Ahmad Al Khatib

Question and Answer

• What is your name?
  • Ahmad Al Khatib
• Where do you live?
  • United Arab Emirates - Dubai
• How long have you been an interpreter or translator?
  • 20 years
• What made you decide to become a translator or interpreter?
  • I have been excellent in English Language since I was a child. I love being able to work as a bridge between cultures. I love what I do, and I think this is why I was created for.
• List one strength that you think sets you apart from your colleagues.
  • Tech Savvy, detail oriented, solo player, but work will with a team. Highly ethical, perfectionist.
• Name the one thing that you most enjoy in your translating or interpreting career.
  • Learning all sorts of things in different topics. It's a talent of me.
• We all have worked on those not-so-perfect assignments. Write about one such assignment that was not ideal and what you learned from it.
  • I love being able to bridge the gap between cultures
• If you could go back in time to when you were just starting out as a translator or interpreter, what advice would you give to your younger self?
  • Linguistic validation of a Brand Name. I hated all these questions and answers coming and going. Finally, I realized what it needs, but first time is always the hardest.
• Name one resource – such as a phone app, CAT tool, website, and so forth – that you find especially helpful in your translating or interpreting work.
  • SDL Trados
• What’s the best book you’ve read this year?
  • The forty rules of Love

Ana Lourenço

Question and Answer

• What is your name?
  • Ana Lourenço
• Where do you live?
  • Sintra, Portugal
• What made you decide to become a translator or interpreter?
  • I always found the knowledge on different cultures and habits extremely interesting. The need to communicate in a foreign language and the commitment do develop a skill that was hidden somewhere in my head made me decide yo become a translator. I was finishing another language course in France and decided to apply for university a year later.
• List one strength that you think sets you apart from your colleagues.
  • Extreme willpower
• Name the one thing that you most enjoy in your translating or interpreting career.
  • Imagining people reading my translations
• We all have worked on those not-so-perfect assignments. Write about one such assignment that was not ideal and what you learned from it.
  • This assignment came on the first year of my career. It was a legal translation, something I had never dealt with before and that I should have never accepted due to my lack of knowledge in the area. I then learnt from the conferences I started to attend that one should never accept a job on a completely unknown matter. One should specialize, instead.
• If you could go back in time to when you were just starting out as a translator or interpreter, what advice would you give to your younger self?
  • Beware of false translation agencies. Start reading newsletters on your desired speciality and suggest their translation to the author for free. This way you can get your first visibility. Join translation facebook, linkedin, twitter translation groups.
• Name one resource – such as a phone app, CAT tool, website, and so forth – that you find especially helpful in your translating or interpreting work.
  • Wordfast, www.encyclopedia.com, Trello, Hootsuite (I'm starting with this one) Business School for Translators Network
• What’s the best book you’ve read this year?
  • The Business Guide For Translators by Marta Stelmaszak

Yocasta Bianconi

Question and Answer

• What is your name?
  • Yocasta Bianconi
• Where do you live?
  • Raleigh, North Carolina
• How long have you been an interpreter or translator?
  • More than 10 years
• What made you decide to become a translator or interpreter?
  •    The love for language and bridging communication between provider and individual.
• List one strength that you think sets you apart from your colleagues.
  • Cultural awareness.
• Name the one thing that you most enjoy in your translating or interpreting career.
  • Helping helping helping!
• We all have worked on those not-so-perfect assignments. Write about one such assignment that was not ideal and what you learned from it.
  • Patient's relatives trying to do my job. I am pretty good at letting them know that is my job without creating a caos.
• 6.) If you could go back in time to when you were just starting out as a translator or interpreter, what advice would you give to your younger self?
  •  Be kind, but don't get too friendly with patients, medical staff. Watch your boundaries.
• Name one resource – such as a phone app, CAT tool, website, and so forth – that you find especially helpful in your translating or interpreting work.
  • Translationjounal.net
• What’s the best book you’ve read this year?
  • The complete Medical terminology By Verónica  Hackethal MD 

An essential guide for anyone in a healthcare career, The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Medical Terminology shows readers how to master medicine's core terminology so they can successfully pass their academic courses and certification tests.
Readers will be introduced to Greek and Latin roots — the building blocks for deciphering any term encountered. They'll also find an outline of the body's systems to learn terms in context, an explanation of the body's physiology, and a primer on commonly used terms for diseases, injuries, conditions, tests, and procedures.

Simonetta Collatina

Question and Answer

• What is your name?
  • Simonetta Collatina
• Where do you live? 
  • Rome, Italy
• How long have you been an interpreter or translator?
  • 20
• What made you decide to become a translator or interpreter?
  •  I realized that my education and study of Latin and Ancient Greek had prepared me to become a successful translator
• List one strength that you think sets you apart from your colleagues.
  • being always eager to learn new things
• Name the one thing that you most enjoy in your translating or interpreting career.
  • The opportunity to learn something new every day
• We all have worked on those not-so-perfect assignments. Write about one such assignment that was not ideal and what you learned from it.
  • Worse assignments: proofreading a badly made translation. It confirmed how important it is to have a strong work ethic and never to allow the quality of my work slip. And to speak up and make the client aware of the situation
• If you could go back in time to when you were just starting out as a translator or interpreter, what advice would you give to your younger self?
  • understand that you can try to 'educate' the client, but that ultimately, you have to provide what you are asked for, even if counter-intuitive  
• Name one resource – such as a phone app, CAT tool, website, and so forth – that you find especially helpful in your translating or interpreting work.
  • TRADOS, IATE database
• What’s the best book you’ve read this year?
  • Not related to translation, but about teaching VYLs