Interpreting can be a very stressful job. It comes with a huge responsibility as the gravity of communication lies on the interpreter’s shoulders.
Very often at stake is someone’s health, job, freedom or housing and financial situation. Therefore, being aware of the significance of my role as an interpreter, I am always 100% focused on communicating exactly the same ideas that have been uttered by the speakers. Concentration during the interpreting itself is one thing but equally important is the preparation process – no matter how focused you are, you can always forget one or two crucial words. This may lead then to either mistranslating them or finding yourself in an embarrassing situation of describing the thing that is meant. Mind you, there is no time to flip through the pages of your dictionary and forget about googling anything!