8 sure ways for freelancers to handle too much workload

8 sure ways to handle too much workload Do you have too much work at hand ? Do you often turn down offers but feel obliged to accept a certain amount in order not to put off clients. Do you work most of the weekends, which you think better than having too little work? Also do you know too much work can lead to high stress levels and absence of social life? How to handle it? Here are 8 sure ways to work less and earn more. 1.Raise your rates. Beleive me it is indeed a viable way of cutting down workload. Most of the clients may agree to your new rates, but some of them may start to send less work. For new or potential clients it's an ideal time to quote much higher rates. You don't need more work at the same rates, after all, and it's only worth making room for new, unproven clients if they pay you considerably more than your existing ones.So don't be afraid of quoting more than you normally charge - if they say no, you've lost nothing. 2.Evaluate your existing clients and consider raising your rates . Occasional clients who pay lower rates can be avoided without affecting your bottom line. With more regular clients, try suggesting a rate rise and see how they react. 3.Try to negotiate delivery dates. If you think you can do it by this week, suggest next week. If you're asked to do it for Friday afternoon, suggest Monday morning. Build in flexibility so you can accommodate desirable extra requests without having to work long hours. 4. let your regular clients know your situation - tell them that you can only fit in 10000 words in the next week or so. That way, you avoid having to say "no" too often as they won't ask you to take on too much. 5.Don't be afraid to say "no" to any occasional clients who offer you a job with a short turnaround - and take the opportunity to say "I'm generally fully booked up for 5/10 working days from any given point", so you save your time and theirs from wasted phone calls and e-mails. 6.Finally, don't be afraid to say no. They will come back after hearing "no" not just once, but repeatedly. 7.Do away with one of your language combinations. 8. Do away with one or more of your subject specialities

Trados Made Easy

Trados Made Easy Application software helps the user to make the work that needs to be accomplished much easier and simpler to perform. Trados is one such software that is available to translators to help them in improving the quality and the quantity of work that is completed. But, many translators are of the notion that Trados is very difficult to learn and is not user friendly. But, contrary to the popular belief, Trados can help a translator in not only improving the quality of work by eliminating many mistakes it can also enhance the productivity. In the beginning stages, you can just start with learning one module of Trados i.e. Trados Workbench. This module is useful in translating a number of file formats such as .doc, .xls, .pdf, etc. This enables you to concentrate on learning one module and you can avoid learning other modules such as Multi Term, Tag Editor, etc until you have got a basic hang of what you need to know. Let us now learn how a file is translated using Workbench. Using the Windows “Start” button, access “Programs” and from there open the Trados Translator Workbench (should be installed in your computer). Once the program is open, a new file is created using the file option in the menu and is named appropriately and saved. The options such as the language of the original text and the translated text is chosen from the options and saved. The original text is then opened in the Translator Workbench and the mouse is pointed to the first line and the keys Alt and Home are pressed. The translation is then typed in another box that is present on the spreadsheet. Once the first line is completed to proceed to the following sentence, the keys Alt and Num are pressed. This method is followed until the entire document is completed after which the keys Alt and End are pressed. Since the completed file has both the languages, it is necessary to remove the original text from the file. This is performed using the clean-up option in Tools of the workbench menu. Once cleanup is performed, the file will only contain the translation. Since Trados saves all your translations into memory, it will give suggestions in translating many phrases and sentences which will make it easy for you to translate repetitions.

How many words per day you can translate?

How many words per day you can translate? Recently we have arranged a poll in our blog asking translators to suggest how many words they translate in a working day. The poll was open for 30 days and 41 translators participated in it. The translators were from different countries, continents from different time zones. I assume they are all freelance translators. The results are as below: 19% translators translate 1000 words/day 7% translators translate 1500 words/day 26% translators translate 2000 words/day 7% translators translate 2500 words/day 29% translators translate 3000 words/day 9% translators translate more than 3000 words/day

Is Proofreading part of a translators job?

Very often, the proofreading part is not discussed with the translators. The clients may assume it is the duty of the translator to deliver a proofread job. The translator may think the client will arrange for a proofreader, because they are an agency. As is already told, Translation as a process which constitutes of the following steps- glossary making, translation, typesetting, editing and proofreading. And as a general rule, the translator is supposed to deliver a final product that is error free. If it is something which you think should be paid for, better negotiate with the client at the begining. It does not matter whether your client is an agency or a direct client. THis is more so when they (clients) specifically mention that they need proofreading by a third party. Again negotiate before hand for third part charges and include in your translation rate. Some people say that if you work with an agency they are usually responsible for quality assurance. So you dont need to prooread your files. To me it seems not fair. As a translator we should take responsibility for our job and can not expect some body else will do it for me. If the client still arranges a third party proofreader it is good for them. When you work with a direct client then you need to negotiate all the steps involved in the translation process and ask for a suitable rate. In any case translators should take responsibility for their own jobs. Proofreading is part of a translators job.