Last week’s ATA conference reminded me how very intimidating and scary one’s first few years as a freelancer can be. What’s stressful? Basically everything. Everything you write or say to a client or a potential client; every translation you proofread and re-proof and re-proof, worrying that there’s a horrific error hiding in there somewhere; every […]
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The importance of being intentional
A short but important thought about freelancing (and maybe about life in general, but that’s beyond the scope of this blog!): whatever you do in your freelance business, do it intentionally, not because you’re a) being passive or b) letting some external force dictate your decisions and then blaming the external force instead of yourself. […]
Continue ReadingHow to decide if a translation specialization is viable?
A student in my online course asks: How do I decide if a translation specialization is viable? Hmm, interesting question, and one that nearly all freelancers have to grapple with at some point. Short answer: nearly any specialization is viable, depending on your marketing zeal and income needs. Longer answer follows. When you’re looking at […]
Continue ReadingShouting and moaning about bad clients: productive, or not?
This post is inspired by something Ted Wozniak posted on Facebook, linking to Sébastien Devogele’s blog post “The Rate Rant.” The issue: translators who complain about bottom-feeding agencies that pay low rates, endlessly try to drive down prices even further through fuzzy match discounts, treat translators as a cog in the production machine, etc. Some […]
Continue ReadingNew podcast: Beyond the basics of freelance marketing
Tess Whitty’s Marketing Tips for Translators podcast is a great resource for freelancers, and Tess recently interviewed me for an episode called Beyond the Basics of Freelance Marketing. We talked about how to market your translation services to higher-quality agencies and direct clients, how to make a financial plan for your freelance business, and about […]
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