Translators are not second-class professionals!

A NOT-TO-DO list:

• I will not be paid by word for small projects of less than 250 words.
• I will not sacrifice my sleep to meet your inhuman deadline.
• I will not work during the weekend without an extra weekend-charge applied because you promised your client early delivery.
• I will not translate more than 3000 words a day, I am not Google Translate.
• I will not translate more than 3000 words a day, my brain turns into mash potatoes.
• I will not reply to your email straight way if you send it to me at the crack of dawn (on my time zone). Please, wait until I wake up.
• I will not work more than 8 hours a day for you, unless for some reason I am running late.
• I will not give you a discount. When you go to the doctor, do you ask for one?
• I will not accept to translate a text for you if you tell me that you have a limited budget and you tell me how much you will pay me. When you go to the doctor, do you impose to him/her how much he/she will charge you for examining you?
• I will not wake up at crack of dawn to finish your text unless lateness was my fault.
• I will not re-translate the text because you forgot to send me the instructions.
• I will not do job of the proofreader. I have already proofread my text before delivery.
• I will not give you a transfreebie I am not a charity.
• I will not give you a transfreebie, unless I wish to. If I do wish to do it, you do not even need to ask.
• I will not correct wrong entries in the TM that were not my translation products for free. Ask the translator that produced them to do it for you.
• I will not re-write a text. A translator is not a writer. I will translate it for you. Or ask a writer to do it for you.
• I will not put aside a project I am already working on because you want yours yesterday. All clients are valuable to me. Please wait! Your turn will come!
• I will not reply to your email straight away if I am in translation mode. I have heard the notification. I will reply the minute I finish my thoughts.
• I will not lower my rates due to the financial crisis. I, too, live in the reality of the financial crisis.
• I will not lower my rates. I too need to pay my rent, my tax and my food!
• I will not lower my rates. I need to be fair and true to all my clients. They all pay the same rates.
• I will not lower my rates. Why should I? The quality of my skills has become better not worse.
• I will not reply to your email if you are sending the same email to many translators at once! You should value me as much as I value you.
• I will not reply to your emails ever again if I realize that you send me a project that is right up my street (matches my expertise completely) but you have given it to another translator because that person’s rate is lower but not as experienced as me.
• I will not proofread your text (see case above) and I will have to re-translate the whole project because you wanted to make more profit.
• I will not translate your source text of poor quality. Have a native speaker correct it first! I am not one and I still find spelling and grammar mistakes. It tires me!
• I will not translate the text on a subject I am not familiar with unless I do some research and read about it.
• I will not submit a translation unless I am sure it is to the standard I set for my work. We agreed on a deadline, I did my time-management plan. Do not ask me to submit before the deadline. I love my job. I will allow any black holes in my career path.
• I will not take rude remarks from you. I am an educated person and I do not allow you to speak to me in an inappropriate manner.  Please speak (write) to me in the same way as I do.
• I will not accept any projects from you before you pay me for the one we completed six months ago.

TO BE CONTINUED