Coping with change – The Proz.com "What now? webinar event

 

The only constant in life is change, meaning that the only matter we control is our approach. My last post addressed the ITA conference on AI, which discussed its technical elements. This week, Proz.com hosted a 3.5-hour series of lectures on how to cope with a rapidly changing business environment and make the current transportation an opportunity, not a threat. The lecturers specifically discussed translation and interpretation but their message would be relevant to most professions today. As a rule, I try to take three “lessons” from any conference. From the excellent presentations in this event, I gleaned three key messages: the importance of flight (not running away); the process for smart diversification; and the practicality for constant improvement. All three tips mentally ease the process of adapting to a dynamic world and make the challenge far less daunting.

Joachim Lépine in his presentation discussed three ways to cope with declining income: "Walk away, dance... or fly?”. Specifically, he expressed his complete understanding of those that choose to take on a salary position in another industry because freelance translating is not paying the bills anymore. He also related to those that have gone full AI and reinvented themselves in terms of how they work. Most interestingly, he suggested that this moment, because of its chaotic nature, is an ideal time to try out any path that may seem exciting, whether or not it is related to one’s linguistic occupation. A combination of soft skills and enhanced interest can lead to a new source of income. Joachim referred to this as “flying” as the choice of the actual activity was not limited to the current choice of profession but involved seeking a potentially liberating occupational goal. As an additional bonus, his presentation excelled despite or because of the lack of any accompanying slides. Flying is neither staying the course nor switching direction but instead examining options.

The lecturer that followed him, David Higbee-Teves, discussed Japanese business concepts and how they apply to the current freelance translation market. One of his points was that the Japanese companies tend to diversify into fields for which they already have the required skills and facilities. Instead of risking limited resources in an unknown field, they analyse their competitive advantages and seek additional products and services that use the skills they possess. For example, in translation, it requires little additional training for a translator to become an editor of texts produced by machine translation or AI or even a copywriter as all the occupations demand similar linguistic skills. I recently took such a step, beginning to work with a young attorney to improve his English, which utilized both my teaching and legal background. Despite some initial uncertainty about my capability, we are both learning and enjoying the experience. Thus, diversifying into related fields is a relatively risk-free way of expanding one’s income.

Another Japanese business wisdom shared by David Higbee-Teves was the effect of continuous improvement. AI is being touted as the cure-all for all business processes but has yet to prove itself financially and functionally on a large scale. In simple words, some people claim that AI will completely replace human translation. However, in practice, creating the AI prompts to produce even a decent translation requires skill in prompting and does not always reduce human time and effort. By contrast,  a series of small but easy to apply improvements in the efficiency in standard business tasks can make a significant difference in productivity. The concept is to use AI to reduce 10- or 15-minutes tasks to 5 minutes or less. Several of these steps together will significantly increase the amount of time the linguist (or any other professional) has to apply to money-making tasks that require human thinking. These tasks could include intake of new orders, invoicing, quoting, and standard email communication, to name a few. The time involved in any single activity is minor but accumulates rapidly over a day or week. The professional linguist can use this time for production, marketing, continuing education or simply enjoying life. Improvement is a continual process, not a one-time activity.

Thus, in the face of an unclear future, professionals need clear vision in order to make correct decisions. The Proz.com event provided numerous relevant tips for linguists, ones that are also applicable to many types of professionals. With a handful of methods in hand, it becomes easier to adjust to current trends and find an effective match between market needs and individual strengths. Even more importantly, the unknown becomes less frightening and more interesting in a positive way. Professionals do control how they react to change even if they do not control the change itself.

Speaking of an uncertain world, as I post this, the residents of Israel, including myself, as well as those in Persian Gulf countries, Jordan, and now Lebanon, not to mention the people of Iran, live in great uncertainty and under constant fear. I can tell you with firsthand knowledge that the random and frequent need to run to a bomb shelter at any time of the day or night is one of the most distressful experiences one can have. Thus, I hope that very soon, in a few days hopefully, the people of the Middle East will wake up to a peaceful, more stable world where nobody calls for the destruction of any other nation or people. I am realistic enough to know that such tranquility will not occur immediately but we need to "fly", build on the changes that occurred and take constant small steps. 

A challenging conversion – the difficulties and rewards of demanding customers

 

Every provider of a service has experienced them – the customers that demand absolute perfection whether it is relevant or not. They see and find every perceived error or inconsistency and will insist on fixing the issue, however unimportant it is and how much work it would take to do it “right”. Suddenly, a simple job becomes a never-ending series of conversations and revisions. The craftsperson wants to scream and tell the client to take a flying leap but cannot. Instead, grinning and bearing it becomes the only option. A more positive method of dealing with such perfectionists is to meet their demands with the knowledge that the willingness to go the extra mile will financially pay off in the future. These customers are the best clients to have in a certain sense.

To clarify what a demanding customer is, it is important to distinguish between price and quality issues. Customers that negotiate money constantly and irrationally are not long-term assets. The energy invested in setting the cost combined with the resulting low rates do not justify the work. Moreover, they will switch to another provider in the blink of an eye as all they care about is price. By contrast, some customers are perfectionists and are only satisfied with the highest quality from themselves and others. It is not personal. The relative importance of a deviance is not relevant as only 100% is acceptable. They have no compunction about demanding correction after correction until the result meets their expectations. In the meantime, the actual time spent on the project has doubled or even tripled. Such people often get under one’s nerves.

However, in the long term, demanding customers are the best long-term asset in terms of direct work and references. Once a provider has passed the test, such a customer is not likely to switch to a less expensive provider as long as there is no change in the work level because they are not always willing to spend the effort to train a replacement. For example, every time my wife buys glasses, it involves numerous adjustments until they are perfect. She has gone to the same patient optometrist for over a decade. She is happy with her glasses but he has clearly profited from her loyalty as he patiently makes the adjustments for each pair. On a marketing level, perfectionists tend to be extreme in their opinion of service providers, i.e., someone is excellent or incompetent, with little in between. When demanding but satisfied clients recommend you, their words have authority and bring results.

Thus, when dealing with the seemingly unsatisfiable customer, it is best to take a deep breath, be patient and think long term. Getting angry does not improve your work, mood or health. Such clients demand a professional approach. When they receive it, they appreciate it. Ultimately, they become loyal customers in all the meanings of that term as well as the anchor of any business.

Pearl Buck wrote (I think) that, regarding the conversion of Asians to Christianity in the 19^th century and early 20^th century, one Japanese convert was worth three Chinese converts as the former would never revert. Likewise, winning over one demanding customer is worth three one-time clients in the long term. Hopefullly, that thought will help some freelancers gather up the patience and strength to go the extra mile.

Rue de Paradis – freelancing and the past, present and future of commercial concentration

 

[crystal vase*]

When I visited my family in Paris at the age of 16 in the mid-1970s, I was amazed when I discovered Rue de Paradis (10th arrondissement, near Rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis). In a small geographical area of a few streets were a hundred crystal and porcelain stores, if not more, as well as workshops producing these goods. I enjoyed my purchase of a crystal vase for my grandmother (see picture) but found it amazing that the stores had chosen to locate themselves in such extreme proximity and create such intense price competition. Many years later, as a freelancer, I now view the choice as far more sensible and maybe even a model for entrepreneurs in the future.

Despite or possiblly due to its concentration of one trade, the European urban tradition of concentrating similar businesses in one area provides economic efficiency, increases sales, and creates solidarity. Since customers can quickly and easily identify and price competing products, the producers, wholesalers and retailers must hone their target market and create a competitive advantage. As conditions change, they can easily identify the trends and adjust their approach. It is easy to track both the price and product preferences of buyers. As purchasers know that they can find the best choice and prices in this one location, they are sure that they can maximize their budget and time. Thus, it takes relatively little effort to decide where to go. That means the vast majority of customers of these luxury goods in Paris choose to visit that location, increasing the potential market. Therefore, while the supply, the competition, is much higher, the number of customers, the demand, is also significantly greater, ensuring a livelihood for most businesses. On a human level, I saw how the craftspeople, salespeople and managers from all the establishments had their coffee or lunches at the various cafes and created a community that kept them up to date and provided them a with a feeling of belonging. They may have been competitive over buyers but also were all part of the same industry. Overall, this concentration benefited the businesses, customers and the workers.

Much has changed since then, notably due to the Internet, the pace of life and connectivity of the market. The new model for selling goods and services is freelancing from one’s home. The entrepreneur sits at the computer and, with a click of several buttons, sends goods from one location to another or produces and delivers a service such as translation or accounting documents. Providers do not even have to get dressed, let alone talk to their colleagues. They are free to work any hours and are not obligated to answer to any boss except the customer, of course. Even more importantly, they set the rate for their work without having to look over their shoulder to see what others are doing. The new model, whether in wholesale, retail or the service industry, is essentially an island.

While clearly fitting the personality of many people, this solo business structure creates serious challenges in terms of marketing, pricing and social connections. For most freelancers, reaching customers and getting them to finalize the purchase are the most difficult tasks. Even the largest corporations struggle with those goals. As for pricing, it is shockingly difficult to actually know how much a specific item or good will cost. It is true that the nominal price is posted front and center but often the potential purchaser only discovers the shipping costs and taxes when it comes time to pay. That means customers only have the patience to visit two or three sites, often the most well-known, leaving the less obvious sites in the cold. Even worse, customers find shopping for services, which tend not to be of standardized quality, to be extremely confusing. As usual, the conglomerated international agencies, including in translation, tend to dominate the first page of the search results. Yet, in the long term, the most difficult aspect of going solo is being solo. Without a communal coffee machine or café, there is no natural way to meet colleagues and talk. Freelancers feel little sense of comradery with their colleagues because they rarely, if ever, see them. They are on an island and usually unaware of vital information, including competitor prices and market changes. In many countries, the law does even allow them to state their rates to a colleague. Ignorance is not bliss over the long term. Going solo means going alone and is not always a successful strategy or a sustainable approach.

The vacillating  physcial concentration levels in business models are not a modern phenomenon. In medieval European markets, the farmers selling their foodstuff would push their carts throughout the city in search of customers while the sellers of writing tools, stationery, which was a luxury at the time, would remain in one location, stationary, knowing that the customers knew where they plied their trade and would come to them. The Internet has, to a certain extent, brought us back to those olden days as customers surf the Web in search of the best deal often based on how active and optimized a site is. With the number of consumers that order everything online, including food and even cars, as well as the volume of sales increasing especially since the start of the Corona period, merchants of all types cannot afford to sit still.

As I try to look into my crystal ball, not one purchased on Rue de Paradis, I would hope that it would be possible to create some Internet market for both goods and non-standard services that would combine the advantages of both extremes. On the one hand, it is nice to wear or not wear any clothes when working and avoid commuting as well as suffer no boss. On the other hand, it would create great satisfaction to experience the sense of belonging to a community on a daily basis and gain access to updated information on the current market. Both the purchaser and provider would undoubtedly profit in the long term. For freelancers, paradise would be a compromise somewhere in the middle of the street.

* Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

Translating If - Essential learning for new and renewing translators

 

[world map on hands*]

Freelancer translators, as one-person businesses, must become multiskilled to one degree or another. They must be market- savvy, linguistically proficient and technologically nimble. Clearly, no newcomer to the profession can claim all three. Moreover, given that the rapid and constant evolution of the world of business, even successful and  experienced translators cannot rest on their laurels.  Thus, translators of all tenure must keep an open mind and actively learn. This continuing skill and knowledge education is an ongoing process throughout a translator’s career.

The price of having no boss or employee is that freelancers must wear all the hats. Since translation, like many online services, is a home-based industry, there is no storefront sign to bring in customers. Therefore, service providers must actively strive to get their name out to their public. They also must have thorough knowledge of their professional task. In the case of translators, that requires continual exposure both their target and source language. Finally, every year new technology enters the market. The current Chat-GPT hysteria is merely one example of a new technology that may affect an industry. Ideally, a freelancer would be expert in all three phases of the business.

In reality, newcomers to any field, including translation, may be quite proficient in one area but often are weak and/or uncomfortable in others. They may not even be aware of what they do not know, as I was when I started. For example, brilliant linguists often feel uncomfortable with marketing while savvy IT people may lack sufficient background in their languages. To clarify, lacking proficiency or knowledge in any of the fields is not a barrier to entering the translation field. Not only are these skills learnable but the reality of making living forces even the most reluctant to either improve or quit. Clearly, freelance translators have their own individual strengths, tasks they love, and weaknesses, tasks they try to avoid. However, successful freelancers are at least “good-enough” in all three to prosper.

Of a more troubling nature, at least to experienced translators, is that yesterday’s skill set can mean very little today. It is very disconcerting to discover that the financial certainties of the past, including their standard jobs, regular customers and established rates, are no longer to be taken for granted. The causes of this business earthquake include industry structural changes, in particular the purchase of boutique agencies by large agencies; technology changes that eliminate market niches, such as machine and neural translation; world market movements such as the Covid crisis and recessions; marketing trends, including the switch from physical to virtual sites and social media; language development as younger generations use different vocabulary and bend “iron” rules of grammar and syntax; and newcomers to the profession, who often arrive with more advanced skills in certain areas and greater openness to change. Many established translators experience a “what have you learned lately” syndrome.

The solution for this syndrome for “old” and new alike is continuing education and openness. Any freelancer that is interested can investigate countless free video and articles on any technological or marketing development and/or invest in affordable workshops on it. Information from all points of view is readily available if one searches for it. That said, depending on the person and market niche, many of these new trends may not be relevant for the meantime or ever. Given the learning curve involved in any change, slow and steady is a legitimate approach to change in many cases. For example, I personally do not see how Chat GPT can help me as a translator or even threaten my business although I could be wrong. Long-term players in this business keep aware of the latest developments without panicking.

In summary, to localize Kipling:

If you can continually strive to master all the needed skills

        while knowing that you cannot be great at everything,

If you can follow changes and trends with interest

        without being uncontrollably swept into the current,

If you can feel confident in your skills

        but know that you must always look to improve.

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,   

         And—which is more—you’ll be a translator, my son or daughter!

 

* Picture captions allow the blind to fully access the Internet.

Picture credits

Even God rested – freelancers and vacation days

 

[sternbergia*]

I begin with a confession. I wrote this post in a “tzimmer” (a BNB room) in Katzrin, a small town in the Golan Heights. In other words, I was on vacation. While that remark may sound trite if you receive a salary, it may cause many freelancers to start to ask questions. How can he afford it? Isn’t he worried about losing work or, even worse, losing customers? My answer to those concerns is that vacation days are not only possible but also financially beneficial in the long term. I can say that I feel greatly recharged and refocused upon my return.

To be clear, everybody gets holidays, whether they schedule them or not. The timing and lengths of these religious and civil events depend on the culture and religion. For example, in Israel, Jews have nine days of holidays and their eves within three weeks in September and/or October, not including some 6 days of optional off days and some minor fasts. Likewise, people living in Christian countries basically close all non-essential businesses from mid-December to the first days of January. Of course, these times may be called holy days but they are not holidays for many people, especially those involved in preparing meals and hosting guests. Thus, while holidays may not involve professional work, they are generally far from vacations regardless of the positive elements.

Therefore, when freelancers wish to have a real vacation, they must actively seize it. However, as compared to the salary position holders, such a decision would seem to pose risks in terms of income and customers. Not only do they have to account for the expenses involved in the vacation itself, they have to account for the income they will not earn during that period. Granted, the latter cost is potential to one degree or another. However, clearly the lack of cash flow will be felt in the near future. More seriously, being on vacation means, ideally, not working and thus being unavailable to your customers. There is a natural fear that the customers will find someone else “in the meantime”. As they say in Hebrew, there is nothing more permanent than the temporary.

While these concerns are legitimate, they are generally less serious in reality. In terms of the costs of vacation, freelancers have full control of many aspects, including the length of time and actual cost. For example, one of the great advantages of being one’s own boss is the ability to pick vacation dates and choose  non-peak times, assuming that one does not have school-age children to take into account. More importantly, the vast majority of customers actually understand that service providers are entitled to go on vacation. If they appreciated the quality and reliability of service provider before, they will return to the same service provider afterwards. Freelancers should inform important customers of the coming vacation in advance and may suggest an available colleague to cover any urgent situations. In any case, being on vacation is not among the main reasons for losing customers.

Regarding lost income, vacations actually increase income over the medium and long term. One of the most subtle effects of burnout is reduced productivity. As freelancers become emotionally tired, they tend to have less energy, slow down and exhibit less patience. Ideally, a true day off or weekend at home restores some of that energy but unfortunately there are always tasks to be done at home. As a result, home rest is of limited value (unless you keep the Sabbath, of course). By contrast, getting away, even for one night, involves leaving all home and work duties behind. Tourists generally focus on the immediate experience, e.g. the amazing flowers we enjoyed as seen in this post, forgetting their obligations and problems for the moment. This break from the routine refreshes the spirit, recharging the batteries for the challenges to be faced after returning home. Consequently, vacations can increase income.

Thus, I would strongly advise freelancers, both new and established, to take periodical vacations without fear of losing money and customers. Whatever short-term cost is involved, they provide the energy required to grow and sustain a business. By the way, after writing this post, I happily returned to my crossword puzzles without a care in the world knowing that I would return to work in a few days empowered to take on the world, or at least part of it. As it is implied in Genesis, everybody, which includes freelancers, deserves a vacation.

[Feinbrun's Autumn Crocus]

* 

Is the “good enough” business model still good enough?

 

[Boris Badanov*]

When I visit Los Angeles, I stay at a motel that has nothing fancy about it. It has a small lobby, lacks a restaurant or bar and “boasts” a view of Ventura Boulevard. On the other hand, the room is large, comes with a comfortable bed and faces the parking lot, i.e., no noise. This motel is also half the price of the hotel chains and is run by a very friendly and helpful couple. In other words, the motel is not great but is a good enough for me.

On a larger scale, one of the classic and most successful business models of 20^th century was mass production “good enough”. Consumers were more than satisfied by a product of medium quality if they received it quickly and at a relatively low price. The best examples are in the fields of cars, food and housing. Of course, specific conditions created the perfect environment for the massive success of simple and inexpensive products. Curiously, the original appliers of this strategy have long dropped it, raising the question whether the approach is valid in this century.

The concept of a producing a standard product inexpensively and quickly was successfully implemented in cars, food and housing, among other fields. The Ford Model T simply dominated the market. Customers could buy better-built cars with more options but chose the pedestrian Ford black Model T because of its price and functionality. Likewise, hamburger restaurants had existed for decades but the original, massively successful McDonald’s concept was to provide a decent, standard hamburger quickly and inexpensively, reducing costs by simplifying the menu to basic items that could be produced in a few minutes without the need to customize each order. The post-World War II building boom opened the door to prefabricated housing using woods, drywall and cement as countries and private companies built millions of units of affordable basic housing for growing and sometimes homeless populations. They were not fancy or even sturdy but were grabbed up as soon as soon they were finished. While none of these products were fancy or even particularly well made, they were undoubtedly huge financial successes in their time.

The reason for this success was a combination of expensive alternatives, growing demand and customer expectation. In 1919, the alternatives to the Model T were unreliable internal combustion cars, expensive electrical vehicles and awkward steam-powered vehicles while the early McDonalds thrived in the face of non-chain, full-service diners with much greater costs. As for housing, traditional urban housing construction used mainly brick, wood or stone, which required more time to build and, thus, was more expensive. Growing demand clearly fed the demand for these markets. Americans fell in love with the automobile and the freedom it created. The post-war economic boom created the discretionary income to allow people with average income to eat at restaurants on a regular basis. Various government subsidies and discounted loan rates allowed young couple to purchase their first flats and houses. As for expectations, the first generation of buyers was thrilled to receive a reasonable product at a reasonable price and could not afford the luxury options. Thus, the “good enough” model thrived in a fertile market.

Most interestingly, most companies that took off using this approach subsidies have evolved in the opposite direction. For examples, even the most functional types of vehicles, vans and pickups, come with numerous options, free or at additional cost. No automobile manufacturer advertises “we have one model: take it or leave it”. Likewise, the fast-food chains, from McDonalds to KFC, boast complicated menus even in their specialty. It is hard to understand and pick which hamburger or chicken option to order due to the incredible range of options. In housing, the term “cookie cutter” today is derogatory and implies that a given house is similar to countless others. Many buyers now seek “character” (which in the UK seems to mean wooden beams in the ceiling). A 2-bedroom bungalow circa the 1950’s is considered undesirable by many. In fact, it is quite difficult to find any company today applying the simplified approach used by leading companies in the 20^th century.

Looking at the conditions that created the success for this pioneering and successful approach, I am convinced that some enterprising small company will use the same technique in the future to create an empire. Clearly, many basic goods are priced very high for low and even average income consumers. At the same time, world population and, even more important, the number of people with disposable income will likely increase. The major issue is how many consumers will be satisfied with a functional project without bells and whistles. It is clear that expectations of aesthetics, performance and status influences buying decisions. Somehow today having the same car, eating the same food and living in the same house layout as all your neighbors are considered undesirable. There may be such a product out there but I was unable to think of any.  It will be interesting to see how this innovating entrepreneur will overcome the current sentiment that good-enough is bad-enough (as Bullwinkle would say).

* Caption pictures to help the blind fully access the Internet.

Picture from the Wikipedia site.