Just getting started

Sergei Tumanov wrote:
to run your bookkeeping a good accounting software package willl be a big plus.

Nicole Coesel wrote:

Please ask yourself if it is necessary/smart to provide all that personal info on your resume. Is it really essential all that info is out there for everyone to see, use or possibly abuse?

Generally speaking your country, location, e-mail address and a telephone number are more than enough. Additional info can always be provided by you when requested to do so.

The first thing someone is going to look for in your resume (at least someone looking to outsource work) is what translation experience you have (years, fields, areas of expersise). I might have overlooked it, but did not find any such information.

100% English. Way to go, but please remember that is probably according to Mexican standards, not to the standards of an English speaking country.

Best of luck!

Nicole.

Sheila Wilson wrote:

Above all, you need knowledge. You will never come across as a competent freelancer if you don't understand the job. Fortunately, one of our most essential skills is research, so you can learn while honing a vital skill.

Do you need a paid-for CAT tool? No. Do you need to know how a CAT works, why agencies ask for it? Yes. Train on a free one now; pay only when it will be worth the investment.


Maybe, but it depends on you country's requirements. You need to have a method, certainly, but Excel may be enough.

What you do need:
- A legal status in your country to work as self-employed (websites that imply you don't are so wrong).
- An invoice template that satisfies your country's needs.
- A professional-standard website/brochure/CV.
- Information on how to spot scammers, and how to avoid clients who will only bring you grief.

There may be more, but motivation and knowledge are the most important - and they're free!

DLyons wrote:

Small things can put off potential clients. You should have a native English speaker read the text in your ProZ profile - a few things need changing.

ATIL KAYHAN wrote:

ProZ.com is definitely an excellent place to start. I recommend that you try to get familiar with all the menus and submenus in ProZ. This will pay off later. I believe translation software is rather optional. You can get into that much later in your cereer. Meanwhile, Microsoft Office is all you need. Of course, you need to have a CV/resume designed for translation and interpretation. This is important. Clients/employers will ask for your CV/resume first. You should try to polish that CV/resume. There is a whole lot of information for doing that on the Internet. Good luck in your cereer as a translator and interpreter.

mdomseattle wrote:

Hi Silvia,

As a relatively new freelancer myself, I would suggest that you contact any other translators you can find in your area, attend conferences or events put on by any local organizations of translators in your country and build relationships and contacts offline as well as here on ProZ. Although this is a great community, it's a wonderful feeling to go to an event (here in the USA we have the American Translator's Association conference that just ended yesterday) and be surrounded by others with the same passions as yourself. The information you can learn from other translators in person is invaluable!

Best,

Mary