IW 183: Interview Jiri Janecek Part 5: Interpretation of Our Awareness and Our Why

Why! I was not aware of that?!

We end the interview with Jiří Janeček, the founder of the Czech Chamber of Sign Language Interpreters in the year 2000, 25 years ago.

He concludes our talk with a serious look at how we should use our responsibility wisely by being aware of our motivations and power. Let us reflect on this as we start the new year of 2026.

Transcript

IW 183: Interview Jiri Janecek Part 5: Interpretation of Our Awareness and Our Why

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[ROCK INTRO MUSIC STARTS]

00:00:02 Tim

Good morning, good evening, good afternoon. Wherever you are, this is the Interpreter's Workshop podcast. I'm Tim Curry, your host. Here we talk everything sign language interpreting the ins, the outs, the ups, the downs, the sideways of interpreting. If you're a student, a new interpreter, experienced interpreter, this is the place for you. If you want to know more, go to interpretersworkshop.com.

00:00:28

Let's start talking... interpreting.

[ROCK INTRO MUSIC ENDS]

00:00:34 Tim

And now, the quotes of the day. The first by Winston Churchill, “The price of greatness is responsibility.” And the second by Marvel creator Stan Lee, “With great power comes great responsibility.” These quotes are not only good for politicians,

00:00:58 Tim

and Spider-Man, but for interpreters as well. Jirka has talked to us about our responsibility, having power, and how to use it wisely. Today, he goes on to talk more about that, to discuss how we should be aware of how we think, how we see the world, and how others do too. So, let's finish this conversation with Jirka about the Czech sign language profession and how it has developed since he founded the Czech Chamber of Sign Language Interpreters. Let's get started.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

00:01:42 Tim

Okay, let's get back to word association. Let me give you another word. Funny.

00:01:49 Jiří

Tim Curry.

00:01:53 Tim

[LAUGHING] Ah, I'll be sending the money directly. [jokingly]

00:01:57 Jiří

[laughs] But really, we are friends. I consider you as one of my very close friends. And for some unknown reason, when we are together, it's a disaster. [both laughing] But it's nice. It's nice, you know. It's so nice to have someone who's like-minded, having the same sense of humor, being able to just start a sentence and the whole thing is already there. It's nice.

00:02:31 Tim

The structure is there. We just have to start it. Yes. [both laughing]

00:02:36 Jiří

Yeah. So, yeah. So, for me, you are the funny. I, well, I know that in English it has two meanings. I mean the first funny. I don't mean the funny, like the weird funny.

00:02:47 Tim

Ah, okay, good.

00:02:48 Jiří

I mean “haha” funny. Yeah. Just to make sure that everyone understands it. [Tim chuckling]

00:02:54 Jiří

I mean, “haha”, funny. [Tim: Yes]

00:02:57 Tim

Well, okay, great. Okay, next, interpreting.

00:03:02 Jiří

Responsibility [Tim: hmm] and power and beauty. [Tim: hmm]

00:03:08 Tim

Why do you say those words?

00:03:10 Jiří

Because I feel that interpreter has the power over the situation in a certain way. [Tim: Mm-hmm]

00:03:22 Jiří

Try to be bad interpreter in some war conflict, and you can start the Third World War, you know, just by interpreting, uh, [both chuckling] in a wrong way. So, and that's a big responsibility.

00:03:37 Tim

Yeah. [both laugh]

00:03:41 Jiří

So, yeah, and the beauty goes more to the language.

00:03:48 Jiří

Because I think there is something very special about sign language, something that the other languages don't have that linearity that is in spoken languages, that you can simultaneously lay over several meanings. That's something that is, I think, it's more powerful than what we have in spoken languages. [Tim: Yeah] We don't have that. Yeah, we don't have that. And..

00:04:16 Jiří

I think what's great that when you are using the spoken language, the image that you are having inside of your mind is very reduced when you put it into the words, that image itself. [Tim: Mm-hmm] But in a sign language, you are, at least the part of that image, can be communicated as well.

00:04:39 Tim

Yeah.

00:04:40 Jiří

It's like when you are lacking the words, you will start to,

00:04:45 Jiří

draw the picture or something. [Tim: Yeah] So being able to draw the picture. And there are aspects that it's simply very, very aesthetic. And I think that's something that when we do day-to-day interpreting is reduced, [Tim: Mm-hmm] the awareness of that. And it's being from my understanding, or at least it used to be like that, it was that beauty was more reserved for special occasions and special type of interpreting. [Tim: Mm-hmm] But I believe that it's a part of almost every message.

00:05:30 Tim

Yeah.

00:05:31 Jiří

And it's an essential part of the understanding the message fully and seeing the structure, as I like to say.

00:05:40 Tim

Yeah. You've touched on something that I have taught and that I think about every time I'm interpreting. The fact that many students, many interpreters get scared when there's a tough topic and the speaker is just not slowing down. They're speaking so fast. And interpreters usually have that frozen look on their face like, “Oh, I can't keep up. I can't keep up.” And I always think,

00:06:10 Tim

okay, how much of this meaning can I put out at the same time? How much of it can I sign without – by using less signs? Because like you say, we can layer upon layer, not just on top of each other, but beside each other and in front of each other, all of that together. So many layers that we can add without having

00:06:37 Tim

to sign as fast as they're speaking. And I think that's a beauty. I agree. Okay, next, attitude.

00:06:47 Jiří

What does it mean exactly? Because I know what it means when having the bad attitude, you know, but the word itself, is it the way how you behave?

00:06:59 Tim

Or the mood in which you approach things or the reasons that you approach things? You know, like, you know, he has a really good attitude, which means he's maybe always happy, he's always positive thinking, he's always encouraging. But you're right, it's hard to define what attitude is.

00:07:18 Jiří

So, I would say the attitude is something that we should be always aware of.

00:07:26 Jiří

Something that we have, we always have attitude. [Tim: Mm-hmm] And being aware of it can help you to understand why sometimes the message is not coming across [Tim chuckles] so well, because there is a layer that can be actually unspoken, but is very recognizable on the other side, even in spoken languages, in any language.

00:07:53 Jiří

And actually, it's not just the language. I would say it's the approach to the work as well and the approach to the world as well. So, the attitude for me is not good or bad, but something that we should be aware of always, that we are having it and to be aware of it and to question ourselves, what is my attitude when I do this or when I'm thinking about this? [Tim: Mm-hmm]

00:08:22 Jiří

And… Is it something that defines the way how then I approach the thing? Is it affecting me, actually, my attitude? Not changing it but being aware of it and being aware that this is not the only way how to think or approach things is actually quite useful for the life itself. [Tim: Yeah]

[ROCK TRANSITION MUSIC STARTS]

00:08:53 Tim

Being aware is the first step, but how can you be aware if no one tells you about it? That's where you come in. Tell people about the podcast. Go to Apple Podcasts or Spotify, the two big ones, and rate and review this podcast. Give me a follow where you are and share it with a friend. Make them aware of the great stories, the great, well, everything here. Thank you. Now let's go back.

[ROCK TRANSITION MUSIC ENDS]

00:09:18 Tim

Since it's been 25 years since Chamber was founded, after the history that you've told us, from your humble beginnings, from learning the language, to becoming a sign language interpreter, to founding the Czech Chamber sign language interpreters, what would you tell new interpreters today in the Czech Republic?

00:09:42 Jiří

Do you mean new to the profession or like the new generation?

00:09:46 Tim

Yes. [both laugh] Whichever one you want to go, or both.

00:09:52 Jiří

I'm very happy that it's happening, that the whole profession is evolving. That's something that is inevitable. It is nice, and I think it's always good to remind ourselves about who we are, what are our motivations, what are our needs that we have, and…

00:10:22 Jiří

…be aware that all of it is going to affect what kind of interpreter you are. And be sincere to yourself. Be sincere to yourself, to your motivations, to your reasons why you are interpreter. That's probably the most important, to be sincere to yourself – inside. Like, why am I doing this?

00:10:51 Jiří

Why am I doing this? And it's not good or bad, but it's very good to know what is my motivation. And it's always the good start or it gives you that kick or that motivation, internal motivation gives you that like oomph, you know, for like working and like going through it. But at the same time, it can be stopping you from getting better. So being aware of like, what is your motivation and being willing to explore the possibilities of outside of that motivation.

00:11:35 Tim

Are you saying that being aware of your motivation to being an interpreter helps you evolve outside of that motivation to the next motivation to keep it going. Is that what you're saying? Or that the motivation itself might be limiting you and you need a new why at every stage.

00:11:58 Jiří

We as a human beings probably need to know why we are doing stuff. And we have the reason. Being aware that I have a reason why am I doing this, can help me to become better in this field, in any field, because I know usually, we start with filling up some gaps or needs, satisfying the needs that they are very personal. [Tim: Mm-hmm] And very often we don't see them, we just act based on them. [Tim: Yeah]

00:12:37 Jiří

And we paint it to a different color for the public. “This is why I do it. This is my motivation.” But deep inside, there is something that really gives us that drive. And that can be actually surprising when we do that digging and exploration, like why is it, what am I actually really doing it? [Tim: Mm-hmm] That's one thing. [If] there will be a suggestion for interpreters.

00:13:08 Jiří

That would be, try when you are interpreting and actually doing any other work, preparation, or actually when you are living and being in any situation, try to ask yourself, why am I doing this? The way, how am I doing it right now? What is it?

00:13:33 Jiří

Having that meta level, like being able to, like almost like, go outside of yourself to looking [at] it from the above, like what's going on here? What's happening right now? [Tim: Mm-hmm] You may then see, okay, I'm scared right now that this is going south, [Tim: Mm-hmm] you know, being somewhere on stage, interpreting, doing something. It's very important because if you know it,

00:14:03 Jiří

…it's not to suppress it, but if you know it, then you can have that feeling with you. And being like, okay, it's okay. It's okay. I'm taking care of you, of that part of you. And I'm here now because I have some goal. And that goal is apart from being scared. So, my income of my work is not affected by unknown dynamic that is happening inside.

00:14:31 Jiří

And I think this is something that we should ask ourselves when we go to any fight, discussion, arguing, having the need to advocate for something, you know, why am I actually doing it? And is it going to be beneficial for what we do right now, or am I just solving my own internal insecurities, needs for recognition or any other stuff? Because being seen is very powerful and can be very addictive.

00:15:17 Tim

Yeah.

00:15:18 Jiří

Being good can be very addictive. So being needed can be very addictive. So, knowing that, being aware of it,

00:15:28 Jiří

…and knowing that, yes, this is the part, this is one of the parts, why am I doing this? But there are other ones as well, then you are not controlled by it. It's not about denial, but about awareness.

00:15:43 Tim

Yeah. Well, Jirka, your history, your personal life and stories, thank you for sharing that. I know personally that understanding our history, knowing what has come before us really supports and gives us that staircase to go forward into the future.

00:16:06 Tim

Because I've interviewed many people from different countries going through the same transitions, same journeys, but every single one has its own unique obstacles and unique people. And I want to thank you. I know you had many supporters,

00:16:26 Tim

and impulses, impacts from different people. But thank you for what you've built, what you started, the foundation that you gave for the rest of us here. So, thank you for sharing here on the podcast and sharing a laugh or two.

00:16:43 Jiří

Thank you very much. It sometimes was, for me, more emotional than I expected. And I like that wordplay about history is like a “his story”, you know, because this is my story about that history.

00:17:01 Tim

Yeah.

00:17:02 Jiří

It will be always only interpretation of what was going on.

00:17:09 Tim

Yeah, yeah.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

[ROCK EXIT MUSIC STARTS]

00:17:14 Tim

Well, thank you, Jirka, for giving this present in 2025 your history, your story of how the Czech Chamber of Sign Language Interpreters began. Jirka gave us a lot to think about, some things we know, but we sometimes forget. We need to work on our power, use it wisely. The responsibility that we have on a daily basis as an interpreter and knowing our motivation, the reason why we are doing this work and how that influences

00:17:53 Tim

how we use the power that we have and the responsibility that we have. And realizing that many times as we start working in a career, the why, the motivation, is sometimes very personal. We are giving ourselves, or the work itself is giving us something that's filling up a gap, something that we don't have, and it's giving us that satisfaction, that fulfillment.

00:18:22 Tim

But Jirka went further and talked about the meta level of understanding and awareness of our current why. Because our why, our motivation, our reasons for doing this changes over time. And therefore, how we use our power and our responsibility changes. It's that attitude that we have at this moment that is influenced by our why, and how we have accepted

00:18:51 Tim

our own reasons, being honest with ourselves, what we really think, and what really motivates us. That is important. Being true to ourselves so we can be true to all of our clients. And lastly, a good takeaway for all of us in this series of episodes is that this is his story, how he founded the Czech Chamber of Sign Language Interpreters,

00:19:21 Tim

from his vantage point, from his perspective. Not just from the perspective of 25 years ago, but also his perspective now, looking back with all the extra lenses that he has from all the different attitudes and motivations that he has developed over time. So, another great lesson for all of us. It's a new year, we should all look back

00:19:49 Tim

on the last year of our story so that we can look forward to the next. Until then, keep calm, keep interpreting your responsibility. I'll see you next week. Take care now.

[ROCK EXIT MUSIC ENDS AT 00:20:40]