Becoming a memorable employee—the type of employee any boss would want to consider for an exciting project or a promotion—takes a bit more work than just focusing on meeting job expectations and working your scheduled hours. The reality is that sticking to doing what you were hired to do, although appreciated, will not be enough […]
About four months ago, I received a translation proposal through LinkedIn ProFinder with the following request: Beverly, would you consider translating a 225-word document to evaluate your skills in translating church related terminology? I felt uneasy about this petition. In the past, I had heard horror stories about potential clients asking translators to translate a […]
Sometimes the idea of “larger is better” may lead translation buyers to believe that choosing a large, multilingual translation agency makes the most sense. And even though a multilingual translation agency can be the right fit for many translation buyers, going that route is not for everyone. Your translation goals, your business vision, and what […]
For a first-time translation buyer, the complexity of translation pricing can be daunting, especially when it comes to highly creative material used for marketing and advertising purposes. How can a three-word slogan cost more to translate than a 200-word document? I get it—it’s a valid concern. After all, most of us are careful with how […]
As a child, I remember my family and I visiting great-uncle Plácido a couple of times a year. He lived in the cute and mountainous town of Orocovis, Puerto Rico with his wife, Panchita. Panchita had a very peculiar way of speaking. Her intonation was squeaky and very memorable–at least to me–and it was always […]
“Me gustan las tostadas con mantequilla de maní.” / “Me gusta el pan tostado con crema de cacahuate.” Initially, it’s obvious to notice both sentences are written in Spanish; what’s less obvious is both sentences are basically expressing the same idea using different words. The first sentence is from Puerto Rico, and the second one is from […]
One of the principles that are most advertised by freelancers and agencies, in general, is the importance of being a native speaker when translating into any particular language. And there’s an apparent reason for this principle to be so prevalent in the translation industry—better results are expected when a translation into Spanish, for example, is […]
In the beginning stages of my freelance career, I tried to reach out to other translators for guidance. I actually contacted a few translators who were well-known in the industry and seemed to have it all figured out. Two of them were really sweet and willing to answer my questions, but there was one who […]
When I first started my translation business, social media literally scared me. I had never been a big fan of technology in general, and the thought of having to put myself out there to promote my business was a bit scary. Nonetheless, I went ahead and did what everyone else was doing—I opened up a […]
As I shared recently in one of my previous posts, translation pricing is one of those hot topics that’ll never get old in the translation field. Ever since becoming acquainted with the translation pricing world, I’ve been intrigued by the number of translators who are willing to work for extremely low rates. Is it a […]