The first insight in this series of Public Speaking Secrets honors the courage of speakers in coming on-stage despite their shortcomings and letting themselves be perceived as they are. It is a reminder from fellow presenters (and interpreters) who understand that the key to greatness is to adapt and make it human, not perfect.

Conference interpreters are a rare breed of speakers. With little time to ponder, they speak incessantly, rendering thoughts and ideas that are not their own into a different language. They have no control over the complexity, the speed, the clarity, or the logic of the speaker. They must link their own segments of speech together, mindful of any sentences left hanging as they strive to correctly close somebody else’s parenthetical remarks made in subjunctive tense. As if that were not enough, they must silently keep their booth mates reassured by way of meaningful looks, head nods, and scribbles, at times delaying their interpretation until the full picture is formed in their mind.

Excelling in such an environment requires constant and heavy reliance on one’s sense of hearing while keeping all other sensory input channels open to ancillary elements from which meaning can be derived. And while an interpreter may occasionally refrain from speaking, she cannot afford not to listen. Not for one second. Neither should you.

Speaking — and interpreting, for that matter — is by design an imprecise exercise. You are literally chasing the wind. One could contend there is always a better, more appropriate way to say something, and opinions on how successfully one has done it will vary in direct proportion to the number of people being spoken to. Success will depend on the quality and timeliness of your snap decisions. Circumstances play a role, too, and what is opportune and fitting today may sound like a complete blunder two days from now or across a border a hundred feet away. Luckily, the audience is always providing visual and non-visual cues, silently or otherwise. It will point you in the right direction, if you care to listen.

Effective speaking requires a heightened level of situational awareness, and you will have to commit your every sense. Your aim is to develop into a skilled rapport builder, a reflective mediator and active listener, always sensitive to feelings over and beyond words. Only thus can you adapt to a vast array of changing circumstances, make informed choices, reassess and change course. At the end of the day, effective speaking is contingent on good intelligence work. So, remember to keep your ears and eyes wide open while your mouth keeps moving. Be sure to feel the room as you go over your slides or your notes. Look up and around, from time to time. Move about the room, whenever possible. Engage in as many ways as you can.

A final piece of advice: cut yourself some slack. Perfection in communication is not only elusive, but outright unattainable. Trying too hard will make you phony and cause you to detach from your interlocutors. It is a foolproof recipe for disappointment. Make it OK to make mistakes. When it happens, mentally regroup and re-adapt. Correct yourself, if you have to, then shrug it off and carry on. Good interpreters do it more often than they are willing to admit. So do good speakers and so will you.

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Speaking Secret 1 is a no-brainer for interpreters. What about you?
Liked Speaking Secret 1? Try Speaking Secret 2!
Read the Series Introduction

2 Responses

    1. Hi, Laura. Thank you for taking the time to read my stuff and for your warm feedback. Sorry for this belated acknowledgment. Cheers.

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