Due to a number of reasons too dull to be worth mentioning here I 've recently found myself pondering on my future. Particularly my future as a translator. To make my ponderings somewhat organized, I've prepared a list. Here goes:
Why continue translating:
1. I'm not good at anything else. Actually, I'm not very good at that too but at least it's familiar.
2. The crisis is still out there which means that drastic career changes are probably not a very good idea at the moment.
3. Despite all the nights and weekends lost to the job, it still feels pretty cool to see your translation on a bookshelf.
4. I don't think I would be able to become a regular nine-to-five-behind-the-desk kind of employee.
Why abandon translation and pursue something else:
1. Money.
2. Having nights and weekends off.
3. Money.
4. Leaving work at 5 PM on Friday and starting to think about it again on my way back on Monday morning. Yes, I know this is redundant to item 2. Still, it's important.
5. Having some firm ground beneath my feet, understood as permanent employment.
6. Have I already mentioned money?
I'll have to think about it.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
On translator's integrity
A few posts ago I made a declaration that if somebody was ever to ask me to translate one more Footprint guide, I would tear their heart out and eat it.
Well, I didn't.
Circumstances aside, I once again proved to myself that integrity is not a preferable trait of character in this profession. Even though I still consider translating Footprint guides as a premature damnation for the sins of my youth, I realized that a good translator (understood as a translator able to make a living off translation without the need of taking side jobs such as distributing leaflets or robbing liquor stores) cannot afford too much integrity. In other words, the sole principle a translator should abide by is the lack thereof. You are offered a text to translate, you accept it. And any time you feel like making statements about what you will and will not translate in the future, remember this simple truth: there are dozens of people who would love to take over your job. Their quality may be lower, their efficiency not even close to yours... but they don't bitch about the job. So this is my message to myself: shut up and do your work. And stop deluding yourself that you're something more than a muscle (or head) for hire.
Here's a little something to illustrate the point:
Well, I didn't.
Circumstances aside, I once again proved to myself that integrity is not a preferable trait of character in this profession. Even though I still consider translating Footprint guides as a premature damnation for the sins of my youth, I realized that a good translator (understood as a translator able to make a living off translation without the need of taking side jobs such as distributing leaflets or robbing liquor stores) cannot afford too much integrity. In other words, the sole principle a translator should abide by is the lack thereof. You are offered a text to translate, you accept it. And any time you feel like making statements about what you will and will not translate in the future, remember this simple truth: there are dozens of people who would love to take over your job. Their quality may be lower, their efficiency not even close to yours... but they don't bitch about the job. So this is my message to myself: shut up and do your work. And stop deluding yourself that you're something more than a muscle (or head) for hire.
Here's a little something to illustrate the point:
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