| Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | Poll: What do you do when you have no paid work lined up? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "What do you do when you have no paid work lined up?".
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| | | | | Work on personal projects | Feb 20, 2022 |
For many years I couldn't remember when I had "no paid work lined up," but now that I'm long past retirement age, I'm actually making room for my personal projects and intentionally accepting less work. I edited my late husband's memoir for publication in Brazil and published two memoirs of my own. I'm now writing a more practical book based my graduate thesis. I also do landscape design and volunteer for my homeowners association.
| | | | | Other (depends) | Feb 20, 2022 |
When I have little or no work on hand I always start by catching up with the paperwork and then I clean, cook, iron, listen to music, read a good book, walk my dog, shop, go to the cinema, I do whatever I feel like doing. Like Muriel I am trying to accept less work (not always successful as I can’t say no to some long-standing customers). I have also been working on a personal project related to translation: an ever-ending (started in 2001) acronym glossary. To date it has 305 pages (text in T... See more When I have little or no work on hand I always start by catching up with the paperwork and then I clean, cook, iron, listen to music, read a good book, walk my dog, shop, go to the cinema, I do whatever I feel like doing. Like Muriel I am trying to accept less work (not always successful as I can’t say no to some long-standing customers). I have also been working on a personal project related to translation: an ever-ending (started in 2001) acronym glossary. To date it has 305 pages (text in Times New Roman 10)… ▲ Collapse
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A combination of all of these things. Also, I like having a tea with friends; usually I'm too tired in the evenings for social contacts, so it's great that I can schedule this during the day. One of the many perks of freelancing 
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| Send as many CVs and bids as I can | Feb 20, 2022 |
You absolutely baffle me! Don't you need to pay your bills?
I wouldn't dream of taking time off just because I don't have any assignments. I need to work to earn money, and save it for old age.
Who do you think will pay for my living when I'm old? Me, nobody else, just me.
| | | | Barbara Carrara 
Italy
Local time: 14:29
Member (2008)
English to Italian
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| Dear 'anonymous' | Feb 20, 2022 |
Dear 'anonymous',
You may want to check your poll options before posting,
'Go out for leissure (sic) activities'
| | | | | two possibilities | Feb 20, 2022 |
One being a personal project, namely catching up on the housework, clearing some of the clutter.
The second, getting out of the house for some fresh air and exercise.
| | | | Mario Freitas
Brazil
Local time: 09:29
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
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| Other (and several of these) options | Feb 20, 2022 |
I do a bit of all these things, plus, I do home stuff and update my stats and spreadsheets, clean up TMs and TBs, backup files, etc.
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It used to work like a charm - as soon as I was away from the mail and the phone, a red flag seemed to come up on clients' screens!
It does not always work now, and way back, it was not always my favourite clients who sent mails, but there was almost always something in the mail, even if I had only been to shops, or even the dentist on one occasion!
I try to get some fresh air and exercise, tidy up somewhere... See more It used to work like a charm - as soon as I was away from the mail and the phone, a red flag seemed to come up on clients' screens!
It does not always work now, and way back, it was not always my favourite clients who sent mails, but there was almost always something in the mail, even if I had only been to shops, or even the dentist on one occasion!
I try to get some fresh air and exercise, tidy up somewhere, or at certain times of year prepare and freeze the fruit and vegetables my husband grows in the garden. Or I read cookery books and plan menus with whatever we have in the freezer! ▲ Collapse
| | | | Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 15:29
Member
English to Turkish
Where is the option that says "I donate words to TwB and help save the world!"?
When exactly does one find the time to 'donate words' to TwB? In between paid jobs, while working on paid jobs or do you actually turn down paid jobs in favour of TwB projects?
Shouldn't there be a TwB option for those proudly showing off their precious TwB badges on their profiles? Why would you go cold emailing and harassing the agencies when you can do your bit to better the world and help the poor w... See more Where is the option that says "I donate words to TwB and help save the world!"?
When exactly does one find the time to 'donate words' to TwB? In between paid jobs, while working on paid jobs or do you actually turn down paid jobs in favour of TwB projects?
Shouldn't there be a TwB option for those proudly showing off their precious TwB badges on their profiles? Why would you go cold emailing and harassing the agencies when you can do your bit to better the world and help the poor with the words you generously donate? ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Several Things | Feb 20, 2022 |
Go out for leisure activities: I go and walk around one of the many parks around here: Lorain County Metro Parks Mill Hollow Reservation, where I walk along the Vermilion River, see and hear Canadian geese as they fly over, and enjoy the colorful wild flowers that line it; Shoepfle Gardens in Birmingham, Ohio, which besides the river, has a lot of green spaces covered with plants, colorful flowerbeds, and pine trees; and through Tappan Square, which is across from Oberlin College, where I attend... See more Go out for leisure activities: I go and walk around one of the many parks around here: Lorain County Metro Parks Mill Hollow Reservation, where I walk along the Vermilion River, see and hear Canadian geese as they fly over, and enjoy the colorful wild flowers that line it; Shoepfle Gardens in Birmingham, Ohio, which besides the river, has a lot of green spaces covered with plants, colorful flowerbeds, and pine trees; and through Tappan Square, which is across from Oberlin College, where I attend classical music concerts put on by world-renowned musicians and singers, and use the library in the summer. Other than that, I go to indoor gyms, one just 5 minutes from my house, the other, on the campus of Lorain County Community College, which I take advantage of when I'm on campus as a community user of the library, where I often work on book translations.
And right now I'm leisurely writing this post and reading a book of interest to me, that is concerned with another field, in Ritter Public Library, a green (in the environmental sense) library in Vermilion, OH, where the bright sunlight is streaming into the room through several tall windows that surround the area where I am seated. Let there be light (double entendre intended!).
Work on personal projects: I occasionally work on my translation of Castelo Branco's Amor de Perdição, or Flaubert's Madame Bovary.
Stay home and rest: I'd like to say I could rest while I'm at home. But other than listening to music, I don't get much because of all the negative things I am seeing and hearing on cable and network TV over here.
Other than that, I'm always on the lookout for literary projects, even when I'm in the middle of one. Because there is always the possibility that the author who is looking for her or his book to be translated isn't in all that much of a hurry to get it done.
[Edited at 2022-02-20 19:19 GMT]
[Edited at 2022-02-20 20:06 GMT]
[Edited at 2022-02-21 18:20 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Metin Demirel
Türkiye
Local time: 15:29
Member (2018)
Italian to Turkish
+ ...
Why is this a poll? What is the logic behind choosing one single option among things that can be done erratically or spontaneously or conspiratorially? What great insight should we expect from the poll results?
I would prefer poll questions with meaningful stats like x% of translators has carpal tunnel syndrome or one-third of translators didn't like the movie "The Professor and the Madman" (well, at least there is a connection between the profession and the movie's c... See more Why is this a poll? What is the logic behind choosing one single option among things that can be done erratically or spontaneously or conspiratorially? What great insight should we expect from the poll results?
I would prefer poll questions with meaningful stats like x% of translators has carpal tunnel syndrome or one-third of translators didn't like the movie "The Professor and the Madman" (well, at least there is a connection between the profession and the movie's composition; the options in this poll, however, would apply to any kind of freelancer or a student or a taxi driver). ▲ Collapse
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Sidi Zhang
China
Local time: 20:29
English to Chinese
As a mother of two, I spent much of my leisure time playing with my girls. I would take them out for a nice walk, or read them great stories. This makes me relax, though tired sometimes.
| | | | | This is absolutely the best thing you can do ... | Feb 21, 2022 |
Christina Pauly wrote:
You absolutely baffle me! Don't you need to pay your bills?
I wouldn't dream of taking time off just because I don't have any assignments. I need to work to earn money, and save it for old age.
Who do you think will pay for my living when I'm old? Me, nobody else, just me.
... if you do not have enough work or enough well-paying work. While more/better clients come in, you can drop the mediocre clients from the bottom of your list. Hopefully, you'll reach an equilibrium at some moment with a comfortable income, where you can relax in quiet times, knowing that you will get new work eventually and you do not need to work many hours to cover all these things.
It took me some years to get there, but now I do not need to spend all my time that's left during business hours on acquisition anymore. I do try to keep consistent acquisition in busy times, however; sending at least five messages a week.
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 14:29
French to English
Several options missing here, I would have clicked on "most of the above".
The problem with lulls is that you never know how long they'll last, so I don't get stuck into dressmaking projects nearly as often these days.
I basically do the same as during my free time that I carve out even when I have work: yoga swimming riding my bike, taking the dog out to the park or the woods or the river, chatting with friends and family, going to the cinema, trying out new recipes,... See more Several options missing here, I would have clicked on "most of the above".
The problem with lulls is that you never know how long they'll last, so I don't get stuck into dressmaking projects nearly as often these days.
I basically do the same as during my free time that I carve out even when I have work: yoga swimming riding my bike, taking the dog out to the park or the woods or the river, chatting with friends and family, going to the cinema, trying out new recipes, doing volunteer work. I'm also looking into some courses I could take to improve my knowledge in my favourite specialist subjects at the moment, but they'll have to be very flexible because I don't intend giving any of the above up, and I don't want to refuse work either. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » Poll: What do you do when you have no paid work lined up? | Trados Studio 2022 Freelance | The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.
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