Greater than 2 minutes, my friend!
Admit mistakes to enhance relationship with your clients A mistake is a good reminder
Who is proud of making mistakes? Nobody, of course. But mistakes are inevitable. You know what they say- to err is human. In Croatia, they tend to stretch this saying to everybody who is fortunate to have a job, that is, who works, naturally makes mistakes.
Still, mistakes can cost you a lot and they can be harmful for you if you want to improve and excell at your trade. And if you tend to repeat the same mistakes all over, then nothing is going to help to dissuade the person with whom you are doing business from claiming that you’re a lost case. An irrepairable damage has been done and most probably no second or third chance will be offered to you to remedy it.
I had the most embarassing moment when I had to admit to myself, maybe that first to myself, then to my client, that I had made grave mistake. The problem with freelancing is that your every day is full of uncertainties. You never know what your next assignment is going to be- something which you would gladly take on, because you’re qualified and have all the necessary tools and knowledge required to deliver a quality performance or you will be having something on your desk that you have no vague idea how to approach and how to bring clarity into it. If you’re lucky, you’ll be dealing with a text that you had the opportunity to analyse, decipher and translate not so long ago, carefully stored on your computer and there are some minor things to change. Yes, that’s pretty easy, but it’s unchallenging for me. That would be a safe road, even made safer if the client is a regular payer. If I seek challenge, I also inevitably encounter risks and often need to consult others, which in the end results in outsourcing a part of the text to someone I entirely trust. Whom to trust? It’s mostly you who must do the job, responsibly and competently.
I took on a project hastily. I scanned the many pages of it and deemed myself apt enough to carry it out myself. I was sure I would find resources which could help with the terminology, but I was wrong. The calculation was wrong. I acted too quick with not enough proof on my side that I can indeed deliver a commendable job. What happened after the realisation? I had to pull back. Had to step aside, admit defeat and own up to the client. The client was unhappy about it, saying it was very unprofessional of me to do such a thing – accept and then decline. The remaing part of that day was hugely influenced by this outcome and the days after were also tinged with feelings of guilt and self-reproach.
Now I try not to act hastily and tend to carefully gauge my possibilities. Give a promise you can keep, no matter what it takes. Don’t let your clients down (just like Trump promised today not to let his nation down-is this a bad comparison?). Admit mistakes.
Nixie Adams 
Gert Van Assche 
Yuliya Kinash 
Hi Mariann, this is such a delicate matter, but as you rightly say it is inevitable to make mistakes. I agree that the first thing to do is acknowledge them, and then hope the client will be so kind as to appreciate our honesty? 🙂
Do you have any tips that you can share from your experience about how to check as carefully as possible new translations upon receipt, so as to avoid bad surprises later? Thank you!
You wont know whta is front of you if you do not ask enough time to dwell on it. nobody is going to give you ample time for that. you can at least say: Ill give you my answer in half an hour (and then you say that you are quite busy, but actually busy analysing the text).
Great post Mariann! Thank you for sharing.
I have been on the other side of the fence, as a project manager, and I can tell you that it takes a professional to take responsibility for a mistake and to be realistic as to admit that he/she is not up to the task, even after accepting it.
I just read an article whose title was: “Admitting you were wrong doesn’t make you weak – it makes you awesome!”. Quite right, don’t you think? 🙂
I also had a case today when i outsourced and that translator made some mistakes and i pointed that out to them. more on it later.
Yes, mistakes make us human. The moment when we admit it is quite painful, because you know that you lost some credibility and it’s on the client what to do next. But it’s on us to add extra effort not to go through that again. also quite impossible.
Hi Mariann, to admit one’s mistake seems professional, correct and fair. We’all human, we can make different kind of mistakes being when translating or when dealing with the client. To admit them, even if it hurts, is a sign of responsibility and seriousness. An is generally appreciated by clients.
Mariann,
Thanks for your insight on this.
Indeed, we are translators, not super human machines who know everything and all subjects. Every time I receive a translation request, be it from a new client or an old one, I always ask to see the original file first. I also ask what market it is for, who the audience is and some other questions if I find them relevant.
Then I take about 10 minutes to check the original document, to have a grasp on the subject and the terminology used, and then about 10 more minutes and try to translate a couple of paragraphs: this will let me know (it’s general, I know, but it helps) how many words I will be able to produce in about an hour (provided the language and terminology is the same throughout the whole document) and I will also be able to see if the text is something that I feel comfortable translating or not.
Only then I accept or decline it. In case it’s not within my niche or specialization, I politely decline the job and, should I know of someone capable of doing it, I can give the client my recommendation, which is **always** appreciated. They always come back to me when they have something they know I would accept, because I’m always upfront honest with them, and that’s a quality they appreciate. 🙂
Just my 2 cents!