Lost newby! :-D

Rachel Waddington wrote:

Like neilmac I posted before, but the response seems to have got lost.

First of all, fill in your profile. Reworking what you wrote in your opening post would be a good start for the descriptive section. Your experience in other sectors is a valuable asset, so boast about it. Lots of translators come to translation straight from university with little other experience so this can set you apart. I'd think about using your real name too, rather than a pseudonym, if you want to be found.

Second, join a translators' association or network and get out and meet other translators. Look out for workshops for newcomers on subjects like business skills and marketing and talk to people. Go to as many events as you can!

Good luck,

Rachel

José Henrique Lamensdorf wrote:



Tom, this is one of the best and most concise lists of tips for translators starting out that I've seen so far. I hope it goes viral.


One enhancement to this item, viz. "Do unto others..."



Some agencies send very detailed questionnaires to applicants' references. If any of them gets too nosy or intrusive, you can ask them:

a) How would they feel if they received, say, a hundred questionnaires exactly like theirs from other agencies to answer about their current translators/

b) How would they feel if their current translators actually disclosed the information about their business that they are requesting from applying translators, in spite of any existing NDAs?

jlrsnyder wrote:

Like you, I have a background in teaching each of the languages I work in, but no official translation certificate other than my ProZ certification.
My advice would be to keep applying for jobs as they are posted on ProZ and help other translators out on KudoZ between jobs. Eventually someone will take a chance on you and, when they see and appreciate the quality of your work, they'll send you more assignments.
If one of your new clients happens to work for a big agency, that project manager may recommend you to colleagues and you'll see your work flow grow.
Do your best, keep learning, and apply the feedback you get from clients and colleagues. There's lots of work out there to be done.

Anne Schulz wrote:

From my own experience as a newby (more than 10 years ago now), all I can do is second the advice proposed in previous posts.

i) Create a full profile (even a thing as simple as stating your name will increase colleagues' willingness to help and clients' willingness to consider your translation services).
ii) Enjoy the playground of KudoZ and present your helpful suggestions to the colleagues – that is what I did when I considered to make a living from translations, and some of my best and long-standing collaborations still result from colleagues' recommendations during that time.

Best luck for your new career!

Jakoub.Anvar wrote:



pretty much this. As a recruiter for a translation/interpreting company I can say this is pretty much spot on. Your profile says a lot about you. If I see that it probably only took you 5 minutes to complete your profile, I am going to assume that you are not dedicated and passionate about translating text and my interest in your services will fade. Also in your profile when it asks you for your specialization, please only list the fields that you are indeed specialized in. You can put every other field in the also works in section. Also it would be helpful to us if you could put in a general range of your rates per word so we would know if you are in our price range before contacting you. For translators, references aren't as necessary as they are for interpreting work, so if you don't want to give them any references you don't really have to. You don't have to send 100's of emails. trust me, we will find you if we feel like you are a good candidate for the position. Most of the time, we are only looking for specific languages for assignments and if your language is not one of the languages we are looking for at the moment, your email will get lost in the piles of emails we receive on a daily bases. I would suggest creating a profile on multiple websites like proz, translators base, translators cafe etc....