How to improve your chances of getting more translation work

I regularly meet talented and interesting translators and people who want to get into (more) freelance translation, and they ask for my advice.  After running Atlas for 21 years, I have plenty of advice to offer on getting more translation work.

My first request is to see their CV. If you want to succeed in this field, this is what people will look at first, and this is how they will judge you. Your CV needs to be:

• Perfect (no spelling errors) and beautifully laid out – easy to read and pick out key points
• Clear and to the point (only 2 pages max please)
• Professional – look like the translator/interpreter you are – Promote yourself!

What I find over and over again, that translators and interpreters do not present themselves on paper as well as they could.

A case in point is a lovely lady I met this weekend at the Language Show. Clearly talented, passionate about languages and with bags of great experience, her CV does not do her justice at all.

So I’ve asked Nina if I can suggest improvements – and see if together we can come up with something that shows her as the truly skilled linguist that she clearly is. Luckily she’s said yes. I’ll be blogging to tell you how we get on.