Lots of people dream of being translators, free to work at their own pace, not having to commute, working comfortably in their pajamas and furry slippers while sipping a steaming coffee…. ☕
And people believe it’s easy to get translation jobs, too, since the only requisite is being good at a second language. But is it? 🤷🏼
Being a translator is a rewarding profession, but a challenging one that requires proficiency and fluency in at least one second language (and also your native language), good writing skills, knowledge of the subject matter, cultural awareness, attention to detail, accuracy and adaptability.
A career as a translator can be a fantastic fit for you if you have what it takes.
There are many other skills you need to be a professional translator, besides language skills.
What type of skills are we talking about?
One thing you will need for sure is diligence because you know translation jobs won’t just land on your lap, right?
So, how do you get work? Well, you can work for translation agencies—if they’ll have you—and they will send you translation jobs when they need it. Or you can be a freelancer, in which case, this article will come in handy.
Another requirement is being technologically educated. These days, it helps having an online presence, such as a personal website, social media and LinkedIn profiles. Word of mouth can also be useful, so go to online translation platforms and start making connections. 🖥️ ⌨️ 👩🏻💻
Learning skills are important too because translators need to constantly learn in order to keep up with the ever-changing vocabulary and jargon, and to remain relevant in their profession.
It also helps to know a lot about a certain area, since you won’t be able to make a decent living if you can’t translate any technical content. So, study—broaden your possibilities by exploring a technical specialization.
You also need business and time-management skills, especially if you do take off as a freelance translator and start receiving a lot of emails and deadlines. You might be working alone, from your own home, but you have clients, right? So, you are subject to the same rules as companies, and to retain your clients, you need to know about customer service, marketing and finance. 👛💰 🛍️
Deadlines and urgent work can be a lot to handle, but remember that as a freelancer, YOU decide how much work to handle and how long it will take you to do it, and when to say no.
Estimating how many words you can translate within a certain time won’t be easy at first because it takes learning and experience.
Having said that, a good salary is possible only if you work long hours. But even sought-after translators often experience lulls in their workload, which is normal and expected.
There’s the tax season, the holidays, etc. There are no breaks when it comes to paying your bills, so you need to manage your personal finances and save for rainy days. 💸
Translating fictional works and subtitling movies and video games sounds fun! 📽️ 🎮 👽 🎃 🧙🏿 🧙🏾♀️
But translators work with a wider range of less intriguing materials, such as business contracts, academic publications, family or medical history information, travel paperwork, safety guidelines, product manuals, and legal, technical, and financial records. Boring stuff!
You will need to motivate yourself constantly so you don’t get bored or tired since not all the documents you translate will be enticing, but they will all require your undivided attention. 🤓
If you are the creative type and yearn for some level of individuality or self-expression, translation might not be the right fit for you.
Translators are not allowed poetic license; this work is exact and precise. Except for transcreation and, to a certain extent, localization, your duty is to ensure that all your translations are complete, accurate, and in context.Choosing your own schedule is appealing, but if you translate full-time, you need calendar management skills. Translation involves sitting and typing for hours on end, which means extra stress on your neck and back, as well as your arms and hands. 🗓️
Your mental health is important too, so make time for socializing because what “working from anywhere” really translates into (pun intended) is you’ll be spending a lot of your time at home, alone.
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Being a translator requires a lot of independence and resilience.
We aren’t saying you need to be alone for the rest of your life, but you should be aware that making time to socialize while you’re not working can take a bit more effort on your part than when you work outside the home.
Plan effectively to create a schedule that makes time for exercise or short walks, and regular breaks, but also enough work hours to earn a living. 📅
Finally, be patient and persistent! Remember that building up a clientele as a freelancer typically takes time—sometimes years—so you might need to start out working another job until you establish yourself.
Do you still think you have what it takes?
If you are still interested in being a professional translator, what we can do for you as a team of dedicated and experienced professionals is offer a few tips to help you start on the right foot!
- improve your planning and time management skills ⏰
- train your fingers to type faster; you will be doing a lot of typing 🖖🏻
- improve your writing: reading is one of the best strategies to get better at writing 🖋️
- become one of those annoying grammar and punctuation perfectionists 🧐
- use translation tools to their full potential: dictionaries, thesauruses, and translation memory software such as Wordfast, memoQ, Trados Studio, etc. 🔧
- train your research skills: you may need to look up legal, technical, and scientific terminology online 🕵🏻♀️
- improve communication skills: you may be choosing this profession because you are an introvert, but you won’t be able to avoid communicating with clients ☎️
- pursue, keep up with and expand your understanding of specialized translation fields 🤹🏼
We are not complaining—we love what we do! ❤️
Be sure to check out our skills by browsing through the linguistic services we offer:
https://verbarium-boutique.com/services/
Curious about who we are? Get a glimpse of our experience as professional translators:
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