Poll: Do you accept a project when you are in the middle of another one? Лице кое објавува дискусија: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Do you accept a project when you are in the middle of another one?".
This poll was originally submitted by Eva María Ruiz Ruiz. View the poll results »
| | | | Muriel Vasconcellos (X) 
Соединети Американски Држави
Local time: 07:09
шпански на англиски
+ ...
That's why I rarely have a dry spell. Last year my inbox was full for 9 straight months without a break. At times I was juggling three and four jobs at once. Never missed a deadline.
Fortunately, my main clients tend to give me generous deadlines, so I'm able to squeeze in other work. Sometimes when I tell a client that I already have work, they are willing to extend their deadline, though of course that's not always possible.
[Edited at 2014-03-30 08:29 GMT]
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I call them jobs - 'project' sounds a bit grandiose for much of the work I do.
I negotiate a suitable deadline and line them up in the queue. I may deliver two or three in a day...
But many of my jobs are under 1000 words - if I did not take them as they come, I would never have enough!
This week is the exception - working 5000 words into a project of around 70 000... In which case the question makes more sense!
| | | | neilmac
Шпанија
Local time: 16:09
шпански на англиски
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That's one of the reasons I dislike describing my work in terms of "projects" - because I feel it suggests an exclusive dedication which doesn't fit my modus operandi. I have about half a dozen regular direct (non-agency) clients and I have to accept the work they send me, otherwise they might have to go elsewhere. However, I usually manage to juggle them all so that everything gets delivered on time and everybody is happy.
My worst time pressure-wise is for about a week every 2 months, w... See more That's one of the reasons I dislike describing my work in terms of "projects" - because I feel it suggests an exclusive dedication which doesn't fit my modus operandi. I have about half a dozen regular direct (non-agency) clients and I have to accept the work they send me, otherwise they might have to go elsewhere. However, I usually manage to juggle them all so that everything gets delivered on time and everybody is happy.
My worst time pressure-wise is for about a week every 2 months, when I translate and revise texts for a professional journal, which occasionally creates minor conflicts because the volumes can vary, for example from 10K words in January to only 4K in March.
If offers of work come in from other potential clients, I have to make sure that I can fit them in with my regulars, otherwise it is highly unlikely that I'll be able to accept them. This precludes rush jobs, so I am rarely available to anyone outside my regular circle. I currently pass on most offers of work to a few trusted colleagues.
PS: I must admit I only usually talk about projects if I want to sound "grandiose" for those easily impressed by such things...
[Edited at 2014-03-30 10:34 GMT]
[Edited at 2014-03-30 10:35 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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| It would be foolish not to | Mar 30, 2014 |
Otherwise when I handed in the first project I wouldn't have work to start on after that.
It's called planning.
| | | | | What a question! | Mar 30, 2014 |
So obvious...
Noni Gilbert wrote:
Otherwise when I handed in the first project I wouldn't have work to start on after that.
It's called planning.
Exactly!
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Noni Gilbert wrote:
Otherwise when I handed in the first project I wouldn't have work to start on after that.
It's called planning.
That was a good one;-)
| | | | nrichy (X)
Франција
Local time: 16:09
француски на холандски
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Christine Andersen wrote:
I call them jobs - 'project' sounds a bit grandiose for much of the work I do.
I negotiate a suitable deadline and line them up in the queue. I may deliver two or three in a day...
But many of my jobs are under 1000 words - if I did not take them as they come, I would never have enough!
I get 3-10 jobs every day. It would be foolish to call them projects.
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| Perhaps I have misinterpreted your question... | Mar 30, 2014 |
Did you mean, would I stop work on one project to start on another which has just come in?
It that were the case, then again, yes. I always try to give myself a good margin timewise with each project for all those unexpected eventualities - mini family crises, other colleagues illnesses, feeling underpar yourself, washing machine flooding the basement, city grinding to a halt because of a huge funeral (this is Avila, think last week), etc etc... and, yes, an urgent small project fro... See more Did you mean, would I stop work on one project to start on another which has just come in?
It that were the case, then again, yes. I always try to give myself a good margin timewise with each project for all those unexpected eventualities - mini family crises, other colleagues illnesses, feeling underpar yourself, washing machine flooding the basement, city grinding to a halt because of a huge funeral (this is Avila, think last week), etc etc... and, yes, an urgent small project from a very valued client.
That way I could slip in a quickie! ▲ Collapse
| | | | Tim Drayton (X)
Кипар
Local time: 17:09
турски на англиски
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If we are talking about accepting another job and fitting it in first, then I will only do this if:
1. The new job will take less than an hour to complete, and
2. Doing so will not cause me to miss the deadline of the job that I am already working on.
| | | | Gina W
Соединети Американски Држави
Local time: 10:09
Член (2003)
француски на англиски
If and only if I can handle both jobs and meet both deadlines.
I agree with the others about the term "project", though...
| | | | Thayenga
Германија
Local time: 16:09
Член (2009)
англиски на германски
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My first impulse was to vote "Yes", but it really depends on the client and on the project as well as on the delivery date for the second project. It's always good to know that another project is waiting to be done once the current one has been delivered.
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| | | It's part of managing your work load as a freelancer | Mar 30, 2014 |
You have to have a clear picture of what you are doing for whom for which deadline, how long each will take, and whether you can handle a new request that comes in. It's a good idea to create a generous deadline to make room for the unexpected, but also in case a small request from a regular client comes in so you can squeeze it in without compromise.
| | | | | Back in the olden days... | Mar 30, 2014 |
...when we sometimes had up to a month to translate a few pages, we would often be "working" on 15-20 jobs at the same time.
[Edited at 2014-03-30 21:24 GMT]
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