Interpreters can –and should— build self-confidence by increasing their awareness of their strengths.  Interpreters often  can do so much more than they believe they can.

Generally speaking, people know much more than they are aware of knowing.  For interpreters, this lack of awareness about what they know can lead to second-guessing themselves and in other ways sabotaging their work.

Interpreters sometimes avoid moving ahead in their work and taking on challenges because of fear and insecurity when they actually have the skills necessary to take on those challenges.

Interpreters are sometimes unable to separate themselves from their work and sometimes fail to realistically take stock of themselves.

This workshop explains, discusses and provides practice in the following strategies:

• deliberate communication and terminology
• self-talk
• dealing with resistance
• emotional and physical techniques

Participants  leave this workshop armed with  tools they can use to become healthier in their self-view, and opportunities to examine their confidence and strengths, leading to a new level of comfort in their work that will carry them through even difficult interpreting situations.

This workshop focuses on international/gestural interpretation, and presents a set of strategies for working successfully with clients who have limited or unique language skills.  These strategies are equally valuable to a broad range of workshop attendees, as they are applicable and valuable in developing effective general interpretation skills.

Topics covered in this workshop include:

• universality of sign
• gesture
• hand shapes and facial information; strategies
• pointers and techniques
• props and other tools to augment and support the interpretation
• specific difficulties that might be encountered, and suggestions for avoiding or resolving those difficulties
• Deaf intermediary interpreter
• the danger of assuming too much
• rushing
• use of topicalization
• approaches to repairing miscues
• challenges in time reference
• abstract vs. concrete concepts

Activities include lecture, discussion, and practice in gestural communication and interpretation.

An important product of this work is an opportunity to learn how to process more deeply.  Gestural interpretation practice assists in the acquisition, development, and reinforcement of excellent processing habits that can be applied to interpretation in other settings.

There are five things that I believe can help improve our work so significantly as to yield results immediately, while also providing a road map for longer-term improvement:

1. Processing:  Interpreters must understand enough of the source message to produce something meaningful in the second language.  Among the topics discussed are the need to finish every thought before beginning the next, and the concept of chunking.
2. Memory:  Many strategies that aid memory are presented, including sensory, organizational and note-taking approaches.
3. Space: Discussion covers the use of space in terms of Size and Shape Specifiers (SASS) and Classifiers, as well as referencing established space, abstract and concrete use of space and directional verbs.
4. Cohesion:  Topics include strategies for working with speakers, whole thought processing, and listening/watching for transition markers in the source message.
5. Confidence:  The benefits of poise, confidence, and self-esteem are discussed, along with techniques for acquiring these assets.

Activities revolve around practical application of the principles discussed, using materials specially selected for each skill area.

This workshop emphasizes the importance of feeling good every day, regardless of how the day might have gone.

Participants analyze elements that help to create a positive work environment and those which may detract from it.

Topics discussed in this workshop include:

• Communication
• Negotiation
• Dialoguing about the work
• Self-care

Effective strategies are discussed and practiced for creating a positive attitude toward our work, our colleagues, other stakeholders, and ourselves.

This workshop focuses on aspects of ASL that are of particular concern to those working within the confines of a visual language.  Participants learn strategies that they can apply in order to clarify transliteration, interpretation, and visual communication in general.

This workshop covers the following topics:

• structuring space
• modulation of verbs
• pronoun usage
• modulation for physical semantic features
• classifiers
• plurals
• role shift/characterization
• transitions

Workshop activities revolve around practical application of the principles discussed, using materials specially selected for each skill area.

This workshop focuses on “soft skills” in our approach to our work.  These strategies that interpreters can use to keep their work at the highest level of effectiveness possible increase the comfort of all involved—clients and interpreters alike.

Just as software makes our electronic devices more user-friendly and applicable for everyday use, soft skills are those that help us more easily integrate into the work environments we encounter.

Participants discuss the old adage, “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it,” and the importance of attitude as an element of success in the way we approach others.

This workshop focuses on knowledge, attitude, and skills, and includes discussion of the following topics:

• knowing what is expected of us
• knowing what the standard is in the field
• knowing what is appropriate
• having the skills to do the right thing in the best or most appropriate way
• making sure that the attitude with which we do whatever we do conveys respect and professionalism

An additional emphasis in this workshop is confidence building, so that when we determine the best course of action, we have the confidence to see it through and to articulate the reasons for our choices.

This seminar—taught by two Deaf and one hearing interpreter—focuses on individual and team skills.

Strategies are presented for:

• clear communication
• team building
• getting what we need from our partners
• giving our partners what they need
• working more effectively together, including cues, giving and receiving support, feedback, back-up and much more.

Lecture is combined with discussion and hands-on activities to reinforce what is learned, and to maximize the degree to which this material is incorporated into attendees’ working habits.

Every participant has the opportunity to actively participate and to bring his/her questions and concerns to the group.

Participants leave this session revitalized, excited and ready to try on a few new ideas.

This training can be offered as a single weekend event, but is most effective when taught over several weekends, the first being only for Deaf participants and the others for Deaf and Hearing interpreters together.

The impact of this training is further strengthened by the addition of a supervision module, allowing new DIs and new HI/DI teams the opportunity to work with experienced interpreters who will observe, and provide backup and feedback.

Through lecture, discussion and brainstorming, participants will build their skills in analysis of vocabulary, syntax, pragmatics, semantics and discourse that are specific to the legal world. Participants will be given the opportunity to discuss texts they are likely to encounter in the courtroom and to practice interpretation of legal texts. In particular, redacted sample jury instructions, litanies of rights, and other regularly occurring examples of discourse in the courtroom will be used for our analysis and practice.

If open to participants who are not yet legally certified, these individuals will learn and practice strategies and skills to support their efforts to attain SC:L status.

Outcomes of this workshop include:

• Interpreters are able to distinguish between specialized legal language usage and non-specialized language usage.
• Interpreters are able to dissect legal discourse using text analysis.
• Participants gain a deeper understanding of how critically necessary proper and effective language usage is for work in the courts.

In this seminar, which focuses on teaming from the inside out, we consider strategies for working more effectively together:

• clear communication
• team building
• getting what we need from our partners
• giving our partners what they need
• spelling one another
• giving and receiving support
• giving and receiving feedback
• giving and receiving back-up

Lecture and discussion are interspersed with hands-on activities to reinforce and maximize the degree to which this material is incorporated into our attendees’ working habits.

Every participant has an opportunity to actively participate and to bring his/her questions and concerns to the group.

Participants leave this session revitalized, excited and ready to try on a few new ideas.

I grew up with a Russian hearing grandmother and a Deaf mother. All my life I noticed that people had a sense of the character, style and “flavor” of my grandmother (and of other little Russian grandmothers). I also noticed that people did not have that same sense about my Deaf mother.

In exploring “Deaf flavor,” this workshop considers the kinds of things outsiders think and feel when they think of Deaf people, and how we—as Deaf people’s  interpreters, colleagues, friends and family members—see those “flavors.”

This workshop explores the following concepts and their effects:

• filtering
• cultural adjustments
• mediation

We also discuss our role in passing on cultural values, norms and information in ways that might allow outsiders a glimpse of what we know.

Additional topics include:

• dangers and possibilities of sharing “inside” information
• benefits and liabilities of sharing “inside” information
• possible tactics and strategies for sharing “inside” information

The goal of this workshop is to create an atmosphere of safety and openness in which participants can share unusual ideas and thoughts, and new ways of thinking can be encouraged as we explore this somewhat uncharted territory.

This workshop offers a general overview of challenges facing the communities of interpreters and Deaf people.

We discuss:

• suggestions from our communities of consumers
• approaches to overcoming personal differences
• strategies for creating a sense of unity

Participants discuss and practice a variety of approaches to networking and supporting one another as a community.  They learn and apply strategies for respectfully negotiating with one another and creating a collaborative environment in their work.

Participants share their visions for the profession, and collaborate in creating action plans for applying those visions to their everyday work.

This workshop offers a general overview of the challenges facing individual interpreters and Deaf and hearing clients.

Topics include suggestions for interpreters’ personal and professional growth and development.

Participants discuss and practice:

• a variety of approaches to self-assessment and decision-making.
• critical thinking related to motivations and reasons for their professional choices and passions

Participants  formulate a plan for self-improvement and devise a road map for their continued personal and professional growth.

Participants  collaborate in creating individual mission and/or vision statements.

This workshop allows participants to bring to the table issues, ideas, topics and thoughts that they are interested in exploring together.

This is an open workshop with no specific agenda except to meet the needs of those present.  Within that adaptive and moving framework, we analyze elements of our work settings that contribute to a positive work environment, and those which may detract from it.

Effective strategies are discussed and practiced for creating a positive work experience regarding the issues at hand.

Discussion includes how we think, communicate, negotiate and dialogue about the work.

Our attitudes toward our work, our colleagues, other stakeholders and ourselves are explored in terms of how they relate to the topics that participants have brought to discuss in this workshop.

This workshop focuses on ethical decision-making, considering in particular how our critical thinking skills can be applied to the issues that arise in, and responsibilities associated with, interpreting in a variety of settings.

Ethics, protocol, and the role of the interpreter are discussed in depth, with scenarios portrayed in both discussion and role play format.  The RID Code of Professional Conduct (CPC) is discussed in the context of how it applies to the concepts of community and unity, as well as shifting paradigms and perceptions of the work and roles of interpreters.

Situations are discussed with a focus on:

• decision-making
• problem-solving
• analysis of possible outcomes of a variety of suggested solutions

Activities include:

• role play
• discussion
• brainstorming

This topic can be taught without emphasis on a specific setting, or can be tailored to address a particular setting, including:

• Legal
• Educational
• Conference
• Community
• Escort (one-on-one)
• Entertainment (Theater)
• Other setting- or situation-specific forms of interpreting

This workshop teaches strategies and approaches that can be applied to Sign-to-Voice interpretation to create a clearer, more efficient and elegant interpretation every time.

Challenges to the field and to the individual are discussed.

Exercises to increase effectiveness and to develop greater memory, confidence and skill are interspersed liberally in the workshop schedule.

 Simple to complex tasks and concepts are discussed and applied.

We practice interpretation in chunks, and focus on transitions and cohesion.

The goals of the workshop are to:

• encourage and elicit interaction among professional interpreters,
• foster greater awareness of and aptitude with linguistic usage within the deaf community and within interpretations.

This workshop increases awareness of the effects of whole thought processing on client populations, and adds to the repertoire actively used by participants, increasing the reliability and accuracy of their interpretations.

Activities for this workshop center around practical application of the principles discussed, using materials specially selected for each skill area.

In workshop settings where it is possible to make the appropriate arrangements, a most exciting aspect of this program is the incorporation of Deaf individuals to role-play for the exercises.  With the help of the local coordinator of the workshop, the Deaf participants will be prepared with instructions and goal setting in advance of the workshop.

This workshop focuses on building deeper processing skills and helping participants feel more comfortable about Processing Lag Time.

Whole thought processing and effective processing time are essential elements for successful interpretation.

Strategies for message processing and creating more powerful and effective interpretations are discussed and practiced.

This workshop’s activities include discussion of and practice in the following:

• exploring cognitive interpreting processing associated with Consecutive Interpreting and Simultaneous Interpreting, and the implications of each for interpreting discourse
• developing a sense of the whole message and follow the principles of discourse mapping
• utilizing processing time to analyze the source message for accurate interpretation both in ASL to English and English to ASL work
• applying effective strategies to create successful processing time
• employing deliberate and conscious approaches to solve interpretation challenges

This workshop teaches strategies and approaches that can be applied to Sign-to-Voice interpretation to create a clearer, more efficient and elegant interpretation every time.

Challenges to the field and to the individual are discussed.

Exercises to increase effectiveness and to develop greater memory, confidence and skill are interspersed liberally in the workshop schedule.

Simple to complex tasks and concepts are discussed and applied.

We practice interpretation in chunks, and focus on transitions and cohesion.

The goals of the workshop are to:

• encourage and elicit interaction among professional interpreters,
• foster greater awareness of and aptitude with linguistic usage within the deaf community and within interpretations.

This workshop increases awareness of the effects of whole thought processing on client populations, and adds to the repertoire actively used by participants, increasing the reliability and accuracy of their interpretations.

Activities for this workshop center around practical application of the principles discussed, using materials specially selected for each skill area.

In workshop settings where it is possible to make the appropriate arrangements, a most exciting aspect of this program is the incorporation of Deaf individuals to role-play for the exercises.  With the help of the local coordinator of the workshop, the Deaf participants will be prepared with instructions and goal setting in advance of the workshop.

This workshop offers a general overview of the history of RID and interpreting in the US.

Discussion topics include:

• service and process models as they apply to meeting the needs of a changing work environment
• understanding our place in the world of interpreting

Participants will:

• identify models of interpretation
• compare and contrast a variety of approaches to the work
• appraise the appropriateness of each model to a variety of environments and situations

Participants collaborate in creating a mission statement to define the rest of the conference and their future interpreting work.

This workshop focuses on developing confidence in our work so that we can be as effective as possible.

Confidence, poise and self-esteem are discussed, as are the similarities and differences between them.

Participants explore clear, practical methods for developing and utilizing all of these attributes, and learn how their abilities as skilled interpreters increase and improve as a result.

Exercises focus on building confidence while working as interpreters.

Conscious positive language and thought monitoring strategies that support healthy attitudes are practiced.