Translation Confessional

The hot Kindle deal in celebration of my 40th birthday is now over :-( But you can still get a copy of "Tools and Technology in Translation" in either ebook or paperback at a very affordable price.  Here's where it's at »»»»» http://RafaLombardino.com/tools *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* By the way, if you're interested in learning more about "Tools and Technology in Tr...

When I started teaching “Tools and Technology in Translation” back in 2010, I noticed students were very resistant to using social media for professional purposes. I have a quiz question about it, and most students back then mentioned that they didn’t want to create professional profiles on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn because they didn’t feel comfortable. After I explained how they could use so...

In this episode, I wanted to bring awareness to the fact that your specialization as a translator and interpreter is not only related to your educational or professional background. This is something my students ask me quite often when they say they want to decide on a given specialization. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CHECK OUT THIS EPISODE'S SPONSOR: ONLY OFFICE an attra...

UPDATE: If you missed the live webinar sessions I had to celebrate my 40th birthday, you can now watch the recorded versions here ! *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* By the way, if you're interested in checking out "Tools and Technology in Translation," here are some links: » Book » Online Class » YouTube Channel » Podcast » Webinars » Facebook Page » Twitter » Website » Email...

As translators, most of the work we do can be mentally taxing. I’m not an interpreter at all, but I can imagine how much harder it can be for an interpreter’s mind after working all day on one or several assignments. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CHECK OUT THIS EPISODE'S SPONSOR: ONLY OFFICE an attractive alternative to Microsoft Office *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*...

Last week, while talking about how I started learning Spanish in the 1990s, I had a little side note about technology. That got me thinking: Have you ever stopped to appreciate how technology has changed the way translators work? How has technology changed the way you work? Are you an old-school translator who had to adapt and learn on the go, or did you get started more recently, when all these t...

This is one of my longest and most self-indulgent episode so far, but I do hope you find it entertaining and informative. Join me as I go down memory lane and talk about how I learned Spanish back in the mid-1990s and, consequently, fell in love with Spain, found out about rock in Spanish and became obsessed with Pedro Almodóvar and Javier Bardem. Here are some links if you would like to learn mor...

Last week, we brought two interviews with interpreters who talked about how their work routine has changed in the times of COVID-19. Let’s hear from two more colleagues and see how their experiences are similar or different. In this episode, we'll hear from Everton Morais and Camila de Castro , two Brazilian interpreters living in the east coast, in the United States. They’ll introduce themselves,...

Considering the nature of their work, which most often demands in-person interaction at a doctor’s office, at court, in meetings, and events, interpreters have most definitely been heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. I wanted to know what’s going on with some colleagues and learn how they had to adapt to provide services to their clients. In today's episode, we'll hear from Denise Bobadilha...

Last week, I decided to interview a few friends, who are also translation instructors, to learn what their experience has been like while teaching translation during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode, we're featuring Mirna Soares and Elena Langdon . They’ll introduce themselves, tell us how long they’ve been teaching, what classes and where they teach, and whether they taught in person or onl...

Today, we’re doing something a little different. I decided to interview a few friends, who are also translation instructors, to learn what their experience has been like while teaching translation during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode, we're featuring Cris Silva and Jonas Nicotra . They’ll introduce themselves, tell us how long they’ve been teaching, what classes and where they teach, and...

Last week, I addressed the fact that we use a word in English to designate something in Portuguese, but we can’t use it back in English when describing the very same thing. Anyway, I started to brainstorm other expressions we have in Brazil that use English words and that CANNOT be translated back into English without causing some serious confusion. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-...

If there is one stereotype I fit into as a Brazilian is that soccer is my religion. But, why am I going to talk about soccer on a translation-related podcast? Well, because something amusing happened the other day, and I wanted to share it here: A fellow translator MANSPLAINED soccer to me on social media. This podcast is called “Translation Confessional” for a reason, so it’s only fair that I ref...

As I said in episode 10, word of mouth is something that can truly help us in our freelancing career, especially when we do networking correctly. I started hiring colleagues back in 2004, only two years after I moved to California and started to dedicate myself to translating full time after finishing college. This type of collaboration has really worked well for the past 16 years. And the network...

In this episode, I'll talk about how "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers sent me to the principal's office when I was 12 years old. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CHECK OUT THIS EPISODE'S SPONSOR: AUDIO CONVERTER , audio made simple *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* By the way, if you're interested in checking out "Tools and Technology in Translat...

As you well know, our profession is a sedentary one. Whether you’re a translator who is chained to your computer desk, or an interpreter who spends hours and hours inside a booth or waiting for your appointment in court or at a doctor’s offices, the fact is that we hardly move throughout the course of our workday. And considering how many of us may not have a set schedule, day turns into night tha...

We’re going through the first worldwide pandemic in the age of social media and we’re all learning from one another how to cope with the COVID-19 outbreak. Fortunately, we can all keep in touch and still have some sense of community, even during this mandatory isolation. Let me know how your routine has changed these past couple of weeks and what the situation is like where you are located right n...

I’ve always been very responsive when clients send me an email, but answering the phone is something that I only do when I’m “in the office.” The client was aware of the time zone difference and, that one time, they decided to follow their phone call with an email asking why I never answer when they call. At 1 pm, when I was back in front of my computer, I called them back.  “I’m sorry I miss...

Today's episode is special because, in celebration of women's month, Translation Confessional is participating in a Brazilian campaign called O PODCAST É DELAS , which could be freely translated as "The podcast is female," "Podcasting for women," or "Women own podcasting." This effort is trying to bring awareness to the role of women in the podcasting community and helping listeners find more podc...

There are times when you get some feedback that is completely unrealistic and you know you’re right, but despite your best efforts, there’s little you can do to change a client’s mind. That’s when you think, “Well, the client is always right... right?” and then you must move on to keep your sanity. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CHECK OUT THIS EPISODE'S SPONSOR: SODA PDF an...

Word of mouth is indeed very powerful and requires little effort but being yourself, being good at what you do and, above all, being humble. The secret to networking successfully is to not force a situation. If you’re trying to promote yourself every time you talk to someone who works in your industry or when you interact with prospects, chances are you’ll alienate people. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-...

You can study a language forward and backward and have impeccable grammar, spelling, and punctuation skills. However, it’s only when you have daily contact with your second language that you get to learn some little details, that particular vocabulary that wouldn’t come to you as easily―unless you really look for it. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CHECK OUT THIS EPISODE'S SP...

Once upon a time, there was this client who spoke Spanish and English and thought they could speak Portuguese as well. Okay, Spanish and Portuguese are “cousins,” but they’re different enough to be two distinct languages. In other words, they’re close enough to get you in trouble. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CHECK OUT THIS EPISODE'S SPONSOR: AUDIO CONVERTER , audio made s...

The other day I came across this post on LinkedIn: A fellow translator said something like, “You must be as talented as the original author if you’re translating a masterpiece.” She was talking about literary translations in particular, but that got me thinking: I believe that is true of any kind of translation. Translators must have the ability to write the same type of text in the target languag...

I used to go to English school twice a week, which is two 45-minutes classes a week. That was not enough for me, so I remember buying some of those magazines that came with song lyrics and I’d try to translate them into Portuguese with my very limited knowledge and my parents’ old dictionary from the late 1960s… If I focus hard enough, I can still smell those musty yellowed pages to this day. *-*-...