I would love to start this article with the words "Hi, my name's Michelle and I'm a conference interpreter," but I'm afraid that would prompt readers to want to start patting me on the back consolingly and proffering tissues. Although, come to think of it, maybe adopting a "True Confessions" tone in this article is not such a bad idea, since it would fit quite nicely with the topic I plan to address: professional identity as seen by a conference interpreter.