As exciting as being your own boss is, it’s also a daunting prospect, especially as a novice translator. There’s so much involved in setting up as a freelancer - organising your workspace, joining professional bodies, contacting translation agencies, trying to develop a translation speciality, getting yourself “out there” - and all of this takes place under the shower of “what ifs.”
What if my language skills aren’t up to scratch?
What if I can’t make enough money to pay the bills?
What if my computer skills are too limited?
The list could go on and on but to be honest, who hasn’t felt the same way when starting a new job? Even the most skilled professional translator had to start somewhere, and while many translators would suggest that spending some time as an in-house translator is the best way to gain experience and industry knowledge that’s just not possible or practical to most new translators.
So maybe part of the solution lies in the old adage that failing to plan is just like planning to fail. That planning can easily fall into two categories:
1. Business planning
While the prospect of working at home in your pyjamas, drinking endless cups of coffee while daytime TV plays in the background sounds appealing to some, remember that you still have to make a living out of your freelancing! So be business-like.
• Contact your local Business Link Office.
Arrange to attend some of their workshops(http://www.businesslink.gov.uk). These cover different aspects of starting a new business, such as business planning, finance, bookkeeping etc. They also organise network events and carry out industry wide research that can help you find potential clients.
• Think marketing!
You can build a fairly basic but attractive website by using a hosting service like Mr Site (http://www.mrsite.co.uk) or Moonfruit (http://www.moonfruit.com) without any real knowledge of web design - and all for a few pounds a month! You can also get free business cards and stationery by using a service like Vistaprint. (http://www.vistaprint.co.uk) At this stage there’s no need to spend a fortune, so update your social websites like Facebook or LinkedIn, and use them to inform and hopefully encourage your contacts to promote your business for you.
2. Professional planning
You can still work with experienced translators without having an in-house position with a translation agency. How? By joining the UK’s two principal professional bodies for the translation industry - the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (http://www.iti.org.uk) and the Chartered Institute of Linguists (http://www.iol.org.uk)
• Both organisations operate student and associate membership grades for those studying or starting out in the profession. Membership benefits include a subscription to trade magazines so you can keep up to date with new developments
• Both run internet forum groups on a variety of subject areas and languages, so you can ask questions, get to know other translators and get involved in other professionals activities.
• Both offer excellent opportunities to attend training, networking and social events. Huge emphasis is placed on Continued Professional Development or CPD, which encourages you to develop new and existing skills and achieve a greater level of professionalism in your work.
So really, there is a massive amount of help out there. Plant the seeds and with time they’ll start to grow and develop.
