| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] > | Really only 2500 words a day? Thread poster: Steven Foster (X)
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Steven Foster (X)
United States
English to German
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TOPIC STARTER
John Fossey wrote:
Other people were getting the work for you, quoting clients, billing them, keeping the company running, providing you with a desk, chair and computer, etc. Freelancers have to do all that in addition to translating.
All right, but I spent about 1 1/2 to 2 hours per day commuting, parking, etc., I'd say that should more or less compensate. It adds up to 35 or 40 hours per month.
I had to get up at 7:15 to start working at 9 o'clock (which becomes invariably 9:15 or later). Now I can get up at the same time and be fully operational al 7:30.
Anyway, it's all hypothetical for now. Let's just see where this new kind of lifestyle leads me.
Thank you all for your replies!
[Edited at 2016-12-14 15:03 GMT]
| | | | Lingua 5B 
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 18:32
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
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| Doesn't sound like bragging... | Dec 14, 2016 |
... but it does sound like competitive running, which translation is not, the last time I checked.
Your figures seem exaggerated or more like a professional typist figures (but even they have time limits in order not to jeopardize accuracy). If you work in a patent office dealing with the same or similar type of files and materials daily, the process may indeed resemble typing or copy-pasting (with a great deal of repetitions).
| | | | Daniel Frisano
Italy
Local time: 18:32
Member (2008)
English to Italian
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| If you can keep up that pace, not a bad deal at all! | Dec 14, 2016 |
Since we're talking hypotheses ...
Say you take 6 weeks off each year, that leaves 46 working weeks per 5 days each = 230 working days.
Assume that if you need a weekday off, you can catch up during the weekend, family commitments permitting.
Assuming a prudential rate of $0.08 per word (that's quite on the cheap side, but let's stick to a neutral-to-slightly-pessimist scenario), you will earn 230 x 5000 x 0.08 per year ... that's pretty close to 6 figures,... See more Since we're talking hypotheses ...
Say you take 6 weeks off each year, that leaves 46 working weeks per 5 days each = 230 working days.
Assume that if you need a weekday off, you can catch up during the weekend, family commitments permitting.
Assuming a prudential rate of $0.08 per word (that's quite on the cheap side, but let's stick to a neutral-to-slightly-pessimist scenario), you will earn 230 x 5000 x 0.08 per year ... that's pretty close to 6 figures, my friend (before taxes, but still). And all this with 6 weeks off, most evenings and weekends free. If you can do that, congratulations!
[Edited at 2016-12-14 15:24 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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This thread was starting to turn into one fishermen might have when they get together. I agree with Sheila, Heinrich, Phil and John; as a freelancers you have to find a volume you can commit to over the long term, taking into consideration all the other tasks to be done as a freelancer. So much depends on individual circumstances, the type of texts one deals with. Not to mention the volume we actually WANT to do. The whole point of being a freelancer is NOT having to do things in ways employers ... See more This thread was starting to turn into one fishermen might have when they get together. I agree with Sheila, Heinrich, Phil and John; as a freelancers you have to find a volume you can commit to over the long term, taking into consideration all the other tasks to be done as a freelancer. So much depends on individual circumstances, the type of texts one deals with. Not to mention the volume we actually WANT to do. The whole point of being a freelancer is NOT having to do things in ways employers demanded of us. Freedom to set a daily output we're comfortable with, is sustainable, and which leaves room in life for other things.
John Fossey wrote: Steven Foster wrote:
...translation was one of my many chores. When I devoted a full 8-hour day to it, my average output was around 5000 words... Exactly. You were an employee. Your average output was not 5000 words every day. Other people were getting the work for you, quoting clients, billing them, keeping the company running, providing you with a desk, chair and computer, etc. Freelancers have to do all that in addition to translating. The 2500 words per day figure is a daily figure that a freelance business can count on committing themselves to. It has no relation to what an employee can occasionally do some days. I'd be just curious to know if this 2500-words-a-day thing is real. Just try committing yourself, as a freelancer, to providing clients with 5000 words a day. Then see what happens when 2 of them agree to your offer, a week later and both at the same time. That's what freelancers live with all the time. 2500 words per day is what I have proven I can offer clients and be sure to be able to meet my commitments. Of course higher bursts ("When I devoted a full 8-hour day to it...") are possible, but not for long and not as a general commitment. ▲ Collapse
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| And the quality? | Dec 14, 2016 |
Steven Foster wrote:
I just signed up here, browsed around the forums, and I must say that I am quite shocked to learn that 2500 words a day is considered an acceptable daily output for a professional translator.
I have worked in a patent office for several years and translation was one of my many chores. When I devoted a full 8-hour day to it, my average output was around 5000 words, and that included previous research (usually 1 hour, give or take) plus two rounds of checking/proofreading.
In case of emergency I could easily stay 2 or 3 extra hours and broke 8000 a day, although I admit that I couldn't keep that pace for long.
During the translation phase I can type 1500-2000 words per HOUR.
And I didn't certainly feel like a freak, since other colleagues did 4000 a day without much effort. I clearly remember in my early days one of my most experienced coworkers doing 19000 in two days, proofread and everything.
If this sounds like bragging (or faking), so be it. I'd be just curious to know if this 2500-words-a-day thing is real.
Just wondering, nobody talks about that aspect.
| | | | | Now, THIS sounds like bragging | Dec 14, 2016 |
Alvaro Espantaleon wrote:
which means I can translate L'Éducation sentimentale in approx. 12 days.
10.000 words? Do you work 48 hours a day?
[Edited at 2016-12-14 15:22 GMT]
[Edited at 2016-12-14 15:25 GMT]
| | | | Inga Petkelyte
Portugal
Local time: 17:32
Lithuanian to Portuguese
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| Per vieną dieną | Dec 14, 2016 |
in a day = per vieną dieną
Now see how much longer are words in different languages. And let me tell that these are still pretty short words.
Or those languages where diacritics take a combination of several key strokes for one letter, it all adds up yo the general speed.
No wonder that some of us put our average daily output as 2500 or 2700 words.
Try to type 1000 German words in an hour!
| | | | | It's a matter of priorities | Dec 14, 2016 |
I'm happy to translate an average of 300 words per hour and do a maximum of 2,100 words a day. Actually, I'm more than happy, it's what I want to do.
Before I became a full time translator I used to work extremely long hours but life is for living, not for spending the whole day sitting in front of a computer. I want to reach old age feeling fit and healthy!
Whenever I read about someone who regularly translates over 4,000 words a day I always feel sorry for them becaus... See more I'm happy to translate an average of 300 words per hour and do a maximum of 2,100 words a day. Actually, I'm more than happy, it's what I want to do.
Before I became a full time translator I used to work extremely long hours but life is for living, not for spending the whole day sitting in front of a computer. I want to reach old age feeling fit and healthy!
Whenever I read about someone who regularly translates over 4,000 words a day I always feel sorry for them because it probably means that they spend the whole day working.
Why earn a lot of money if you don't have enough time to spend it? ▲ Collapse
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Max Deryagin
Russian Federation
Local time: 21:32
Member (2013)
English to Russian
| Have you considered that different translation fields have different standards? | Dec 14, 2016 |
Claiming to be able to translate 5000 words per day in my field (subtitling) is tantamount to showing your complete incompetence.
| | | | | I find that there are 2 main ways that the "efficiency" of a translator increases... | Dec 14, 2016 |
The following is not a judgement about you in particular, Steven, because I don't know your profile or your experience (I did take a look but I see that you don't have it updated yet), but I just wanted to mention a thought that comes to my mind very often when I proofread some translations and when people talk about speed of technical texts (which is what I know)...
I am a Physicist, I've worked for more than 15 years in technical positions and I'm since a few years ago a full tim... See more The following is not a judgement about you in particular, Steven, because I don't know your profile or your experience (I did take a look but I see that you don't have it updated yet), but I just wanted to mention a thought that comes to my mind very often when I proofread some translations and when people talk about speed of technical texts (which is what I know)...
I am a Physicist, I've worked for more than 15 years in technical positions and I'm since a few years ago a full time certified technical translator, and even with this experience, I find it extremely hard to translate more than 2000 words a day in my technical fields, even if I know the subject well. Only in cases where I get repetitive work from the same customer with exactly the same and easy subject, I can translate much faster (or when I get very easy non-technical subjects), but otherwise I spend lots of time checking videos to see EXACTLY how that machine works, checking information from technical institutions, etc.
But back to my thought, these are the two ways to increase speed:
- to be very good at your field, so you go faster.
- The second method to increase efficiency is not to understand it at all, so everything you translate sounds good. This increases efficiency enormously.
Unfortunately, I have proofread a few of those (I'm very careful with proofreading now).
Again, it may really not be your case, there's no way to know. I just wanted to let this thought here. If for technical documents you understand the text well and an engineer reading it can also understand it well, and the terminology is the same than in all the regulations and norms already officialy translated, etc., then the translation is correct and you're lucky to be so fast! more time relaxing or more money in the bank! ▲ Collapse
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I have translated some patent texts in the past and actually - once you get over the initial hurdle of key terminology - it is rather easy and repetitive in many cases. It does not need to be particularly poetic either ... just convey the facts accurately in clear language and whoever reads it will be happy. If you have a CAT tool, it is not that much of a challenge to produce 5000 + words a day if you know your topic already. Technology translations are comparable in some ways.
Mos... See more I have translated some patent texts in the past and actually - once you get over the initial hurdle of key terminology - it is rather easy and repetitive in many cases. It does not need to be particularly poetic either ... just convey the facts accurately in clear language and whoever reads it will be happy. If you have a CAT tool, it is not that much of a challenge to produce 5000 + words a day if you know your topic already. Technology translations are comparable in some ways.
Most other types of translation can be more time-consuming. Letters from the CEO to staff need to be worded carefully, as do advertising texts. Any company website translation should not be rushed - the language should read as naturally as possible and it's best to come back to your translation a day later to improve on it. And of course you get the dreaded court papers where a judge discusses some obscure point of law for 30 pages and it's difficult to make head or tail of it until you have read it twice and researched the background to this particular legal matter. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Laura Kingdon
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:32
Member (2015)
French to English
+ ...
| Lots of reasons not to translate more | Dec 14, 2016 |
I CAN translate up to 5-6000 words per day, and have done so on a few occasions, but I don't want to and would never commit to, for various reasons.
First of all, I'd never want to promise something I can't deliver. If the text turns out to be surprisingly more difficult than expected or if I have to spend a lot of time researching something, naturally my output will drop. I'm very well aware that the quality of my work drops steeply when I'm rushing to do it, so I do everything I c... See more I CAN translate up to 5-6000 words per day, and have done so on a few occasions, but I don't want to and would never commit to, for various reasons.
First of all, I'd never want to promise something I can't deliver. If the text turns out to be surprisingly more difficult than expected or if I have to spend a lot of time researching something, naturally my output will drop. I'm very well aware that the quality of my work drops steeply when I'm rushing to do it, so I do everything I can to avoid putting myself in a situation where I have to rush.
Secondly, it's a huge mental effort after a while. I can comfortably do about 3000 words per day and still have energy left at the end. I can make enough money doing that, so why make myself miserable doing more? ▲ Collapse
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Diana Llorente wrote:
- The second method to increase efficiency is not to understand it at all, so everything you translate sounds good. This increases efficiency enormously.
Unfortunately, I have proofread a few of those (I'm very careful with proofreading now).
YES, THIS.
I know very few experienced colleagues left in my language pair and specializations who will touch proofreading assignments for this very reason - it's just too much work correcting the crap produced by supposedly qualified translators. I'd bet every one of those translators thinks his/her translations sound good  (and I'd also bet a fair few of them claim to be able to translate high volumes per day)
| | | | Daryo
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:32
Serbian to English
+ ...
| and on top of it | Dec 14, 2016 |
philgoddard wrote: Steven Foster wrote:
If this sounds like bragging (or faking), so be it. Yes, it does.
and to make it even worse it gives ammunition to those who look at translators as being little more than glorified typists ...
BTW how quickly could you type in German "shooting yourself in the foot" or "turkeys voting for Christmas"?
[Edited at 2016-12-14 22:14 GMT]
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