Poll: Which stage of your career are you currently in?
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ProZ.com Staff
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Apr 17

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Which stage of your career are you currently in?".

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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portekiz
Local time: 18:35
Üye (2007)
İngilizce > Portekizce
+ ...
Veteran Apr 17

40+ years!

Angie Garbarino
Alexandra Speirs
P.L.F. Persi (X)
Sara Daitch
Philip Lees
 
Lieven Malaise
Lieven Malaise  Identity Verified
Belçika
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2020)
Fransızca > Hollandaca
+ ...
Veteran Apr 17

I've been translating for 26 years, of which 21 as a fulltime freelancer.

 
Gregor Trebec
Gregor Trebec
Slovenya
Local time: 19:35
İngilizce > Slovence
+ ...
Well... Apr 17

if you are here present for xy years, does not mean crap. I am here for +3 years but so far i've had just 3-4 projects. It means 1 project per year which means in practice, i have little or no experience at all!

 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2003)
İngilizce > İtalyanca
+ ...
Veteran Apr 17

Since my degree in 1983

Philip Lees
Gudrun Wolfrath
 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2003)
İngilizce > İtalyanca
+ ...
That's because times are changing Apr 17

Gregor Trebec wrote:

if you are here present for xy years, does not mean crap. I am here for +3 years but so far i've had just 3-4 projects. It means 1 project per year which means in practice, i have little or no experience at all!

And not for the better.

[Edited at 2026-04-17 11:23 GMT]


Cagdas Karatas
Maria Laura Curzi
 
Lieven Malaise
Lieven Malaise  Identity Verified
Belçika
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2020)
Fransızca > Hollandaca
+ ...
. Apr 17

Gregor Trebec wrote:
if you are here present for xy years, does not mean crap. I am here for +3 years but so far i've had just 3-4 projects. It means 1 project per year which means in practice, i have little or no experience at all!


If you want to be taken seriously as a translator by potential customers you might want to...

1) Change your profile picture into a picture of at least your complete face.
2) Remove the English spelling and grammar mistakes on your profile.
3) Refrain from offering language pairs into English, because you clearly don't master English as you should to translate into it. This is not just my personal opinion. You have to imagine potential customers reading your profile (or even these forums because they are public) and then having to decide to let you translate their stuff into English. I know what I would decide.

This probably comes across as blunt, but those 3 points are really very basic things and nobody telling you this will most certainly not help you either.


Robert Rietvelt
Michelle den Boer
Luis M. Sosa
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Philip Lees
 
Oscar Núñez Alfaro
Oscar Núñez Alfaro  Identity Verified
Kosta Rika
Local time: 11:35
Üye (Oct 2026)
İngilizce > İspanyolca
+ ...
I am in the intermediate stage (+3 years). Apr 17

I always thought that if I had more than 5 years working in the translation industry, I would consider myself an experienced translator or in the advanced stage. What do you think about this colleagues?

[Editado a las 2026-04-17 13:44 GMT]


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Hollanda
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2006)
İngilizce > Afrikaans
+ ...
25 Apr 17

25 years

 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Hollanda
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2006)
İngilizce > Afrikaans
+ ...
@Gregor Apr 17

Lieven Malaise replied to Gregor:
You have to imagine potential customers reading your profile (or even these forums, because they are public) and then having to decide to let you translate their stuff into English.

While it is true that you won't get much work via sites such as ProZ.com, you may still get some work, if a client happens to visit your profile page and you manage to convince them to hire you. And to do that, you need to present the best and most professional possible image of yourself. Any freelancer on any website where freelancers have profile pages or upload their résumés/CVs will proofread and spell-check the text on their profile page several times over, to make sure it is absolutely error-free.

[Edited at 2026-04-18 05:59 GMT]


 
Peter Simon
Peter Simon  Identity Verified
Hollanda
Local time: 19:35
İngilizce > Macarca
+ ...
Missing Apr 17

I miss one category: end phase. Retired in most aspects but for a couple of old and reliable clients who I still find worth working for and who find my contribution valuable. Otherwise over the edge into no career any longer. Call it oblivion if you like.

The Shredder
Michael Newton
Philip Lees
Gudrun Wolfrath
Angie Garbarino
 
Gerard Barry
Gerard Barry
Almanya
Local time: 19:35
Almanca > İngilizce
. Apr 17

Unemployed and doubting I'll ever find work as a translator again.

 
Michael Newton
Michael Newton  Identity Verified
Amerika Birleşik Devletleri
Local time: 13:35
Japonca > İngilizce
+ ...
career stage Apr 17

What about "late stage", 'terminal", "hospice"?

Angie Garbarino
Gerard Barry
The Shredder
Maria Laura Curzi
 
Philip Lees
Philip Lees  Identity Verified
Yunanistan
Local time: 20:35
Yunanca > İngilizce
Other Apr 18

Burned out: >35 years.

The Shredder
 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:35
Üye (2003)
İngilizce > İtalyanca
+ ...
deleted Apr 18



[Edited at 2026-04-19 07:17 GMT]


Maria Laura Curzi
 


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Poll: Which stage of your career are you currently in?






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