All translators should agree that time matters most in their career. Time can convert to financial matters. Therefore, most tips for translation would include how to manage time. As an illustration, imagine you can finish a 500 word text in an hour. This, for instance, equals to $10. Then, by saving an hour, you can earn extra $10. Even though you have to pay another person to do small tasks for $6 in an hour, you still get an extra $4.
Tips for Translation: How Tools Help You
As illustrated above, a better time management may convert to more financial incomes. There are many strategies to save your time. For instance, instead of doing trivial tasks, you had better focused on doing the translation jobs. You can outsource trivial tasks like preparing invoices, managing social media accounts for marketing, or posting article updates on your websites and blogs.
Even looking up to dictionary for idioms and difficult terms can waste your time, right? The following are some tools to save your time as a part of tips for translation:
Digital Dictionary
A dictionary is certainly the most important ‘weapon’ for any translators. It may account for the most part of the translation process. That is why looking up the dictionary can waste your time. Imagine if you have to use the conventional dictionary. Using digital dictionary can significantly save your time. A number of sites offer free dictionary, encyclopedia or thesaurus.
You may consider online or downloadable dictionary app. The online dictionary can help you online when you are connected to internet. The benefits include more comprehensive collections of words, idioms, and terms. Meanwhile, a downloadable dictionary is suitable for mobile translators. You can use it anywhere. However, the collection of terms and words may be limited.
Translation Memory Tool
This kind of time management tools is increasingly popular during the last several years. This tool does not translate texts for you. Instead, it helps you cut down the time to translate repetitive texts or sentences. There may be cases, in which you translate similar sentences repeatedly. The tools keep such sentences in its memory and retrieve them when finding similar sentences.
A number of apps are available with this feature. Some apps may be able to identify sentences that match 50-60%, while others may need more close match. The apps mostly work in a similar system: they tell you when identifying sentences that match what you did in the past.
Outsourcing Apps for Translator
As described above, cutting time otherwise used for doing trivial things, may benefit you much. A number of online platforms are ready to help you. The websites offer small services like proofreading, making invoices, or managing marketing accounts on social media. They are mostly paid on hourly basis.
Before hiring an outsourced service, make sure to consider the profit and loss aspects. The hourly spending must be lower than your hourly rate. The services must also be a worthy spending. Fortunately, you can find a number of People per Hour websites that offer such services.
Of course, there are many other tips for translation focus on time management. You do not need to have them all. Instead, as your career in translation goes, you will be able to identify what types of tools you may need.
With the growing demand for translation services, a number of translation tools and apps were developed. Now, translators have so many options of tools and apps to make their task easier. In fact, expert translators do not recommend using machine tool to do the translation. It is certainly true, since machine does not have ’feeling’ as owned by human being. Translating a text involves not only the linguistic rules but also the feeling and sense.
Reasons for Using Translation Tools
However, there are certain circumstances, in which tools can make your tasks easier. Therefore, you can save more time for doing the real job. The online translation tools may not replace the overall process of translation. Instead, they can do some simple and repetitive jobs. Meanwhile, you focus on jobs that cannot be outsourced. The following are some examples of situation, in which tools may help you:
As mentioned above, you cannot expect accurate translation with machine tools. However, they can make your tasks easier and cut the time otherwise used to look up the dictionary.
Tips for Using Translation Tools
There are so many options of translation tools out there. Some are available as free translation tools. However, you may need a paid tool or app for advanced features and functions. To ensure quality of the translation process, the following tips may help you:
Furthermore, a number of apps are available to help you with trivial works. Some of the tasks are preparing invoices for translation jobs, translating repetitive texts, posting social media marketing for your services and many more. These tools do not translate texts. Instead, cut the time you need to do the small jobs.
In translation, time management is very crucial. The more translation jobs you do, the more income you earn. Again, translation tools make your tasks easier and help manage your time. They do not translate the texts for you.
With the increasing growth of multi-national enterprises, translation career becomes more interesting and promising. Many people now choose to be a full-time translator. It is not surprising that more colleges now offer translation subject. Of course, translating job may not be as simple as it sounds. Being proficient in the theory and language structures is not enough to produce high-quality translation.
What to Prepare for your Translation Career
Are you a translation student, who is preparing your career in this field? The following are some tips that may help you preparing your career:
Improving General Knowledge
Translating deals not simply about language structure, grammar or diction. Instead, you will deal with more general things like social and cultural aspects of both source and target language. If you want to be a professional translator, make sure to improve your general knowledge in any aspects. They may include economics, law, history, marketing, politics and even medicine.
In addition, make sure to learn the relevant technology in every field of science. You may deal with idioms, loan words, verbalization or nominalization. Translating idioms may be a challenge, since you may not find the relevant terms in the target language. Improving general knowledge may help you overcome such problems.
Consider Specialization
Some translators begin their career by specializing in one field, at least initially. As your translation career path goes, you can improve language proficiency and add the language. At the beginning, choose a field, which you love the most or in which you are familiar with the terms. However, some translators suggest this only at the beginning. If you specialize in one field, your customer segment may be narrower too.
Getting Work Experience Soon
Even expert translators agree translation skills grow with time and practice. The more you practice the jobs, the more familiar you are with the terms. In the end, the translation is also more accurate and natural. So, make sure to begin gaining experience as early as possible.
If you are not qualified yet to join a translation agency, you can start with people around you. For instance, you can offer free translation service for your relatives or free members. Ask their opinion about your translation. If possible, you can exchange the fees with testimony. Testimony will be a great ‘weapon’ for you in planning a career in translation.
Then, you can begin the translation career and earn extra money from it. You can join online or brick-and-mortar translation office. However, the first option is better for a student. Being a freelance translator allows you to gain experience why earning extra income.
Being a Member of the Industry
Indulge yourself into the world of translation and be an active member in the industry. There are some strategies to do this, such as:
Ready to be a part of translation industry? Set up the plan as early as possible, and get prepared to be an expert translator. Stay updated with the latest trend on translation industry by visiting our blog.