[ADVICE] Hello, if someone could give me some advice I would be eternally grateful.

Hey there,

New poster here, please be kind.

Well, you see, I am a very anxious person and recently I started a new career as a freelance translator.

I started on Upwork back in January, things have been slow, but mostly ok. My first job went perfectly, the second not so much, the client disappeared, I got paid but didn't get any feedback, the third job was with the same client as the first and it went really well.

The problems started around last week, I read some rumors that upwork was deleting accounts for sending too many proposals and not getting enough jobs. that led me to have an anxiety attack, with led me to panic and fervently expand my business.

I created profiles on various other freelance platforms, Fiverr, PPH, etc., and decided to start a personal blog to use as a portfolio. last Saturday I got my first job outside of Upwork after a week.:)

I know that I am being impatient and that these things take time, I can rationalize that...

But I would love some advice on how to get my career going.

how do I promote my gigs? where do I do it?

A lot of people said that I should send emails directly to potential clients but who are they?

I am not really in a hurry, I'm perfectly fine if it takes one or two years to build up my reputation, it's just the "new" factor that makes me nervous.

I know I can do a good job and have proof of it, but I am really lost at the moment...

Can someone help me find my way?

Thank you in advance.

Hi Richard,

Welcome! I'm glad you found TM-Town. Generally speaking I have two pieces of advice:

1. Have a great and complete profile (this applies to any site). This is often the main thing clients or agencies are using to make the decision on whether to contact you.

2. Specialize. Here is a blog post I wrote related to that: https://www.tm-town.com/blog/long-tail-translator

If you haven't found it yet, I would also recommend joining ProZ.com (TM-Town is owned by ProZ.com). ProZ.com has a great guidance center where you can find more advice: https://www.proz.com/guidance-center

Hi Richard,
I know exactly how it feels to be building a reputation as a freelance translator. It isn't easy.
It took me approximately fifteen years to get recognised as a freelance translator.En-GA.
I am still advertising the services I provide.
Good Luck!