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Poll: What do you do when you have no paid work lined up?
Autor de la hebra: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
PERSONAL DEL SITIO
Feb 20, 2022

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "What do you do when you have no paid work lined up?".

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Rahul Rajput
muftaudeen musa
 
Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
Estados Unidos
Local time: 18:21
Miembro 2003
español al inglés
+ ...
Work on personal projects Feb 20, 2022

For many years I couldn't remember when I had "no paid work lined up," but now that I'm long past retirement age, I'm actually making room for my personal projects and intentionally accepting less work. I edited my late husband's memoir for publication in Brazil and published two memoirs of my own. I'm now writing a more practical book based my graduate thesis. I also do landscape design and volunteer for my homeowners association.

Barbara Cochran, MFA
Aline Amorim
Sidi Zhang
Philippe Etienne
Amir Shinwari
muftaudeen musa
Larbi Elhabbache
 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 02:21
Miembro 2007
inglés al portugués
+ ...
Other (depends) Feb 20, 2022

When I have little or no work on hand I always start by catching up with the paperwork and then I clean, cook, iron, listen to music, read a good book, walk my dog, shop, go to the cinema, I do whatever I feel like doing. Like Muriel I am trying to accept less work (not always successful as I can’t say no to some long-standing customers). I have also been working on a personal project related to translation: an ever-ending (started in 2001) acronym glossary. To date it has 305 pages (text in T... See more
When I have little or no work on hand I always start by catching up with the paperwork and then I clean, cook, iron, listen to music, read a good book, walk my dog, shop, go to the cinema, I do whatever I feel like doing. Like Muriel I am trying to accept less work (not always successful as I can’t say no to some long-standing customers). I have also been working on a personal project related to translation: an ever-ending (started in 2001) acronym glossary. To date it has 305 pages (text in Times New Roman 10)…Collapse


Sidi Zhang
Philip Lees
Yetta Jensen Bogarde
Rahul Rajput
Elina Sellgren
 
Edith van der Have
Edith van der Have
Países Bajos
Local time: 03:21
Miembro 2016
inglés al neerlandés
+ ...
Other Feb 20, 2022

A combination of all of these things. Also, I like having a tea with friends; usually I'm too tired in the evenings for social contacts, so it's great that I can schedule this during the day. One of the many perks of freelancing

Ventnai
Patricia Prevost
Sidi Zhang
Rahul Rajput
Laura Bissio CT
Elena Simonelli
 
Christina Pauly
Christina Pauly  Identity Verified
Local time: 03:21
Miembro 2008
inglés al alemán
+ ...
Send as many CVs and bids as I can Feb 20, 2022

You absolutely baffle me! Don't you need to pay your bills?
I wouldn't dream of taking time off just because I don't have any assignments. I need to work to earn money, and save it for old age.
Who do you think will pay for my living when I'm old? Me, nobody else, just me.


Nour Majed
Irene (Renata) Liapis
Rahul Rajput
Elina Sellgren
Eduardo Davi Geraldo
Els Govaerts
 
Barbara Carrara
Barbara Carrara  Identity Verified
Italia
Local time: 03:21
Miembro 2008
inglés al italiano
+ ...
Dear 'anonymous' Feb 20, 2022

Dear 'anonymous',

You may want to check your poll options before posting,

'Go out for leissure (sic) activities'


Tom in London
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
writeaway
Philip Lees
Josephine Cassar
P.L.F. Persio
Rahul Rajput
 
Alexandra Speirs
Alexandra Speirs  Identity Verified
Local time: 03:21
italiano al inglés
+ ...
two possibilities Feb 20, 2022

One being a personal project, namely catching up on the housework, clearing some of the clutter.
The second, getting out of the house for some fresh air and exercise.


Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Rahul Rajput
Elizabeth Joy Pitt de Morales
 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brasil
Local time: 23:21
Miembro 2014
inglés al portugués
+ ...
Other (and several of these) options Feb 20, 2022

I do a bit of all these things, plus, I do home stuff and update my stats and spreadsheets, clean up TMs and TBs, backup files, etc.

Christine Andersen
Aline Amorim
Michael Harris
Florence Risser
 
Christine Andersen
Christine Andersen  Identity Verified
Dinamarca
Local time: 03:21
Miembro 2003
danés al inglés
+ ...
Go out Feb 20, 2022

It used to work like a charm - as soon as I was away from the mail and the phone, a red flag seemed to come up on clients' screens!
It does not always work now, and way back, it was not always my favourite clients who sent mails, but there was almost always something in the mail, even if I had only been to shops, or even the dentist on one occasion!

I try to get some fresh air and exercise, tidy up somewhere
... See more
It used to work like a charm - as soon as I was away from the mail and the phone, a red flag seemed to come up on clients' screens!
It does not always work now, and way back, it was not always my favourite clients who sent mails, but there was almost always something in the mail, even if I had only been to shops, or even the dentist on one occasion!

I try to get some fresh air and exercise, tidy up somewhere, or at certain times of year prepare and freeze the fruit and vegetables my husband grows in the garden. Or I read cookery books and plan menus with whatever we have in the freezer!
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Chris Says Bye
Rahul Rajput
Elizabeth Joy Pitt de Morales
Anna A. K.
 
Baran Keki
Baran Keki  Identity Verified
Turquía
Local time: 05:21
Miembro
inglés al turco
TwB Feb 20, 2022

Where is the option that says "I donate words to TwB and help save the world!"?
When exactly does one find the time to 'donate words' to TwB? In between paid jobs, while working on paid jobs or do you actually turn down paid jobs in favour of TwB projects?
Shouldn't there be a TwB option for those proudly showing off their precious TwB badges on their profiles? Why would you go cold emailing and harassing the agencies when you can do your bit to better the world and help the poor w
... See more
Where is the option that says "I donate words to TwB and help save the world!"?
When exactly does one find the time to 'donate words' to TwB? In between paid jobs, while working on paid jobs or do you actually turn down paid jobs in favour of TwB projects?
Shouldn't there be a TwB option for those proudly showing off their precious TwB badges on their profiles? Why would you go cold emailing and harassing the agencies when you can do your bit to better the world and help the poor with the words you generously donate?
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Mr. Satan (X)
Rahul Rajput
Elina Sellgren
 
Barbara Cochran, MFA
Barbara Cochran, MFA  Identity Verified
Estados Unidos
Local time: 21:21
español al inglés
+ ...
Several Things Feb 20, 2022

Go out for leisure activities: I go and walk around one of the many parks around here: Lorain County Metro Parks Mill Hollow Reservation, where I walk along the Vermilion River, see and hear Canadian geese as they fly over, and enjoy the colorful wild flowers that line it; Shoepfle Gardens in Birmingham, Ohio, which besides the river, has a lot of green spaces covered with plants, colorful flowerbeds, and pine trees; and through Tappan Square, which is across from Oberlin College, where I attend... See more
Go out for leisure activities: I go and walk around one of the many parks around here: Lorain County Metro Parks Mill Hollow Reservation, where I walk along the Vermilion River, see and hear Canadian geese as they fly over, and enjoy the colorful wild flowers that line it; Shoepfle Gardens in Birmingham, Ohio, which besides the river, has a lot of green spaces covered with plants, colorful flowerbeds, and pine trees; and through Tappan Square, which is across from Oberlin College, where I attend classical music concerts put on by world-renowned musicians and singers, and use the library in the summer. Other than that, I go to indoor gyms, one just 5 minutes from my house, the other, on the campus of Lorain County Community College, which I take advantage of when I'm on campus as a community user of the library, where I often work on book translations.

And right now I'm leisurely writing this post and reading a book of interest to me, that is concerned with another field, in Ritter Public Library, a green (in the environmental sense) library in Vermilion, OH, where the bright sunlight is streaming into the room through several tall windows that surround the area where I am seated. Let there be light (double entendre intended!).

Work on personal projects: I occasionally work on my translation of Castelo Branco's Amor de Perdição, or Flaubert's Madame Bovary.

Stay home and rest: I'd like to say I could rest while I'm at home. But other than listening to music, I don't get much because of all the negative things I am seeing and hearing on cable and network TV over here.

Other than that, I'm always on the lookout for literary projects, even when I'm in the middle of one. Because there is always the possibility that the author who is looking for her or his book to be translated isn't in all that much of a hurry to get it done.

[Edited at 2022-02-20 19:19 GMT]

[Edited at 2022-02-20 20:06 GMT]

[Edited at 2022-02-21 18:20 GMT]
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Rahul Rajput
 
Metin Demirel
Metin Demirel  Identity Verified
Turquía
Local time: 05:21
italiano al turco
+ ...
why? Feb 20, 2022

Why is this a poll? What is the logic behind choosing one single option among things that can be done erratically or spontaneously or conspiratorially? What great insight should we expect from the poll results?

I would prefer poll questions with meaningful stats like x% of translators has carpal tunnel syndrome or one-third of translators didn't like the movie "The Professor and the Madman" (well, at least there is a connection between the profession and the movie's c
... See more
Why is this a poll? What is the logic behind choosing one single option among things that can be done erratically or spontaneously or conspiratorially? What great insight should we expect from the poll results?

I would prefer poll questions with meaningful stats like x% of translators has carpal tunnel syndrome or one-third of translators didn't like the movie "The Professor and the Madman" (well, at least there is a connection between the profession and the movie's composition; the options in this poll, however, would apply to any kind of freelancer or a student or a taxi driver).
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Mr. Satan (X)
Elina Sellgren
Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
 
Sidi Zhang
Sidi Zhang  Identity Verified
China
Local time: 10:21
inglés al chino
Others Feb 21, 2022

As a mother of two, I spent much of my leisure time playing with my girls. I would take them out for a nice walk, or read them great stories. This makes me relax, though tired sometimes.

Rahul Rajput
 
Edith van der Have
Edith van der Have
Países Bajos
Local time: 03:21
Miembro 2016
inglés al neerlandés
+ ...
This is absolutely the best thing you can do ... Feb 21, 2022

Christina Pauly wrote:

You absolutely baffle me! Don't you need to pay your bills?
I wouldn't dream of taking time off just because I don't have any assignments. I need to work to earn money, and save it for old age.
Who do you think will pay for my living when I'm old? Me, nobody else, just me.

... if you do not have enough work or enough well-paying work. While more/better clients come in, you can drop the mediocre clients from the bottom of your list. Hopefully, you'll reach an equilibrium at some moment with a comfortable income, where you can relax in quiet times, knowing that you will get new work eventually and you do not need to work many hours to cover all these things.

It took me some years to get there, but now I do not need to spend all my time that's left during business hours on acquisition anymore. I do try to keep consistent acquisition in busy times, however; sending at least five messages a week.


Angie Garbarino
Patricia Prevost
P.L.F. Persio
Mariana Borio
Fernanda di Costanzo
Elizabeth Joy Pitt de Morales
Elina Sellgren
 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
Francia
Local time: 03:21
francés al inglés
. Feb 21, 2022

Several options missing here, I would have clicked on "most of the above".

The problem with lulls is that you never know how long they'll last, so I don't get stuck into dressmaking projects nearly as often these days.

I basically do the same as during my free time that I carve out even when I have work: yoga swimming riding my bike, taking the dog out to the park or the woods or the river, chatting with friends and family, going to the cinema, trying out new recipes,
... See more
Several options missing here, I would have clicked on "most of the above".

The problem with lulls is that you never know how long they'll last, so I don't get stuck into dressmaking projects nearly as often these days.

I basically do the same as during my free time that I carve out even when I have work: yoga swimming riding my bike, taking the dog out to the park or the woods or the river, chatting with friends and family, going to the cinema, trying out new recipes, doing volunteer work. I'm also looking into some courses I could take to improve my knowledge in my favourite specialist subjects at the moment, but they'll have to be very flexible because I don't intend giving any of the above up, and I don't want to refuse work either.
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P.L.F. Persio
Amir Shinwari
Rahul Rajput
Elina Sellgren
 
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Poll: What do you do when you have no paid work lined up?






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