| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Poll: How did you get into translating? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
|
|---|
This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How did you get into translating?".
View the poll results »
| | | | Nigel Greenwood (X) 
Spain
Local time: 01:27
Spanish to English
+ ...
| I drifted in from another field... | May 26, 2014 |
I had been working for different companies as an Outsourcing Engineer (finding suppliers in other countries of sub-products).
I was made redundant from my last company when I was 54, -no chances of finding other employment- and I started to work as a full-time freelancer specialising in Engineering.
So my 'drifting' was forced on me. But I am very grateful and very pleased with my new career.
Have a great day, all of you ... See more I had been working for different companies as an Outsourcing Engineer (finding suppliers in other countries of sub-products).
I was made redundant from my last company when I was 54, -no chances of finding other employment- and I started to work as a full-time freelancer specialising in Engineering.
So my 'drifting' was forced on me. But I am very grateful and very pleased with my new career.
Have a great day, all of you
Nigel. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Tim Drayton
Cyprus
Local time: 02:27
Turkish to English
+ ...
| I drifted into it from a different field ... | May 26, 2014 |
is how I answered, but it is hard to categorise. I first attempted to get translation work at a time when I was unemployed in 1984, but received no replies to any of my applications. I tried again in 1990, when I was a student and could have used some additional income, and received one free test translation for an agency, and that was it. In 1996, at a time when I was running a language training company, I started to receive inquiries out of the blue about translations from client companies and... See more is how I answered, but it is hard to categorise. I first attempted to get translation work at a time when I was unemployed in 1984, but received no replies to any of my applications. I tried again in 1990, when I was a student and could have used some additional income, and received one free test translation for an agency, and that was it. In 1996, at a time when I was running a language training company, I started to receive inquiries out of the blue about translations from client companies and did some of the translation work myself and assigned some of the jobs to other people. I had my first real bash at setting myself up as a full-time freelancer in 1999, when I had returned to my native country of the UK and had to find a way of earning a living. That lasted until 2002. Most recently, I set myself up as a freelance translator once more in Cyprus in 2004, more as a stopgap than a anything else, although I have been earning my living this way since then. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Julian Holmes
Japan
Local time: 08:27
Member (2011)
Japanese to English
I chose translation since it gave me a better chance to use my linguistic skills. After 7 years of Latin and 4 of ancient Greek, I was worried my Japanese would go the same way and be lost and forgotten like a dead language.
Never looked back... 
| | |
|
|
|
Noura Tawil
Syria
Local time: 02:27
Member (2013)
English to Arabic
| from different fieldS | May 26, 2014 |
From Pharmacy, as a profession, and literary writing and plastic arts as hobbies. They're all integrated into translation "specialties" now.
| | | | | from different fields | May 26, 2014 |
International business in steel industry, construction, internet marketing, international business conferences for various industries (steel, scrap, coal, cement, grain, etc.)
Almost everywhere (except construction) I had to make translations and to use my language skills regulary. Now I find my previous experience helps me.
| | | | Diana Coada (X)
United Kingdom
Local time: 00:27
Portuguese to English
+ ...
| How did you get into translating? | May 26, 2014 |
When I decided I wanted to be an interpreter - it comes with the territory
| | | | | from another field | May 26, 2014 |
I'd worked for years in freelance journalism but had been moving away from it. I had an editing gig and considered applying as a translator for the same company. I'd done some translation in the past and started looking at translation as a possibility. I still do editing and other writing work as well. I had studied journalism and english lit and the skills I learned have been very helpful. Plus, I get more work and make more money than I did in journalism!
| | |
|
|
|
| I drifted into it from a different field | May 26, 2014 |
At the time I didn't know that translation as a job field even existed. Come to think of it, I wonder why that is.
| | | | | I drifted... | May 26, 2014 |
When I started working I had no defined carreer plan (I was then married to an airforce pilot and we moved all the time) so I drifted a lot: civil servant, senior secretary, hotel manager, junior director, account executive, public relations officer, vocational trainer... Many years later, translation found me and I have never looked back!
| | | | | I always wanted be a linguist and possibly a translator, among | May 26, 2014 |
other things like being a writer, a journalist and a visual arts artist. Also an acrobat-- well this one did not work out. Just joking--the last one just a child's idea, never acted upon.
[Edited at 2014-05-26 10:28 GMT]
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 01:27
Spanish to English
+ ...
| Drifted into it... | May 26, 2014 |
... although I had also always wanted to be a translator. However, when I finished my degree in Russian, the main source of work available was for the government and I didn't fancy signing the official secrets act. So I went off to teach TEFL in Spain instead and did so for several years before ending up in what I always kind of knew was my true calling, translating ES-EN. I rarely get the chance to use my Russian nowadays and it's very rusty...
[Edited at 2014-05-26 10:44 GMT]
| | |
|
|
|
Rolf Kern
Switzerland
Local time: 01:27
English to German
+ ...
In memoriam
A friend of mine, a mechanical engineer, knowing I was an electrical engineer, asked me whether I could do a translation for the company in which he worked in the field of electrical insulating tapes. That was the start.
| | | | John Fossey
Canada
Local time: 19:27
Member (2008)
French to English
+ ...
| Didn't "drift" | May 26, 2014 |
I answered "Other" because while I got into it from another field, I didn't "drift" into it - it was a deliberate decision when I was looking for something else to do after the business I was in previously closed.
| | | | EvaVer (X)
Local time: 01:27
Czech to French
+ ...
| As most people above, I drifted | May 26, 2014 |
When working as a secretary, my income was low and I needed something extra. This extra outgrew my salary quite fast, so that the decision was easy.
| | | | | Pages in topic: [1 2] > | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » Poll: How did you get into translating? | Trados Studio 2022 Freelance | The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.
Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop
and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.
More info » |
| | Anycount & Translation Office 3000 | Translation Office 3000
Translation Office 3000 is an advanced accounting tool for freelance translators and small agencies. TO3000 easily and seamlessly integrates with the business life of professional freelance translators.
More info » |
|
| | | | X Sign in to your ProZ.com account... | | | | | |
Login to reply/comment 
