The good thing about being a freelance interpreter or translator is that you can choose (in theory) when you want to work and when you want to be free. The bad thing is that sometimes your clients need you to interpret until the wee small hours of the morning or sometimes you have to work on a translation over the weekend.
Today I'm in the "graveyard shift" for the plenary session of the European Parliament. We start at 9PM and we shouldn't work longer than until midnight. Even though I have not had any serious assignments in the morning, it's only natural that my brain still works less efficiently in the evening.
I find it helps to have a stimulating conversation with friends before I go to work so that my mood is up, even if the sun goes down. I do not read a book or anything serious requiring my full concentration before a night assignment. I prefer to browse the internet for some light reading, just to keep my brain "warmed up".
I always make sure to have some snacks in the booth, to keep the sugar levels up and my mood above zero. It also helps to set a lower temperature in the booth if it were too warm and cosy it would be more difficult to fight fatigue.
We also take turns more frequently. During daytime, I prefer to have longer stints, if the language combination we have in the booth allows that. But in the nighttime we may switch even after each speaker. Especially during the so called "one minute speeches". Yes it is as bad as it sounds, every member of parliament has exactly one minute to mention an issue close to his or her heart. So it sometimes feels like a speed-reading competition and it is very tiring.
No matter what we do, we will be tired and yet revved-up at the same time. I guess it will take my brain at least an hour after I come home to "shut down" ... like a very old windows computer.
Today I'm in the "graveyard shift" for the plenary session of the European Parliament. We start at 9PM and we shouldn't work longer than until midnight. Even though I have not had any serious assignments in the morning, it's only natural that my brain still works less efficiently in the evening.
I find it helps to have a stimulating conversation with friends before I go to work so that my mood is up, even if the sun goes down. I do not read a book or anything serious requiring my full concentration before a night assignment. I prefer to browse the internet for some light reading, just to keep my brain "warmed up".
I always make sure to have some snacks in the booth, to keep the sugar levels up and my mood above zero. It also helps to set a lower temperature in the booth if it were too warm and cosy it would be more difficult to fight fatigue.
We also take turns more frequently. During daytime, I prefer to have longer stints, if the language combination we have in the booth allows that. But in the nighttime we may switch even after each speaker. Especially during the so called "one minute speeches". Yes it is as bad as it sounds, every member of parliament has exactly one minute to mention an issue close to his or her heart. So it sometimes feels like a speed-reading competition and it is very tiring.
No matter what we do, we will be tired and yet revved-up at the same time. I guess it will take my brain at least an hour after I come home to "shut down" ... like a very old windows computer.
Great Post!!!!
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