Working while sick: A downside of freelancing
Last Friday morning, I woke up with a bad cold. All I wanted to do was lie in bed and be miserable, but I had a deadline; so I had to drag myself out of bed, translate a few paragraphs, go lie down again, and go back and translate a little more.
By this process, I managed to get the translation done, taking six hours for something I'd generously budgeted two. At the end of it, I was completely drained, soaked through with sweat, and spent the next two days in bed.
That's one of the biggest downsides of being a freelancer: if you've made a promise to deliver, you've got to do your absolute all to get it done. If you're an employee, you can call in sick, but as a freelancer your client doesn't care if you're sick, or your car broke down, or your kid is sick and you have to go pick him up from school. All your client cares about is getting the delivery you promised, and if you can't deliver, they'll go get someone else who can.
With the freedom to set your own schedule comes the responsibility to stick to it.
Been there, done that, and really feel for you. I hope you are feeling better. On another note, thanks for writing this. Freelancing requires professionalism, which includes adhering to your deadlines. I have had several clients tell me horror stories of translators flaking out on them and disappearing during a job, some to reemerge weeks later. They appreciate it when they find a translator who does not flake out and actually delivers on time.
Ryan, I guess you don’t use a laptop as your main computer. If so, you could have just dragged the computer into your bed instead of dragging yourself to the computer… Even so, I know it isn’t fun.
@Jill
I’m feeling a lot better now, thanks.
@Richard
I do have a laptop, but in my fevered state getting it set up with my files, etc. seemed like more work than just banging out the translation. But I went back to work on Sunday with my laptop on the couch.
You know what I was wishing for at the time was my son’s netbook. I’m seriously considering getting one of those things for myself.
[...] By starkcommon Since I was talking about ridiculous client expectations, I thought this was a good post to link here as well. The writer talks about being sick and forcing himself to work [...]