One of the best perks in my former role as a Director of eCPD, the online training provider for translators, was that I got to attend some truly fantastic talks by the most interesting, inspiring and successful people in our profession.
So I was buzzed when I heard Judy Jenner, blogger at Translation Times and co-author of The Entrepreneurial Linguist, emphasise that building and growing a business is hard, and that freelance translators and interpreters need to expect it to be that way.
Yet not many translators (and dare I say it, even fewer interpreters I meet) seem to grasp this.
Becoming a translator is easy
It’s no secret that translation has a low barrier to entry, and freelance work an even lower one.
Speak more than one language? Then set up an account on Proz.com, mass-email your CV to a list of agencies and voilà, you’re a freelance translator. If you want to be especially entrepreneurial, you might even take thirty minutes or so to set up a website, blog and Twitter stream.
There is nothing wrong with any of this. I don’t begrudge anyone their route into translation, nor do I believe a baptism of fire is a requirement to earn your wings as a “real” translator.
But I do think it’s what you do next, after you’ve emailed your CV, set up your LinkedIn profile or had your business cards printed, and every single day thereafter, over a period of weeks, months and years, that secures you a successful and sustainable career in translation.
But being one isn’t
A lot of people become freelance translators, but far fewer stay long in the profession. Translation communities are full of translators complaining about low rates, unfair conditions and clients who take advantage of them.
By my reckoning, these people do not have successful, sustainable careers in translation. So what can they do to change that?
As Aristotle apparently never said, we are what we repeatedly do, and excellence is not an act but a habit.
Significant results don’t materialise overnight – they require continuous (or at least continual) practice combined with a strategic approach, a long-term commitment and plenty of hard work.
Projects that are well paid, satisfying and regular, or clients that are reasonable, interesting and appreciative: there is no magic pill or single way to achieve these things.
They simply require that you put the work in, over and over again.
In the words of Judy Jenner, if it were that easy, everyone would be doing it – right?
Photo credit: Hard work… from NoneOther… {Captured In Lights}..’s photostream on Flickr.
Excellent posting Sarah. I think “working your butt off”, to quote Arnie (See: http://thecyclingtranslator.com/2012/08/13/smart-words-from-arnie/) is the bottom line. Quality (reference to earlier comment)? Well, if you’re not producing quality work then you’ll have zero repeat clients and life will involve a constant hunt for new ones – so that’s a priority. Networking and support are also key – without friends and contacts it can be a lonely business, so staying connected is crucial. Language maintenance is one of the most overlooked commodities – most of us who get repeat work do so because we work damn hard at staying in touch with our source languages, maintaining our skill set, undertaking CPD etc.
Cheers
Andy
I agree that language maintenance (source and target) is often overlooked, Andy. I certainly spend an inordinate amount of time working on this. A lot of the translations I do call for language which is fresh and modern. Constructions that even whiff of being outdated just don’t cut it. Prescriptivists need not apply!
Thank you. Very well written. Point across!
Running a translation business is not easy and nor is dealing with clients when they just nail you on a comparitive quote from freelancers popping up all the time. Persistence is the key I guess!
Thank you for this excellent article, Sarah. In short, tenacity is the key to success.
Great, now you tell me! Joking aside, I have to agree. Both the work of translation and building a business are hard — if you want to be a translator 5 to 25 years from now.
So, we’re talking about being a translator… not being a good translator! Right?
I don’t think “[speaking] more than one language” is enough to be a good translator… And if you’re not competent, good business practices won’t help you much.
I’m really surprised to see the quality aspect missing completely here.
I was talking about calling yourself a translator versus being a successful translator. And being a successful translator (versus “merely” a good one) doesn’t require a discussion of quality, because quality is a given.
The beginning of a freelance career can actually be very misleading. You may easily think that few steps to take are enough. The truth is you need to work hard every day to improve yourself, to make a name for yourself, to market you services and much more. Through these moves, in the long term, your hard work will finally be paid off. Of course, do not forget to be qualified and professional if you want to hold your desk tight!
Hi Sarah,
I attended Judy’s webinar and really enjoyed the points she made, especially on being “a growing business”. It is relatively easy to become a translator but being a successful one is a different kettle of fish.
I have been asked to give a speech to six formers in my daughters’s school on being a translator and it is definitely a point that I intend to make too.
Have a good day!
Hope the speech goes well, Nathalie. Good work on spreading the word about careers in languages.
Thanks for the blog post! I am just starting as a freelance (part-time) translator, but I would rather take my time and put in the work in the next few months and years and prepare myself adequately so that eventually I can deliver a spectacular product to a top-notch client–something I can be proud to put my name on.