Transitioning from Employed to Self-Employed - Part 1

Freelance translators know only too well that some people consider their position as freelancers an inferior position when compared to full-time employment.

Freelance translators know only too well that some people consider their position as freelancers an inferior position when compared to full-time employment. Any professional freelance translator who previously held down a regular job and who’s now achieved success in the freelance world will tell you that there’s certainly nothing ‘inferior’ about freelancing. Moving from being employed to working for yourself is not for the faint of heart, but for those brave enough to face an unknown frontier head-on, the change to self-employment can be an extremely rewarding career, both financially and personally. Success as a freelancer instills an enormous sense of pride and achievement for translators who’ve made it on their own.

Freelancing Is Not a Walk in the Park!

However, for employed translators considering making the move to self-employment, be assured that achieving success as a professional freelance translator is not a walk in the park. There are so many unknowns ahead, such as stiff competition, the unpredictability of translation projects, self-marketing, how to attract clients, time management, and the question of time off: will you ever be able to take a vacation? It’s natural to wonder if you’ll be at the mercy of your clients, assuming you ever get any, and whether anyone will appreciate your expertise as a translator. So, you can see that starting out as a freelance translator can be quite stressful. The encouraging news for you is that you’re not alone – you’re not the first person to transition from employment to self-employment, and you certainly won’t be the last. Many people have been in the same situation you’re in now, successfully creating a career for themselves as a freelance translator. And it’s to these people we look for advice on the pitfalls to avoid and the positive steps we need to take in order to achieve our goals.

For some people this step into the freelance world is one of courage, while for others it’s a step they’re taking due to circumstances, but either way, if your goal is to become a successful freelance translator, we hope the following tips may help you make a smooth transition into the world of self-employment. We’re going to look at this from an emotional perspective because we know that it’s our emotions that get in the way of our ultimate success; and so if that’s true, then it must also be our emotions that help us succeed.

Fear

Walking away from the safety and security of being a full-time employee can be absolutely terrifying; the fear of not having a regular paycheck is probably the greatest challenge a new translation professional will face unless of course, you have saved enough money to get you through this start-up phase. So, in order to move on, you have to gain control of your fear, and in order to do this, you need to ensure that your expectations are not set too high. The way to take control of your fear is to have a solid plan and put it into practice, because the more effort you put into planning, the more your emotions can be controlled.