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Poll: Most likely to put me in a bad mood:
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
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Jul 15, 2017

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Most likely to put me in a bad mood:".

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Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 14:15
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Other Jul 15, 2017

1. Working from unreadable/difficult-to-read PDFs, especially handwriting. I find them so stressful that I can get physically sick.
2. Reviewing other translators' work. We all work differently. I waste a huge amount of time trying to decide what to change and what to leave even though I wouldn't have translated the text the same way.


 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 21:15
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Other Jul 15, 2017

Life’s too short to be in a bad mood...

 
Ana Vozone
Ana Vozone  Identity Verified
Local time: 21:15
Member (2010)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Administrative tasks Jul 15, 2017

Invoices, payments to the Government, "all things administrative" really break my Zen...

 
Christine Andersen
Christine Andersen  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 22:15
Member (2003)
Danish to English
+ ...
So very true! Jul 15, 2017

Teresa Borges wrote:

Life’s too short to be in a bad mood...


But finding mistakes in my own work AFTER I have delivered the job is extremely annoying. If it is not too late, I eat humble pie, and send the client a new file. It has occurred several times over the years.

The other thing that gets me worked up is when some obstinate client uses silly rules or the default settings of Studio Verification to pick holes in a good translation. Mine or anyone else's...
Pedantry up with which I will not put ... I may seethe over it for an hour or two nevertheless!


 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 22:15
Spanish to English
+ ...
Other Jul 15, 2017

These three are likely candidates:
1) Finding mistakes in my own work
2) Poor source texts
3) Proofreading others' work

Having said that, nº 1 doesn't really put me in a bad mood, but serves as a wake-up call and a reminder that nobody is perfect.
Poorly written source texts are par for the course, and although they are annoying, on the other hand it makes you appreciate it whenever you get a well-written text to work on. So, probably the most frustrating is
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These three are likely candidates:
1) Finding mistakes in my own work
2) Poor source texts
3) Proofreading others' work

Having said that, nº 1 doesn't really put me in a bad mood, but serves as a wake-up call and a reminder that nobody is perfect.
Poorly written source texts are par for the course, and although they are annoying, on the other hand it makes you appreciate it whenever you get a well-written text to work on. So, probably the most frustrating is proofreading others work - I invariably end up thinking to myself 'why didn't they just send the translation to me in the first place'...
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Philippe Etienne
Philippe Etienne  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 22:15
Member
English to French
Other Jul 15, 2017

Anything

Philippe


 
Jennifer Forbes
Jennifer Forbes  Identity Verified
Local time: 21:15
French to English
+ ...
In memoriam
Other Jul 15, 2017

I guess late payment is the most annoying item in the list here, but it doesn't happen to me much these days.
Other annoyances are clients quibbling over previously agreed word counts or per word rates after the work has been delivered in good time, or making unexplained and unjustified deductions from payments. It doesn't happen often but when it does it makes me seethe with rage.

[Edited at 2017-07-15 10:09 GMT]


 
Gianluca Marras
Gianluca Marras  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 22:15
English to Italian
Other Jul 15, 2017

checking my own translation before delivery when:
1) the file is over 5000 words
2) I have to check more than one text

ok in these two cases I get really annoyed.

Finding mistakes in my own work.. well it does not make me happy, but I think that we have to learn from our own mistakes... so, just try to improve...


 
SachiM
SachiM
Canada
Local time: 14:15
Japanese to English
Other: must follow poor previous translation Jul 15, 2017

I am sometimes given jobs which are the newest in a recurring series and am told to follow the TM or the target-only document for the previous year, model, etc. In many cases, it is unnatural (as if the previous translator was working in the wrong direction), but I am not authorized to fix it. Only when the meaning is different am I allowed to suggest an alternative.

 
Michael Harris
Michael Harris  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 22:15
Member (2006)
German to English
Same here Jul 15, 2017

Teresa Borges wrote:

Life’s too short to be in a bad mood...


If something annoys me, I take a look at a few Dilber cartoons, laugh out loud, think about the things my wife and friends tell me what happens to them and others at their regular work and then I think - It does not matte rhow bad things are, there is always something else that might boe more worse!

At the bottom of the line, something really bad must happen to get me in a bad mood - keep smiling☺


 
Francesco DAnna
Francesco DAnna
United States
Local time: 17:15
Italian to English
+ ...
Professionalism is the key Jul 15, 2017

I agree with my previous colleagues regarding what bothers them the most. I can say that they are all part of our profession and we need to deal with them in a professional manner; in other words we need to have a plan to address these issues and execute them while keeping the emotions aside. I am not saying that it is easy for me, but we just need to focus on what we can control.
I have chosen "Having to look for new clients/projects" because that is the bottom line for all of us. Settin
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I agree with my previous colleagues regarding what bothers them the most. I can say that they are all part of our profession and we need to deal with them in a professional manner; in other words we need to have a plan to address these issues and execute them while keeping the emotions aside. I am not saying that it is easy for me, but we just need to focus on what we can control.
I have chosen "Having to look for new clients/projects" because that is the bottom line for all of us. Setting up a rate is what bugs me the most during the process, because I must compromise between what I think I am worth (which I know) with what the client is willing to pay (which I don't know); I prefer that the client proposes an amount so I can say yes or no. Likely my wife is a Personal Coach so she helps me decide for free... I think!
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DZiW (X)
DZiW (X)
Ukraine
English to Russian
+ ...
The purpose Jul 15, 2017

I also don't see why to be very sad or very happy; may be just a little)

As for the annoyance, for me it's not MT and cryptic formats, not even non-natives, but... a client who doesn't know what exactly he or she wants! The problem is I also hardly can help or explain it to them.


 
Ricki Farn
Ricki Farn
Germany
Local time: 22:15
English to German
Other Jul 15, 2017

Haggling over rates. I'm from a background where it's an absolute no-no to negotiate or to even to ask for something (as opposed to just waiting for others to give it of their own accord), so I've acquired the ability, but it still puts me in a bad mood.

Proofreading others' work also gets my goat, but I just say no.

And what puts me in a bad mood is any kind of preferential feedback, unless presented by one specific client who probably bathes in icing every morning, th
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Haggling over rates. I'm from a background where it's an absolute no-no to negotiate or to even to ask for something (as opposed to just waiting for others to give it of their own accord), so I've acquired the ability, but it still puts me in a bad mood.

Proofreading others' work also gets my goat, but I just say no.

And what puts me in a bad mood is any kind of preferential feedback, unless presented by one specific client who probably bathes in icing every morning, that's the only way I can explain her communication style.
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Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 18:15
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Late Payment vs. Lack or work Jul 15, 2017

Both change my mood to a bit worse.

 
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Poll: Most likely to put me in a bad mood:






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