Intuition in freelancing – Practical examples of listening to the inner voice

 

A vital but unquantifiable part of business success, whether small or large, is the use of intuition. It tells us to fight or flee, engage or avoid or seize or ignore. To be clear, intuition may sometimes feel similar to fear or enthusiasm. However, it transcends those temporary reactions and guides business people in deciding whether to work with a certain customer, take on a given project or invest time and money in a specific marketing initiative. While listening to intuition may not guarantee success, ignoring it can lead to disaster.

To define the term, intuition is the feeling that an individual experiences upon exposure to a new person, idea or proposal even before knowing any or all of the facts. The opportunity seems clearly “right” or “not right” without a person being able to put a finger on the reasons. Further analysis can confirm or cancel the feeling or merely confuse the issue but the initial intuition, like a first impression of a person, is generally correct. One of the difficulties in trusting intuition is its similarity to more fleeting sensations, notably fear and enthusiasm. In other words, people may be in an emotional state in which they want an idea to work even if all the indications are contrary or, by contrast, they refuse to believe in the success despite all the positive signs. Intuition is a deeper feeling and remains constant. In fact, one of the tests of intuition is to delay the decision for a short time and test whether the previous willingness or reluctance remains. It is amazing how often, in hindsight, we knew what to do from the start.

One of the major business decisions where intuition is vital is the choice to take on a given new customer. Even with due diligence, many entrepreneurs generally lack all the facts to objectively assess the benefits/risks of working with a given person or company. While the benefits of a new customer are evident, i.e., short-term and long-term revenue, the hidden risks can sometimes outweigh them. For example, some customers could be reluctant payers while others work in such an inefficient manner that it greatly increases the work required. As they say about friends, with customers like these, who needs rivals? In practice, the tone and content of the emails and spoken conversation often provide a window into the inner workings of the potential customer. Granted, if they are working in a foreign language or come from a different culture, an unpleasant tone or approach may merely indicate lack of fluency or cultural variance. However, in most cases, if a red light goes off in the brain when negotiating with a new customer, the freelancer needs to think twice. In many cases, avoiding the person or company is a good idea regardless of the lack of objective proof to the contrary.

Freelancers work by projects but must apply intuition in choosing which project to take on. There is a concept in economics called “opportunity cost”. It means that one price of taking project A is the inability to take on project B. Moreover, customers never forget an improperly executed job even if they sometimes forgive it. The significance is that a freelancer or company should not take on a project that “feels” beyond its ability or below its interest. In the first case, the result cannot be ideal because it involves learning at the customer’s expense, never a great idea. Similarly, the lack of interest in a project generally negatively affects the level of execution. Poor work is one of the primary reasons businesses lose customers. Curiously, freelancers generally “know” whether or not to take on a given project. However, illusions of grandeur or desperation lead people to roll the dice. Just as the vast majority of gamblers lose in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, “wrong” projects too often go awry. By contrast, calculated risks taken with open eyes are often the keys to opening up doors of opportunity. Wisdom is hearing and following intuition.

Finally, intuition also plays a role in marketing decisions. Freelancers sometimes receive invitations to join various sites, conferences and events both in their industry and outside it. These opportunities require an investment of time and/or money. It is hard, if not impossible, to know which of these will pan out. A postponed decision too often becomes an unmade decision as other urgent matters arrive on the desk. Thus, it is worthwhile investing two minutes to investigate the opportunity in order to ascertain whether it has potential or not. Intuition is a key element in the decision as it is difficult to access all of the factors. Of course, mental fatigue and work pressure tend to make it easier to pass on them. However, this laziness may result in a lost opportunity. If a marketing lead feels relevant, it is often worthwhile to sign up immediately or, at least, put on an active “to do” list for further investigation. As Fleetwood Mac sang, nobody knows what tomorrow will bring.

Clearly, intuition is neither infallible nor clear. People find it difficult to distinguish it from their internal want or fear list or simply do not trust it. However, freelancers, without dedicated marketing and financial departments to conduct a full investigation, have to depend on it. Faced with the limitations of time and energy, a quick but careful decision in line with intuition leads to far greater success than one in opposition to it. Of course, it is always advisable to check the facts to look for traps. Yet, in a world where partial knowledge is the best we have, intuition is an important tool for every business person. Ignore your inner voice at your own peril.

Competing with translation agencies – a personal example

 

Freelancers can compete with agencies by making the effort and applying their advantages. This week, I received a request for a quote through an online specialized legal service site for a “certified” translation of four documents from two different languages into English for a US agency. While the customer is still waiting for the answers to several questions, I am in the running to get the project despite the fact that he received a quote from at least one translation agency. As I see it, it proves that directed long-term marketing works, personal service creates loyalty even in the early stages and fair freelance pricing can be competitive with agency rates. I am optimistic about receiving the order.

It is known that directed marketing creates the most effective exposure, if not necessarily the widest one. The site that directed the contact to me primarily focuses on attorney services. As a complementary service, it is an ideal place for a translator to be listed as legal matters involving multiple countries frequently require translation of documents. The initial cost was moderate and has long since justified itself. If I had not made the effort to have myself listed there, I would not have had the opportunity to provide a quote.

As the provider of most of the involved services, I created trust by clarifying matters and posing questions, even suggesting opitons to reduce costs. Based on my experience and dependent on confirmation by the US government agency in the matter, I specified the steps involved in “certifying a translation”. When the issue of notarization arose, I further explained that the attorney rate in Israel is per signature and clarified what exactly the attorney in Israel attests to. I also suggested ways to reduce the notarization cost. Thus, I shared my professional knowledge to ensure that the customer would receive a product that meets his needs, even before taking the order. That willingness to provide a complete and accurate answer to a question is a vital element in creating trust. In many cases, customers need to feel confident in both the service provider and the product they will receive.

As the customer told me the proposed cost provided by a translation agency he contacted, I had the rare privilege of being able to analyze the relevance of my pricing. It turns out that the agency bid was slightly higher than mine. That means that my bid both reflected the hourly rate I wish to earn and the discount for the customer, reflecting the lack of a third party in the transaction when working directly with the translator. Granted, I have to invest additional time to handle all the procedures but I included this factor in my calculation. Pricewise, at least on certain types of documents, freelancers can compete with agencies without cutting their rates.

The customer has yet to decide as he awaits the answers to his questions. However, I feel confident that he will select my services now or in the future. In my opinion, freelancers must be proactive, service-oriented and insist on their rates. In terms of business, you win some and you lose some. However, you make a living and respect yourself even when competing with agencies. Davids sometimes win. 

P.S. - I did receive the order.

When the going gets tough… - A call to translators and other freelancers to join associations

 

In November and December, many professional associations, including those of translators, begin their annual membership campaigns. In recent years, the results have been disheartening to one degree or another. At least among translators, fewer and fewer freelancers choose to join even their national association, let alone a foreign-based organization. The reasons for this decline are both technical, economic and social. Yet, joining a national professional association is, in fact, a way to address those economic and social issues as well as to maintain creativity in the long term. All freelancers should seek that connection for both their personal benefit and the collective good.

Membership in professional associations is declining in most fields due to changes in technology, economy and social structure. AI is the mammoth in the China shop, reshaping the entire landscape of how businesses, big and small, work. Clearly, most freelance translators do not have a high degree of certainty about their own future or the future of the profession in 5-10 years. At the same time, rates continue to decline or remain static while many translators are experiencing a decrease in volume, a deadly combination. Paying association fees seems an ill-justified luxury. On a more general scale, many younger professionals grew up with the Internet and consider it their community, convenient and undemanding. The time and energy demands of physical participation, even by Zoom, feel uncomfortable. It is far easier and often more than sufficient in the short term to use one’s Internet persona and make connections. Thus, many newer and even not-so-new translators choose to avoid professional membership.

However, conversely, joining a professional association is an effective response to those issues. First, as nobody seems to understand exactly when and how to use AI, learning from the experience of others in the same position provides a wide-angle and more comprehensive picture of the situation at any given time. A word to the wise is sufficient. Furthermore, even more than ever, associations bring work. More and more buyers, struggling to identify worthy service suppliers in the chaos of the Internet, consult professional associations, seeking some kind of certification or recognition to help them in their choice of supplier. Personally, most of my new customers have found me on association lists. Furthermore, the official recognition allows freelancers to charge higher rates, increasing income. No less importantly, in the long term, the major challenge for any freelancer is to maintain enthusiasm and flexibility. Even if a participant at a conference technically learns nothing new, they leave the event with renewed energy, the result of being around so many talented people. Thus, professional associations actually help freelancers deal with technology, find customers and grow professionally.

Therefore, I believe that when the going gets tough, the tough get joining, gathering the strength, business and knowledge in uncertain times. There is strength and synergy in numbers.  I strongly recommend joining relevant associations at all levels, local, national and foreign, and physically participating in their events.

The 13th Annual Braude Industry-Academia Conference – a fascinating peek into uncertainty

 

Every year, the Braude College of Engineering, located in Karmiel in northern Israel, hosts a conference showcasing the research of its staff with emphasis on the application of technology in industry. As it involves many disciplines, each with its own approach and terminology, much of the audience, at best, only partially understands the lectures, notwithstanding the best efforts of the speakers. Yet, even that blurry glimpse is a worthwhile effort. The lectures provide hope for the future of humanity, demonstrate that cooperation is the key to success and enrich the listener.

The presentations ranged over a wide range of topics, generally of a narrow aspect.  Of particular interest for me was the lecture on the connection between oxygen in the atmosphere, which is found in many large Earth-like/small Jupiter planets in other galaxies around us. The lecturer discussed the conditions under which natural chemistry, not living beings, may create this oxygen. Another researcher broke down the benefits and challenges of using wastewater from the desalination process of underground water to grow certain types of fish in pools, including the potential use of the almost completely pure calcium produced as a byproduct. One biotechnologist is researching a process to temporarily block brain pathways created in children due to an infection of their mothers during pregnancy,  which can trigger anxiety and depression during adolescence. These are merely a drop in the ocean of the subjects discussed during the conference.

One of the common themes was the interdisciplinary nature of all the research. In other words, no one set of knowledge is sufficient to treat any question. All of the researchers reached out and work with experts in other fields, including chemistry, biology, physics and mathematics. This synergy led to alternative ways to solve problems and the ultimate success of the studies. No man is an island nor can any scientist succeed alone.

As for the listeners, sometimes hearing words but not understanding them and seeing formulas that mean almost nothing, it was a valuable experience. First, it created a ense of wonder,  just like a kid looking through a microscope for the first time. There is a feeling of discovery of something that had always been there but was unknown. It created hope, seeing that so many people are striving to solve the big and small problems of the world, each contributing his/her part. Finally, the realization of how much we don’t know creates humility, keeping us open to the new, an important part of staying young. As little as I understood much of the science, the conference greatly enriched me as a teacher of engineers that will carry on this search for a better world.

In Heisenberg’s uncertainty theory, the more observers focus on location, the less they can identify direction and vice versa. The Braude conference, as in every year, was a celebration of people focusing on small details and striving to fully grasp them with the hope that another person can use that information to enhance another aspect until a clear picture appears. This research may sooner or later change people’s lives and has already affected those who attended the conference.

My robotic friend? – My (belated) foray into Machine Translation POst Editing (MTPE)

 

As I wrote a few weeks ago, I have made the strategic decision to focus on my competitive advantage – Hebrew to English legal translation. The practical significance of that decision is that I must maximize its potential. Thus, this last week I took on a project involving editing machine translation of an insurance contract. I had previously avoided such projects due to their idiot-savant nature. The project confirmed many of my concerns but, in contrast, demonstrated the advantages of working on machine translation. I discovered that they could indeed be satisfying, both financially and emotionally.

In explanation of the term, machine translation does not necessarily refer to AI engines such as ChatGPT and may include older methods such as Google Translate. The term machine translation designates the initial use of a digital linguistic tool that translates the source text by applying similar patterns in a database, whether vetted and closed or open, Internet-based. Machine translation has existed for several decades, initially through translation memories developed by translators, agencies and companies and expanding to more sophisticated ones based on neural networks. The European Community has developed one of the most specific and sophisticated ones based on previous translations of all EU laws into all of the languages of the community. The open machine translations, notably Google Translate and AI, use statistical probability to choose the most probable translation available on the Internet. The quality of machine translation varies depending on the algorithm, language combinations and sources.

The resulting translation generally resembles one produced by an idiot-savant, which requires neither pure translation nor pure editing. To explain, if a human produces a poor text, it is far more economical in time and energy to retranslate from scratch. Simply put, the editor does not trust anything the original translator did. On the other hand, an editor, identifying an excellent translation, trusts the resulting text in terms of content and merely makes tweaks to improve the language. Furthermore, the editor learns to find a pattern of these mistakes and focus on them. In any case, two pairs of eyes are always better than one, regardless of the skill level. By contrast, machine translation, in my limited experience, produces highly uneven and unpredictable results. One sentence can be perfect, even better than one the editor could write. The next one can be a complete disaster and require complete rewriting. Even more difficult, a given translation may appear correct but closer analysis shows small but significant errors. It requires careful attention to identify those issues. Thus, machine translation is not consistent in quality nor are its mistakes predictable.

In the text I did, the translation engine, DeepL, produced a mixed bag. On the one hand, there were very few content mistakes, i.e., a reader could correctly understand the meaning of the vast majority of the provisions, albeit with a bit of effort and a few terminology errors. On the other hand, it was clear that a human translator had not produced the text. Here is a partial list of the error types:

1.     Articles (he vs. it)

2.    Modals (misuse of “shall” to indicate future instead of legal obligation)

3.    Literal translation of phrases (has the right to instead of may)

4.    Inconsistent capitalization (company and Company)

5.    Translation of the name of the Company

6.    Keeping sentence in the passive (The premium will be paid… vs the Policyholder must pay……

7.    Misplaced adjective (the benefits retained vs the retained benefits)

Thus, the machine translation, while accurate, was not correct.

Upon completion of the project, I decided that I would take on more such projects. Granted, it required great attention, with many breaks, to catch the issues and improve the text. However, the original text was better in some ways than that produced by far too many human translators. Moreover, as I knew that no human was responsible for it, I did not get annoyed. Since I had priced the project by projected time after viewing the translation beforehand (which turned out to be fairly accurate) and offered two different quotes, light and heavy editing, the compensation was more than acceptable. Most importantly, the final text read well, always a satisfying result. Thus, I will now take on more such projects. Maybe robots could be our friends.

Med veg vettings or curious cases of vegetable nomenclatures

 

Mediterranean cuisine is known for its use of vegetables. Curiously, many of the most typical vegetables in the cuisine are not native to the area, meaning they were imported and had to be named. As any player in a telephone game knows, fascinating versions of the original can arise, which can now be seen today in green grocer’s sign in any given country. As an example, the history of the naming of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants shows some of the methods of the madness of naming.

Tomatoes are a staple of Italian and most southern European cooking. They originated in South America. The Aztecs referred to them as tomatl, a name that the Spanish brought back to Europe and is reflected in English and French, among others. However, the Italians received the yellow version of the fruit. As with all exotic foods, marketing is key. Therefore, it was called a  “golden apple”, i.e., pomo d’oro, which became pomodore in one word. The Hebrew story is even more wild. In the late 19^th century when Eliezer Ben Yehuda and others were re-establishing Hebrew as a daily language and inventing words for modern terms, Eliezer Ben Yehuda decided on the word עגבניה [agvania], which is derived from the root for passion or great pleasure. As in most matters in Israel, many people disagreed but eventually agvania became the known and accepted term of this omnipresent vegetable. Marketing and accidents of import had an impact.

Peppers, another South American immigrant to European kitchens, also took a curious path. Europeans had used pepper corns, an imported nut, to spice their food for a long time. With the arrival of peppers, both hot and sweet, the Europeans added an element and confused the matter. Specifically, the word pepper refers both to the plant and spice. See paprika in Hungarian and peperoni in Italian, which also designate the plant. In English, the easy solution was the addition of bell or the color to the vegetable name, e.g., green or bell peppers. However, in Israel, agriculture is a passion. Local agronomists have always sought to improve variants, e.g., the cherry tomato. For example, Israel stores always carry a light green bell papper, ideal for stuffing. It is known as a Nahariya pepper because it was developed near Nahariya, a small town on the coast near the Lebanese border. Israelis are also major consumers of gombot, a red bell pepper. The name derives from an Italian variant, a gamba, and now refers to most large red bell peppers in Israel. Of course, each country has countless variants of this pepper, which is far more than a spice.

Last but not least is the royal eggplant. Probably originally from South Asia, it traveled via Persia, North Africa and Catalonia to reach European kitchens. The word origin is the Sanskrit vātiga-gama, which means “the plant that cures the wind”, and Arabic al-bādhinjān. That last version explains the French “aubergine” (with the Arabic “the”, al, being absorbed as a root). As for the English eggplant , it appears that initially the English in India were rather fond of a white skinned variant, hence the eggplant. As usual, Hebrew presents the most confusing story. Based on a post on the subject, חציל [hatzil] is a new Hebrew word invented in the late 19th century based on a rare Arabic word, حَيْصَل, [haizal]. As usual, many others suggested alternatives. The eggplant does enjoy a wide variety of calling cards.

It is hard to imagine Mediterranean cooking or any other kitchen without these basic vegetables. Yet, they came as immigrants and experienced the same name confusion as many human immigrants have experienced. A rose is a rose is a rose but it may have a local name, which is all the fun. Nomenclature is a product of both intention and accident also in Mediterranean vegetables.

All pictures from Pixabay

Rebranding or nostalgia ain’t what it used to be

 

This last week, linguists celebrated International Translation Day. Many translator organizations and sites marked the occasion, notably Proz.com, which featured two days of lectures and discussions on the state of the profession. Of course, the speakers mentioned AI numerous times, often in the context of how it impacts the profession. Most importantly, the various speakers analyzed the different ways that translators can continue to make a living given an uncertain future that will definitely include AI. One sentence struck a strong chord: whatever you do, do what you love because your passion affects the quality, which is the most important advantage human translators can have over AI. Furthermore, one lecturer noted there will always be a need for expert translators in specialist fields even with improved AI. In that light, I understand that I need to react to the changes in the market in my over 22 years of translation before it is too late. Unfortunately, I do not receive much pleasure when editing or using AI. Thus, I have decided to embrace my experience, drop my other areas of translation and specialize in one field, specifically Hebrew to English legal translation, as it provides the base for my future in all respects.

When I first started translation in 2004, I knew little of my skills or the translation world and chose to cast a wide net. I started my journey by preparing an inventory of my knowledge, specifically four languages, specifically English, Hebrew, French and Russian, and two areas of knowledge, law and finance. Small translation agencies dominated the market at the time. Thus, it seemed logical to create a multilingual brand with several specializations to catch the most fish. I did not know enough to identify any specific target markets and thus created, in effect, a more general brand.

The market had changed radically since then, primarily due to technology and conglomeration. AI and machine translation of all types have eliminated many market niches, including email and personal translation. At the same time, the same technology has created a strong demand for machine translation post editing (MTPE). On an organizational level, large international corporations have gobbled up one small agency after another, creating large volume, low-cost translation venues at the expense of translator rates. At the same time, it should be noted that many well-paying niches not only exist but are thriving, notably legal, medical, marketing and transcreation, which provide ample opportunity for qualified linguists.

As I considered my future (Yom Kippur is an ideal day for doing that), I finally understood that my initial approach, however relevant it was at the time, is no longer effective. I am now choosing to formally embrace the field I enjoy the most, work most efficiently and am most proficient at [Winston Churchill said it was proper to end a sentence with a preposition]. I will solely focus on Hebrew- to-English legal translation, which is mainly what I have been doing for some 10 years now. I have studied legal writing, especially Plain English. Moreover, I am not only quite efficient in translating and editing legal translation but am more proficient at them than many other translators. Thus, as far as anybody can foresee the future, I feel my career has a solid basis.

Giving up the past is never easy. For that reason, people hold on to objects that no longer have any practical value. I still enjoy reading and speaking French. As for Russian, it is quite a useful language in Israel. I may choose to take on a small appropriate task in those languages. However, there is no feeling like doing a task very well especially if it is something that you enjoy. As for the price of rebranding, it requires redoing my marketing approach but better late than never. It may be fun to look back from time to time but success requires forward-looking.