Terps grill him on the origins of the website, business trends is seeing across the globe and why we should care in the first place. -
34: The Crystal Ball of Interpreting
20 March 2019 | 56 mins 46 secs
business, hosts-only
In this "back to the roots" episode of the Troublesome Terps, Jonathan and the Alexes take a look in their crystal ball and have a discussion about what the future of the interpreting market could look like, that might be considered controversial.
Ever thought about additional services interpreters could offer or where your responsibilities as interpreter start and stop? Then this is the episode for you! Let us know what you think down in the comments or on Twitter, we really want to hear from you! -
33: Exchanging thoughts with Corinne McKay and Eve Bodeux
20 February 2019 | 1 hr 19 mins
business, translation
Interpreting and translation are two sides to the same coin - or so they say. Joining us on this exciting crossover episode are the two hosts of the "Speaking of Translation" podcast Corinne McKay and Eve Lindemuth Bodeux to talk about just that!
What are total interpreting and translation stereotypes and - gasp - might there be a grain of truth? How do translators stay focused on a 200 page document? How do interpreters deal with double bookings? What are the boons and banes of working from or into your second language?
Join us for this banter-filled episode with tons of insights into "the other side" (whichever one that may be for you!) and find out about these - and many more - controversial topics! -
32: Our year 2018 in review
24 January 2019 | 1 hr 21 mins
hosts-only, year-in-review
2018 was truly another blockbuster year for the Troublesome Terps. Not only did was our first - and certainly not last - live event in London a bona fide hit (thanks to all the supporters and attendees!), as always we covered a wide range of different and super interesting topics this year.
Humor in interpreting and our very best travel tips and tricks provided some levity, discussions on feelings/emotions in interpreting and why interpreting research matters, provided some serious food for though. Our very first AMA (As Me Anything) was also a great experience thanks to the fantastic questions we received beforehand. Of course, we wouldn't want to forget the professional associations double-episode or our first ever cross-over event with The Vocal Fries.
So, thanks again for an incredible year and here's to an equally amazing 2019! As always, if you have any suggestions, feedback or anything else you would like to let us know, leave it in the comments or send us a tweet, Facebook message or email.
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31: The 2018 Live Event
20 December 2018 | 1 hr 8 mins
hosts-only, live
It finally happened. The three Troublesome Terps got together for their very first live event at The Roebuck pub in London!
With almost 40 guests, we discussed two topics. First, we covered the topic of "Lies We Tell Clients". These "untruths" cover many different aspects, whether it's changing your quote for the umpteenth time or whether it's telling the client that "of course" you already have a team in waiting, although all your "usual suspects" are already booked. We talk about what to do and where to draw the line.
Afterwards, we started with our second topic for the day, the ever current "Don't be a Diva". As with most things in life, it does take a village. From the actual end client, to organizing interpreters, your booth partners, technicians and other event staffers - it's crucial to treat everyone like you would want to be treated. Sometimes that means taking a step back, sometimes it means having to wait a bit longer. However, we also discussed the fabled "anti-divas", so make sure to check it out!
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29: Aline Casanova in the Feedback Loop
27 November 2018 | 56 mins 6 secs
training
Giving and receiving feedback is a crucial part of not only becoming an interpreter, but also continuously improving yourself, your business habits and your interpreting skills.
Aline Casanova and some brave fellow interpreters joined forces and introduced the world to InterpretimeBank, a platform by and for interpreters. InterpretimeBank is for honing your skills, as well as giving and receiving feedback from a feedback partner. Aline joins the Troublesome Terps to talk about why it is important to keep on trying to improve yourself, what makes good feedback good and how to both, give and receive it. -
28: Ask Us Anything 2018
31 October 2018 | 1 hr 38 mins
hosts-only
Ask and you shall receive - and ask you did! For our very first Ask Us Anything episode, we received a ton of questions that kept you up at night.
From speedy speakers to ABC language combinations, listening to your gut feeling and creating interpreting standards in the Arabic interpreting world - you sent us a wide range of questions that we relished in answering!
Thanks again to everyone who contributed to this episode and let us know what you thought of our answers and if you have any other questions for a potential "Ask Us Anything - Part 2" episode!
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27: Why Bother with Interpreting Research?
20 September 2018 | 1 hr 2 mins
hosts-only, research
Certainly research is important in every discipline or field of work, but surely you have also sometimes wondered: actually, why should I care? Surely, it's not like in depth analysis of the voice-to-ear-span or complex and highly complex communication models help you be a better interpreter "out in the field", right?
Well, luckily Jonathan and the two Alexes are here to help and discuss exactly why you SHOULD care and what research does do for you. Let us know what you think and let's continue the conversation! -
26: Standing up for fun with Matthew Perret
22 August 2018 | 1 hr 7 mins
humour, practice
Have you ever laughed your head off in the booth or have you been gobsmacked by a joke that was thrown your way by a "fun" speaker? Interpreter and professional funnyman Matthew Perret joins the Troublesome Terps to shine a light on what silk purses, Mae West and German structure have to do with putting the fun in fundamentally difficult to interpret jokes. After all, not all jokes are a laughing matter!