| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18] > | Moving on from freelance translation, starting a new career Thread poster: James Greenfield
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Baran Keki 
Türkiye
Local time: 18:45
Member
English to Turkish
Christopher Schröder wrote:
I aim to work 25 hours a week. It's often much less. I consider that to be part-time. I don't have any side-hustles or other sources of income.
Say you're working on a 30k word project (at 14 cents per word) to be delivered in 3 weeks, and you're offered a 10k word project from another regular client at 16 cents per word and a 4k word (at 17 cents per word) from a potentially new client with a decent BB record, all to be delivered more or less within the same timeframe, would you turn down one or both of those two projects, or say 'fuck it, might as well make hay while the sun shines'?
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Lieven Malaise wrote:
You are probably an exception, because I can't imagine that a lot of translators can do financially what you have done and still are doing while working only 25 hours a week.
Personally I aim at 47 hours a week, which turns out to be 40 hours a week on average over a whole year (because of the occasional slow periods and a few weeks of holidays). I'm talking about translation hours, not "sitting-at-my-desk" hours. I have no problem with this workload. It's considered normal in Belgium for someone who is self-employed. Besides that those hours are also theoretical hours, based on my expected hourly rate. In reality I often translate faster than my theoretical average, so more often than not I work less than 47 hours. I guess I should raise my expected hourly rate, but it has become a routine to work this way.
We all make different choices. If I'd chosen to live in London rather than the cheapest part of Britain, or translate from French, or not resist agency pressure on prices, I would've had to work much longer hours. Similarly, you could charge more, or live on less, or move out of MTPE. It's up to everyone to find the right balance for them. (Unfortunately some can't, which is sad but ultimately means they're in the wrong business.)
I'm simply trying to counter Lefteris' negativity and insistence on extrapolating from his own negative experience (and quite possibly coming across as smug and conceited in the process, but it's a cross I'll have to bear). Being a freelance translator doesn't have to be the way he portrays it. But then I suppose everyone here knows that already, so I should probably just give up!
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Baran Keki wrote:
Say you're working on a 30k word project (at 14 cents per word) to be delivered in 3 weeks, and you're offered a 10k word project from another regular client at 16 cents per word and a 4k word (at 17 cents per word) from a potentially new client with a decent BB record, all to be delivered more or less within the same timeframe, would you turn down one or both of those two projects, or say 'fuck it, might as well make hay while the sun shines'?
Doesn't that apply just as much to someone working 40 hours a week?
Anyway, you know I wouldn't get out of bed for 14 cents!
The downside of being such a diva is that most of the year I don't have the problem of being offered more than I can handle.
| | | | Muhammad Nasir Aziz (X)
Pakistan
Local time: 20:45
sir how it is possible that if you have experience of work in freelancing field and you have now jobless. I think you should upgrade your self.
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Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 18:45
Member
English to Turkish
Christopher Schröder wrote:
Doesn't that apply just as much to someone working 40 hours a week?
Anyway, you know I wouldn't get out of bed for 14 cents!
The downside of being such a diva is that most of the year I don't have the problem of being offered more than I can handle.
Rates could be raised by 4 or 5 cents then! So, you wouldn't mind turning down a job from a regular client and risk losing them?
Shame man.. if you worked like Lefteris, you'd have owned half of Swansea, stopped working as a translator and become a landlord...
| | | | | AI introduction in translation is also negatively affecting translation agencies. | Feb 20 |
Although sharing personal challenges is greatly appreciated, the approach to handling such situations depends on various factors. Just to inform you, translation agencies have also experienced a significant decrease in the number of inquiries since February 2023.
The only area of translation experiencing an increase in demand is sworn translation, which could be an alternative worth considering. Perhaps inquiring about the requirements to become a government-recognized translator an... See more Although sharing personal challenges is greatly appreciated, the approach to handling such situations depends on various factors. Just to inform you, translation agencies have also experienced a significant decrease in the number of inquiries since February 2023.
The only area of translation experiencing an increase in demand is sworn translation, which could be an alternative worth considering. Perhaps inquiring about the requirements to become a government-recognized translator and starting to translate official documents could be a viable option. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Finally an honest statement! | Feb 20 |
Lefteris Kritikakis wrote:
Now also consider the point of view: you live in an area where $1,200 is good income. I live in an area where $6,000 is "almost ok".
And finally consider this: From the initial prices 25 years ago, it never went up. Always down. Even when agencies increased their own rates against their clients.
You all have a nice day.
Finally, someone is being honest. One reason which deterred me from posting into this forum is how many people would state they were charging $0.40 per word and could buy a mansion after 3 years working as a freelance translator (okay, I'm exaggerating just a little bit just for fun... maybe).
But the point is, if everyone says their life is peachy when it isn't, it actually prevents people from actually fighting for fairer prices.
[Edited at 2024-02-20 13:23 GMT]
| | | | | We could’ve been millionaires, Rodney | Feb 20 |
Baran Keki wrote:
So, you wouldn't mind turning down a job from a regular client and risk losing them?
Shame man.. if you worked like Lefteris, you'd have owned half of Swansea, stopped working as a translator and become a landlord...o
Turning a client down rarely risks losing them. (I turn most of my clients down periodically to keep them keen.) But yes I would use common sense in each case and be flexible if I think it’s a good idea.
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Carlos A R de Souza wrote:
But the point is, if everyone says their life is peachy when it isn't, it actually prevents people from actually fighting for fairer prices.
But what if people are (loudly) making things out to be worse than they are? Then newbies will think 2 cents is normal.
I know my case isn’t typical but that makes it no less valid. The big predatory agencies do not control the market, and life is what you make of it. That should be the message.
| | | | Gregory Thomas (X)
United States
Local time: 09:45
English to Greek
+ ...
Baran Keki wrote: if you worked like Lefteris, you'd have owned half of Swansea
Or be dead. I was supporting people, and after 15 years, COVID hit the world, so I had to also support my brother and mother (it never stops, doesn't it...). Why sleep, when you can pump up with 4-5 lt. of coffee and sugary crap and cigs from the gas station. Low rates, good rates, I'd take them all. Until one day, "I can't get your tooth out, your BP is too high". Went to a med, EKG was marginal, I refused an ambulance, I had deadlines to catch.
Obviously after that I got on BP pills, rediscovered sleep, and slowed down substantially. BP is improving quickly.
I ended up with no debt, obligations fulfilled, one paid up car and a nice camera. That's it. Not bad.
This paper, I kept as souvenir.
| | | | Gregory Thomas (X)
United States
Local time: 09:45
English to Greek
+ ...
Christopher Schröder wrote:
I'm simply trying to counter Lefteris' negativity and insistence on extrapolating from his own negative experience
My experience was not bad for 18 years in a row. It got bad afterwards, by a series of bad market and personal circumstances. My cheap language pair doesn't help either. I'm not the only one. I'm just the only one expressing it.
If someone screams from a window "fire, fire", do not assume the rest of the building is empty. Fifteen years ago I was screaming "fire fire" while I was out of the building, safe and sound! Because I knew that thing would spread fast.
I'm complaining but I still pay my bills, my esteemed 0.03/word colleagues in Greece are not complaining but most of them are not paying their bills in full (spouses, parents, grandparents...).
As far as "negativity", I am not the one who wrote about flipping burgers and plumbers.
Let's be objective.
| | | | | Yes, the freelance life isn’t always easy | Feb 20 |
Lefteris Kritikakis wrote:
I refused an ambulance, I had deadlines to catch.
Two years ago I was hospitalised when my spine collapsed. After a couple of weeks spaced out on drugs, I was back at work thanks to my “desk bed”. Worked flat on my back on that setup for several months.
Nobody’s saying it’s easy being self-employed…🙈
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Lefteris Kritikakis wrote:
I'm not the only one. I'm just the only one expressing it.
If someone screams from a window "fire, fire", do not assume the rest of the building is empty. Fifteen years ago I was screaming "fire fire" while I was out of the building, safe and sound! Because I knew that thing would spread fast.
I'm complaining but I still pay my bills, my esteemed 0.03/word colleagues in Greece are not complaining but most of them are not paying their bills in full (spouses, parents, grandparents...).
As far as "negativity", I am not the one who wrote about flipping burgers and plumbers.
Let's be objective.
OK, you've been screaming "fire, fire" for 15 years but you're not being negative?!
There's no questioning that agency rates have not kept up with inflation in recent years, but I'm still charging the Big Nasties 60-75% more than I was 20 years ago. True, others aren't. In fact there are plenty of people on these forums moaning about rates if you take a look. You're definitely not the only one.
And are these rates so terribly, terribly bad? If I charged 3 cents and did 3,000 words a day for 50 weeks a year, I'd make 22,500 euros a year. Around minimum wage in the UK. But if I was working at 3 cents I bet I could do 6000 words a day. 45,000 euros is far from the bread line.
| | | | Dan Lucas
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:45
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
| Life isn't easy, full stop | Feb 20 |
Christopher Schröder wrote:
Nobody’s saying it’s easy being self-employed…🙈
Being successful in a particular career doesn't mean that you have had an easy ride; quite the contrary in most cases. I think this is something that Carlos and people like him fail to understand. Nobody here is saying that their life is a bed of roses (are they?).
Life has many beautiful moments, but it is also just an ongoing struggle for most people, and certainly has been for myself. Even if I were to achieve financial security, there would still be concerns and difficulties regarding my health, or my children, or my relationships with other people. It just never stops until it, well, you know. Stops.
It is precisely because you have a limited ability to avoid the bad stuff that attitude is so important. Life, as Chris says, is what you make it.
On the other hand, I measure my blood pressure every now and again and it's pretty much optimal. So at least I'm getting part of it right.
Dan
| | | | Lieven Malaise
Belgium
Local time: 16:45
Member (2020)
French to Dutch
+ ...
Lefteris Kritikakis wrote:
If someone screams from a window "fire, fire", do not assume the rest of the building is empty. Fifteen years ago I was screaming "fire fire" while I was out of the building, safe and sound! Because I knew that thing would spread fast.
Why do you keep referring to "fifteen years ago I predicted this and that..."? Who cares? I can't relate to all your negative views and I'm not the only one. So why do you insist on pretending that hell has broken loose on the translation market (correction : hell apparently has been broken loose for years and years already), while for so many other translators it hasn't?
Chill, dude. I'm sorry for your general discontent, but it's about time that you stop pretending that you are speaking general truths here. You aren't. There are translators that make it work, and others that can't make it work. It has always been this way and it will continue to be that way, despite all your "predictions" and so-called truths.
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