The Thoughts on Translation household recently returned from a great vacation; a 337 mile bike ride across our home state of Colorado, finishing with a camping trip in Dinosaur National Monument. This vacation was 100% unplugged (a concept that I wrote about last summer): no Internet or cell phone … [Read more...] about Vacation recovery: library arrest
Productivity
Some thoughts on hourly and salaried pay
In the early days of Thoughts on Translation (March, 2008 to be exact), I wrote a post on charging by the word versus charging by the hour. For a long time, it was the most active post on my blog and it inspired some interesting and heated discussion. Get Rich Slowly's post today is on hourly versus … [Read more...] about Some thoughts on hourly and salaried pay
What types of incentives work best for you?
Especially when you work on your own, incentives can be an important part of succeeding in business (and in life, for that matter!). It's important to figure out what kinds of incentives work for you, so that you can use them to advantage. For example, you might encounter some of the following … [Read more...] about What types of incentives work best for you?
Staying comfortable in the office
One of the appealing aspects of working from home is that you're free to configure your work environment however you want, especially if you have a dedicated office room in your house. Readers, what are some of your favorite strategies/configurations/products for staying happy and comfortable in … [Read more...] about Staying comfortable in the office
The importance of aiming low
...well, maybe not "low." Maybe "The importance of setting realistic expectations" is a better way to put it. Over the years, I've noticed that many translators fail to reach their long-term goals because (paradoxically) they aim too high. Typical case scenario: a translator who has been in the … [Read more...] about The importance of aiming low