In today’s podcast, I talk to German freelance translator and company owner Tanya Quintieri about a translator’s ‘life cycle’. You have probably heard of the ‘product life cycle’, and here we apply the concept to ourselves as freelance translators, and look at what to do (or not to do) during the different stages of our career.

Important things covered in this episode:

• What is a translator’s ‘life cycle’?
• Phases in a life cycle
• What can disrupt your life cycle?
• Plan B in a translator’s life cycle
• Points to consider at the ‘building a career’ stage
• How to optimize the ‘giving back’ stage
•  Monetizing your client base

Useful links mentioned in this episode:

• Tanya’s company website
• DVÜD e.V. website
• xl8Camp for freelance translators

Like me, you probably haven’t thought of your translation business as a life cycle before. It’s a great idea, though, and can make it easier to decide what to do and when, depending on what stage we’re at. Feel free to tell us what stage you are at in the comments section! Wishing you all a wonderful week ̶ and a successful life cycle!

Being a committed entrepreneur, I love to share my knowledge and experience gained in more than 14 years of successful freelancing. I have been invited to speak at conferences, fairs and universities throughout Germany and Europe. My topics are young professionals, social media marketing, corporate identity, and cooperation opportunities for freelancers as well as customer acquisition and—most important—client retention. I am an enthusiastic translator and passionate entrepreneur. I love giving back in different ways: As a problem solver for my clients, as a consultant for colleagues, as a confidant for my friends, as a role model for my children. Tanya Quintieri is the Owner at The Translators, President of the DVÜD e. V.  and Organizer of the BarCamp series xl8Camp for freelance translators.

A special thanks to Catherine Metcalfe for editing the show notes.

This podcast is sponsored by:

“ProZ.com: Become a member, clarify your areas of expertise, and benefit, over time, from an ongoing flow of potential new clients.”

IntelliWebSearch is designed to save translators, interpreters, editors and terminologists time when searching the web. Pressing a convenient shortcut key copies selected text from your translation environment, opens your browser and sends the copied text to any number of search engines, on-line dictionaries or on-line encyclopaedias together with other customizable instructions.

Corinne McKay, who teaches online business courses for beginning and experienced freelance translators. If you’d like to earn more money, work with higher-quality clients and feel more confident about your freelance business skills, visit her website corinnemckay.com and click the Online Courses for Translators tab.

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