Poll: As a freelancer, do you control your work or does it control you? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "As a freelancer, do you control your work or does it control you?".
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| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 10:40
Spanish to English
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| Don't understand the question | Dec 9, 2009 |
Not quite sure what is meant by "control"in this rather idiosyncratic poll ....
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neilmac wrote:
Not quite sure what is meant by "control"in this rather idiosyncratic poll ....
...that it was asking whether translators feel that being a freelancer gives you the freedom to manage your workload or whether it leaves you exposed to the demands of outsourcers, especially when it comes to agreeing deadlines
| | | | | my idea of control | Dec 9, 2009 |
everybody (not freelancers) thinks: well you can work when you want, you have no "traditional working hours".
that's true, but for a lot of factors (rates, things to do, taxes...) we work more than the usual 8 hours a day, and weekend sometimes is not free.
in my case I have tried to set some working hours, but to some clients you cannot say NO!
why? because they have been clients for a long time, because they guarantee a constant workload, because you need more money in that m... See more everybody (not freelancers) thinks: well you can work when you want, you have no "traditional working hours".
that's true, but for a lot of factors (rates, things to do, taxes...) we work more than the usual 8 hours a day, and weekend sometimes is not free.
in my case I have tried to set some working hours, but to some clients you cannot say NO!
why? because they have been clients for a long time, because they guarantee a constant workload, because you need more money in that moment, or simply because every translation you refuse is something sure you refuse, and you don't know if you're going to get a good amount of translations until you get them.
so from this point of view my job controls me, the requests often set my schedule, on the other side, because I have a family and a social life, I have rules for myself. so a little of both ▲ Collapse
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Robert Forstag 
United States
Local time: 04:40
Spanish to English
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To a large extent, I do not have "control" of my work. If I need the money, I take the job, even if the content is not my favorite thing to work on, the rate offered is not wonderful, and the length is rather shorter or longer than what suits me at the moment. Conversely if an excellent opportunity presents itself at the end of a long stretch of work then I may also feel that I need to take it on (both because it won't be hard to do and one never knows if some long idle period awaits during whic... See more To a large extent, I do not have "control" of my work. If I need the money, I take the job, even if the content is not my favorite thing to work on, the rate offered is not wonderful, and the length is rather shorter or longer than what suits me at the moment. Conversely if an excellent opportunity presents itself at the end of a long stretch of work then I may also feel that I need to take it on (both because it won't be hard to do and one never knows if some long idle period awaits during which I'll be kicking myself for having missed the opportunity).
Deadlines are also usually rather pressing and non-negotiable, so not a lot of control there.
Where the "control" comes in is being able to say no when my cost-benefit calculation dictates doing so.
But in general, I find myself generally disposed to say yes. I suspect that many other freelancers are in this same position. ▲ Collapse
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That's why I am a freelancer! I choose if I want to work on a certain translation, and then I choose my own schedule. If work would be controlling me, then I would probably be sitting in an office and doing what the boss says.
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Robert Forstag wrote:
To a large extent, I do not have "control" of my work. If I need the money, I take the job, even if the content is not my favorite thing to work on, the rate offered is not wonderful, and the length is rather shorter or longer than what suits me at the moment. Conversely if an excellent opportunity presents itself at the end of a long stretch of work then I may also feel that I need to take it on (both because it won't be hard to do and one never knows if some long idle period awaits during which I'll be kicking myself for having missed the opportunity).
Deadlines are also usually rather pressing and non-negotiable, so not a lot of control there.
Where the "control" comes in is being able to say no when my cost-benefit calculation dictates doing so.
Yes, that's it!
But in general, I find myself generally disposed to say yes. I suspect that many other freelancers are in this same position.
This is absolutely true! (I also suspect that MANY others are in this same position)
| | | | MJ Barber
Spain
Local time: 10:40
Spanish to English
+ ...
| I control the important stuff | Dec 9, 2009 |
I worked at a law firm years ago. We clocked in with magnetic cards. At the end of the month, I always had lots of hours left over - I arrived early, left late many days, not by much, but it added up - maybe 20-30 hours a month I gave them.
Then it so happens, my dad had an operation, there were complications, my mam called. She is a nurse and a very calm person, but I heard in her voice that she needed support, help, company. We don't even live in the same country, so I told them ... See more I worked at a law firm years ago. We clocked in with magnetic cards. At the end of the month, I always had lots of hours left over - I arrived early, left late many days, not by much, but it added up - maybe 20-30 hours a month I gave them.
Then it so happens, my dad had an operation, there were complications, my mam called. She is a nurse and a very calm person, but I heard in her voice that she needed support, help, company. We don't even live in the same country, so I told them at work I was taking a week off. Fine, they said, all very compassionate leave, but you'll have to make the hours back up.
This is why I will never work for another again.
As it happens now, I can't make plans for tomorrow (I'm knackered, I'm taking the day off, going to the Natural History Museum and seeing the Darwin exhibition/putting up the curtains/watching tv), because they always blindside you; I can't spread my work out - it's feast or famine - either you are sitting there with your thumb up your, er, nose for 3 weeks, or you have to tell 3 people in the one day that you can't accept any more work; but I can plan ahead, e.g. next year, I am going to London on 25-20 January. I'm off, I'm outta here. Also, I can take my laptop. My boss (myself) doesn't care where I work from.
So, basically, in a roundabout way, I'm saying I can plan for important events: holidays, family weddings, funerals... long breaks, etc., but my day-to-day is very erratic.
However, it all works out in the end, and I have found the fairest and most compassionate employer - and the one that most subscribes to my work ethic, i.e. pay the bills, have some fun with what's left over, forget the rest: myself.
[Edited at 2009-12-09 14:54 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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| no one has total control | Dec 10, 2009 |
but i have more than i did or would if working in the 'regular corporate world' . I had enough and would rather deal with reduced funds or dry spells than have to deal with some of the work environments I've dealt with. I have control over the things that are important in my environment; I don't have control over how much work I will get, but the other freedoms compensate for that.
| | | | | Of course I control it | Dec 12, 2009 |
I control whether I accept the work (the deadline never comes as a surprise). I control when I'm going to do the work. I control how much research I'm going to do. I control how much I'm going to "dither" over the fluidity of the text. I control how many times I'm going to re-read my finished work. I'm 100% at choice.
In general, feeling controlled in this case is self-imposed.
The only time I feel that my work has overtaken me is when the text is so full of grammatical... See more I control whether I accept the work (the deadline never comes as a surprise). I control when I'm going to do the work. I control how much research I'm going to do. I control how much I'm going to "dither" over the fluidity of the text. I control how many times I'm going to re-read my finished work. I'm 100% at choice.
In general, feeling controlled in this case is self-imposed.
The only time I feel that my work has overtaken me is when the text is so full of grammatical errors (incomplete sentence, circular sentences, etc.) that I can't understand what's being said. I find that very frustrating and get resentful. ▲ Collapse
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