Alex runs Translator Tips, where you can download a free marketing ebooklet, or buy Alex’s ebook How to Earn $80,000+ Per Year as a Freelance Translator (the headline is designed to get your attention – admit it, it worked, didn’t it).

I’m really glad Alex decided to make a comeback.  I’m not sure whether he intends to update his ezine format by continuing to publish his content on his blog, but I certainly hope so.

Image courtesy of ehow.com

Hello blog, it’s been a while! The main reason for my woeful silence is that I recently moved home and office, and have been focusing on the practicalities of setting up and running my business from a new location.  I know, I know, excuses, excuses!

I thought I’d share with you some tips for ensuring a home office move goes as smoothly as possible while juggling translation deadlines, so that you can get up and running again in no time.

1)      Planning ahead early: this might sound obvious, but when you know you’re moving make a list of all the companies and services you will need to notify. I’m a big list-maker, and found that a making a quick list on a Google docs spreadsheet which I could tick off was the best way of keeping the information somewhere I could not lose it. This will save a lot of headache. Don’t forget to let your clients know your new office address and update your website, as well.

2)      Stay easily contactable by phone: my clients needed to know that I would be unavailable for a couple of days while I was getting my new home office unpacked and set up, but I wasn’t sure if I would have a landline immediately. I had already planned ways of making sure they knew how to get in touch with me via my Smartphone (which of course did not change), but I also have a subscription to an online number through Skype which allowed them to continue to call me on a landline number which I could provide them with well in advance of the move, making the transition easier.

3)      Don’t even try to live without broadband: I really take broadband internet access for granted now, and the thought of trying to get anything done without it sends shivers down my spine. If you can’t get your broadband set up in your new office immediately (or as soon as you plan to be back at work), you will need to have a Plan B. My Plan B was a pay-as-you-go mobile broadband stick which I had purchased a while ago as a back-up. Remember the benefits of having your own domain email address not linked to your ISP as well (rather than @btinternet.com, @aol.com etc.), so that you can be reached from any computer connected to the internet.

4)      Contingency planning: it’s a fact, things can go missing or get broken in moves, so make sure that if the worst happens (and by worst I mean something untoward happening to your trusty main office computer, and/or the room you were planning to use as an office being less suitable than you initially thought), you won’t be reduced to a quivering wreck because you have that Plan B ready and waiting. For me this means having a back-up laptop (or 2) available for me to work on anywhere. Again, in this scenario, the mobile broadband stick and online landline number will come in handy.

5)      Pack strategically: I didn’t actually pack my office until the night before the removal men arrived, because I need to be working on a job right up until then, although I did pack some books I was sure I wouldn’t need the weekend before the move. When I did do the final pack, I made sure that everything I would need first the other end was at the top of the boxes, and clearly marked to avoid those situations involving crazed rummaging through boxes, packing paper and cardboard flying in all directions.

6)      Focus above all on getting organised: moving home and office at the same time can be a recipe for frazzled nerves, so if it all leaves you feeling beleaguered, then just take your time to move past that by getting yourself organised – get any admin you’ve let slip in order, locate those dictionaries buried at the bottom of the last unpacked box and generally help yourself to feel at home and in control of your new office.  Hey, you could even indulge in an office spa day.

By following my own advice, happily the transition to working from a new location was as smooth as I could have hoped, with all the messy stuff out the way within a couple of hours so that I could get back to my translation work.

I’ve written a replica of that case study for my blog:

Job title:

Freelance Translator

Languages:

French, Spanish and Portuguese (into English)

Company/location:

My cosy home office in London!

Background:

I translate from French, Spanish and Portuguese into English (my mother tongue). I started off by doing a BA in French and Spanish at Cardiff University, then went on to do an MA in Translation and Linguistics (Spanish and Portuguese) at Westminster University in London.

After my studies I managed to get a job as an in-house translator, and this gave me the opportunity to really hone my language skills. However, after a few years I decided that freelancing was for me and so I launched a new career beyond cubicle life.

A typical day for me:

I’ll usually be at my desk quite early in the morning, since my commute only involves a short walk to my desk! I often start my day in the same way as most other people, by checking my emails. There may be urgent requests from clients that I need to respond to. I will also typically do some reading of industry-specific newsletters and foreign press or listen to podcasts in my source languages. When I start working on a translation project, I will need to consult with the client for any background references and will need to carry out my own research into the subject matter and terminology. The finished product will then need to be thoroughly edited and proofread before delivery to the client.

Working from home, I get to manage my own workload, but I generally try to work a standard 8 hour day, although I sometimes need to work evenings and weekends to complete urgent or large jobs.

What’s the best thing about your job?

Without a doubt, being my own boss!

So you want to be a professional translator?

You’ll need excellent writing skills in your mother tongue and of course fluency in the languages you translate from. You’ll also need to acquire sound knowledge of one or two specialist fields, for example medicine, law, IT, engineering or physics. I work mainly in the fields of law and marketing, so I need to maintain my knowledge in these areas through ongoing training.

You’ll also need to bear in mind that if you’re freelance, you’re effectively running your own mini-business, so take some time to check out what that entails.

*Psst! If you’re tempted by translation but would like to have a taster before committing, I notice that London Metropolitan University are hosting a Taster Day for Linguists as Mediators, through the UK National Network for Translation.

Attendees of the event who are new to my blog may be interested in reading a little more about how I got into translation, as just one example of how a freelance translator begins their career. Well, if you’re wondering, read on…

For me, translating freelance was something I’d aimed for since starting my MA in Translation and Linguistics at Westminster University over six years ago. Completing the course 9 months later, I realised that freelancing lark would require planning, careful consideration and funds (not to mention paying off various bills and loans). So, quite early on I started looking for in-house translation jobs in London, eventually accepting a job as a full-time in-house translator in the public sector. My plan was to stay in this job for about a year, save up and then launch my freelance translation business.

I remember that I was fairly overly confident about my abilities as a translator at that stage, despite not having much real-world experience of it. Embarrassing to think about it now! A year passed quickly and I realised that I still had a long way to go before I felt ready to go it alone, both in terms of my translation skills and my ability to run a business. I still felt that I was much more suited to freelancing than to cubicle life in a rather uninspiring air-conditioned office, but the value of what I was learning was too great to just ditch it so quickly. I decided to set myself a target of at least 3 years in the job, and then to go for it freelance.

So, apart from translating diligently, squirrelling away my pennies, making my escape plan and daydreaming about a fantasy life as a freelance translator, what else was I doing during those years? Well, because I was serious about becoming freelance, and felt that if I put my mind to it and got support from the right people I could really make a go of it, I spent a lot of my evenings online researching how others were doing it, what sort of hardware/software/ancillary skills I might need for my business etc. Like many translators, I did regular voluntary translations in my spare time in order to hone my translation skills. I joined several ITI groups, and started reading the e-group threads after work. I attended steadily more ITI and CIOL events (networking is a long-term activity so I thought it best to get started on that ASAP), and I started a blog. I had been reading other translation blogs, and realised that I was gaining so much from reading about the experiences of other translators that I wanted to contribute something of my own. This led to more networking and becoming part of a dialogue with other translators in order to share our experiences.

Eventually, I felt the time was right to finally go freelance. If anything, though, I felt even more terrified at the prospect of freelancing at that point than I did when I graduated years before, when I was blissfully ignorant about what it involved! But I was still determined to do it, and resolute that in-house translation was not for me at that point in my life. I needed something to make me take the plunge, but I also needed a security blanket. So, I hatched another plan. I started attending a TESOL course for 3 hours each evening after work to qualify to teach English as a foreign language – a sort of back-up plan just in case freelancing didn’t work out, or if it took a lot longer than expected to get going. I also sat the ITI exam to become a qualified member (MITI).

Happily, I passed both the TESOL course and the ITI exam and no longer had any excuses to put off going freelance. The next thing I needed was the ITI’s Professional Support Group course, as after years in the public sector I was still seriously lacking any business skills. So, one week after leaving my in-house job for good I started the PSG course and was at my new desk in my home office. I got a short-term part-time teaching job in central London to help pay the bills, and also some locum teaching and private tuition in Business English. By October 2008 (6 months after going freelance), I was finding it too difficult to fit all this in with what was by then a full-time translation workload and felt secure enough to stop the teaching altogether.

I think it’s fair to say that each freelance translator will have taken a slightly different route, and the length of time it takes to get to the point where you’re earning a decent full-time income with regular, valued customers will vary considerably (depending on your language combinations, experience, marketing material, and often just sheer good luck). However, hearing how other people did it and how long it took them is one of the best ways of getting a realistic picture of what to aim for. I started my career in-house, and I’m not suggesting that’s what everyone ’should’ do. However, I do think that however you do it, careful planning is one of the best routes to a successful, sustainable freelance career. Running your own business is very fulfilling but can be scary, and so ultimately, the crucial qualities are determination and the ability to be brave when it’s needed!

]]> http://blog.philippahammond.net/2009/10/22/getting-into-translation/feed/ 1 http://blog.philippahammond.net/2008/12/02/staying-positive-and-proactive-during-a-recession/ http://blog.philippahammond.net/2008/12/02/staying-positive-and-proactive-during-a-recession/#comments Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:24:53 +0000 philippa http://blog.philippahammond.net/?p=160

Much as I have tried to resist the constant vocabulary of disaster and fear used in the news at the moment, it seems that a recession is fast approaching, if not already upon us. It is hard for most people to stay positive and confident about parting with their fast dwindling cash reserves in the current climate, but when you are running a business of any kind the panic can start to set in. And that includes freelancers, whether they’re freelance translators or freelance plumbers.

I recently read this article by Michael Melcher on The New York Times Shifting Careers blog and it reminded me that even in this climate there are still opportunities out there if you remain proactive. Now is not the time to waste too much energy on introspection. The same marketing guidelines apply, but we now need to reserve more energy than ever for seeking out or creating opportunities. Provided you still have a roof over your head and some food on the table, remember how lucky you still are and don’t allow yourself be beaten down by all the bad news…Alternatively, you may want to consider going into hibernation until it’s all over!

*Update 09/12/2008: another good list of tips for weathering an economic downturn is on FreelanceSwitch today.*

The relevance of this bad experience to freelancing is that it reminded me of how important it is to realize the value of your clients and to put this into practice. In that vein, here are some pointers I’ve learned along the way, including those learned from customer service experts such as Chris Daffy.

1) First and foremost, your clients are central to your business.

You want to keep your customers because without them you will find it somewhat difficult to stay afloat. This seems like an obvious statement but it is surprising how many people seem to forget it, or appear not to fully appreciate it.

In my bad experience with the online groceries delivery service I felt like I was being treated flippantly throughout. I received no apology for appalling service, and was greeted with a shrug that said to me “Yeah, whatever, there’s more where you came from”. This is a dangerous assumption, even for a supermarket giant. After all, customers talk, and these days there’s the added dimension of the blogosphere, where word spreads like wildfire. So, they’ve missed an opportunity to lock onto a loyal, regular customer, and have therefore also wasted the big profit potential of me telling my friends and neighbours how great they are and winning them as customers too. I should add that I have also been trialling a rival, more expensive, online groceries delivery service, who I will now happily spend my hard-earned pennies on instead. Customers are usually willing to pay extra if that means excellent service.

2) Reward loyal clients, as well as new ones.

For freelancers, attracting new clients is essential to ensuring a regular flow of work, and it is an ongoing process. It also allows us to develop and progress in our careers, specialising both in terms of subject and client.

However, in your efforts to flirt with new clients don’t forget about your regulars. There will always be interesting one-off clients who call up only once and are never heard from again, but clients who keep coming back and spend a fortune on your services over the years are usually worth more to you. (This is a bit like the advice not to neglect your old buddies when you find new ones, with the caveat that in both cases this only applies to old clients or buddies who are definitely worth keeping; we are bound to lose some along the way.). Remember to focus some of your marketing effort on your regulars: why not try updating them on new skills you’ve developed, or simple things like the personal touch of remembering important events in their lives and sending them Christmas cards or even stationery gifts with your business name on it.

One of the best (in my opinion) supermarket delivery companies (the rival I referred to above) frequently emails me with discounts and offers that are tailored to my favourite things, and overall they give an impression of a company constantly striving to improve their service. Some of the add-on services they offer I really don’t need, but the overall impression leaves me with such a warm fuzzy feeling and I am so impressed that their approach probably has a 90% success rate with me. It’s a bit like going to a restaurant and receiving attentive and friendly service from the wait staff; you don’t need them to pour your wine but it makes you feel valued and creates an overall good experience.

3) It is usually possible to salvage a situation where the client is dissatisified for whatever reason.

I was easy prey for online grocery shopping services – I love how easy it is and I can create a list that I add to as I think of things, rather than the soul-destroying weekly barging and queuing under neon lights that is the modern supermarket experience. Plus, working from home all I have to do is answer the door to the delivery man, and even if they are a few minutes late with the booked delivery time I will still be here. So, you’d think it wouldn’t be hard for an online groceries delivery service to keep me as a long-term customer.

Well, as a result of my bad experience I lodged a complaint to the company concerned. After a few days had passed I did eventually receive a verbal apology over the phone. By this time my view of the service was pretty dire, but not beyond the point of no return; there was still a chance for them to retain me as a customer. What could they have done? In such a disastrous situation, nothing speaks louder to customers than cold hard cash. But alas, all I was offered was £10 off my next shop.  The presumption that I would use them again after this experience was an arrogant and erroneous one. If a customer pays for a service and you categorically fail to provide that service that customer should really be entitled to some sort of monetary compensation; in my case at least waiving the cost of the delivery. In translation, if you miss a deadline that has major ramnifications for the client, or worse, produce sub-standard work, do you expect to be paid in full? (Not a rhetorical question by the way).

4) The customer is not always right but neither are you.

A little meeting in the middle never hurt anyone. Imagine yourself in their position, in a different customer/client-supplier scenario such as a shop, or getting your kitchen fitted. As the customer, the service or product you are paying for is important to you, and you want to feel like you supplier appreciates this. Even when your customer is demanding, do not scoff or respond indignantly, but instead meet with a smile and try to help them as best you can, carefully explaining what you are and aren’t able to do for them. They will remember you positively, rather than as someone obstructive you doggedly refused to help. Listen to your clients, and they will listen to you.

This may all sound like a horrific scenario for some people who delight at shutting down their email service when they log off their computers every evening, content that this will mean nobody will be able to ‘get them’.  But for those of us who show Generation Y tendencies towards non-stop communication and to having annoying short attention spans this is simply neat way of using ‘dead time’ effectively. Having got used to texting from a relatively young age, the impatient young upstarts that make up Generation Y are used to being contactable at most times and via multiple mediums. They are adept at organizing their time effectively in order to get the most out of their days; not content to just stand and wait like a lemon for another delayed train, or waste time on endless emails when they’re back in the office and have so many other things they need to do. They use ‘dead time’ as an opportunity to check their emails for anything that they could respond to now, rather than later.

Many people will also see Blackberries as inducing obsessive, addicted behaviour in their owners. But their owners/users can always, always choose when to use them; Blackberries can be set so that you don’t receive an irritating beep on receipt of a new email (and you therefore have to actually look at the thing to know about it), plus you can use filters to select the types of messages you DON’T want to receive when you’re out of the office.  Moreover, remember that you can turn them off.  Repeat after me “you – can – turn – them – off – you – have – the – power”.

More than that though, it’s about the user prioritizing their lives, and knowing when and when isn’t a good time to be engaging in a little cheeky email checking. A conversation with a loved one in which they are telling you something vitally important or highly personal is probably a good example of non-good time.

Penelope Trunk discussed self-discipline and Blackberries the other day. Actually, in doing so she called into question the idea of of work-life balance. This is a very interesting, and probably 100% accurate, view of 21st century careers. Speaking as a freelancer, ‘work-life balance’ is nothing but a myth. I don’t mean that to sound negative, far from it. Although the intersection between work and ‘life’ has become blurred, I see it more as being that my career is synced in with my life. My non-work life is busy and full too, but I don’t think of it as entirely separate to my career. There is a point in every day and weekend when I ignore my Blackberry altogether or turn it off; we all need a little down time. However, my career is inextricably part of my life, and vice versa. I don’t see how it could work any other way, and I don’t want it to. Rather than running my life, my Blackberry helps me control and manage the two intertwining strands of life and work as if they were one and allows me to maximize my time in order to spend it doing the things I love, rather than spending vital time at my desk checking emails.

The other challenge I’m facing at the moment is how to juggle my two jobs. My mind is literally awash with a mix of my English students’ grammar problems and my own translation deadlines. I currently teach English every afternoon, and on one day of the week I’m more or less out of the office all day teaching. I’m glad to have a bit of financial security at this stage, but the extra work is clearly compromising my availability as a freelance translator, and to be honest is a little more than I’d like to be away from my little home office. As such I plan to reduce my teaching time substantially by the summer. I read this post by Susan Johnston last month, and really identified with it. She is coming from the perspective of a full-time copywriter who writes in the evenings, so the issues are slightly different, but she some excellent suggestions which could be useful for anyone who faces the challenge of having commitments to one job whilst striving to maintain a professional image in another.

So, you may ask, is all the extra stress worth it? The simple answer is, most definitely, yes. To be honest, I just haven’t looked back. Now, I’m not someone who believes that hard work is the route to happiness, but there is definitely something to be said for being in a job which stretches you and provides clear career goals.

I’ve decided to spend much of this week (when I’m not teaching) taking stock, and catching up with myself. Now that I’m my own boss, I have a lot of paperwork and accounts to get in order…

Image courtesy of the Penrith Co-operative Society

Even in my modest little home office I try to make my own, small, positive contribution to the world by operating an ethical business policy. The website for the current Fairtrade Fortnight offers suggestions on how to make your workplace a little more ‘fair’ in this respect, and so I felt inspired to outline what my own contribution to that aim is.

I’ve been buying Fairtrade goods for personal use for a long time now; not only coffee and bananas but also clothing from companies such as Peopletree, and I wanted this to be true for my professional use as well. And, in addition to buying Fairtrade products, my ethical business policy extends to trying to minimise my impact on the environment as a whole, through the following 6 practices:

1. All coffee and tea products and other foodstuffs are purchased are Fairtrade products where applicable.

2. My office is heated using a ’sustainable energy’ gas and electricity supplier (E:On, if you must know!). Rest assured that in these chilly months of winter I *try* to take the big jumper option before resorting to turning up the thermostat (most of the time!).

3. I avoid printing out documents if at all possible, and when I do they are printed on recycled paper.

4. On the subject of recycling, I have a rigorous recycling system (not to mention a very large recycling bin, made from recycled plastic, of course) and aim to recycle 85% of my office waste. Even batteries are re-charged rather than thrown away.

5. Back to office supplies: these are sourced from environmentally-conscious suppliers, such as Naturalcollection and Ethical Office. Staple-free stapler anyone?

6. And finally, I clean my office using non-toxic, environmentally friendly products only. My, how utopian AND fragrant!

I still have a long way to go before I can truly call myself a totally ‘eco-friendly’ linguist, but we all have to start somewhere.

You may find the following ‘viral video’ from the Fairtrade Foundation inspiring/amusing: