Poll: Has your being a freelancer been a source of stress within your family?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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Dec 27, 2017

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Has your being a freelancer been a source of stress within your family?".

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Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 10:19
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Other Dec 27, 2017

I live alone with my dog, but I do have problems when I have guests. They feel free to interrupt me constantly, no matter how strenuously I emphasize that I need the time to work. They don't get stressed, but I do.

[Edited at 2017-12-27 08:42 GMT]


 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 17:19
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
No, not at all Dec 27, 2017

I live alone, with my daughter’s dog during the week, and my family and close friends are fully aware of what I do and understand the nature of my job…

 
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
Nikki Scott-Despaigne  Identity Verified
Local time: 18:19
French to English
Not nowadays Dec 27, 2017

When the children were younger, it was sometimes a source of stress. The children's father often worked overseas for long uncertain periods of time. That meant I had to have child care in place. I could work when the children were at the creche, at school, etc. However, when their father returned home, they obviously wanted to spend time with him and so I did not put them in the creche then if I could avoid it. Sometimes the suddenly urgent nature of a translation and/or odd working hours would ... See more
When the children were younger, it was sometimes a source of stress. The children's father often worked overseas for long uncertain periods of time. That meant I had to have child care in place. I could work when the children were at the creche, at school, etc. However, when their father returned home, they obviously wanted to spend time with him and so I did not put them in the creche then if I could avoid it. Sometimes the suddenly urgent nature of a translation and/or odd working hours would be a problem (for their father, who in all fairness was blasted back into the full throes of family life!). It was one of the reasons that drove me to renting an office in town and to stop working from home.

However, I began working from home again when I returned to study. By that time I had divorced and was alone with the children, working and studying. But the children were older by then and I had been used to juggling family, work and study alone. It was still not easy though as even teenagers seem to need you just because you're physically there! It meant I got used to working very early and very late as I had to find the hours there somewhere!

[Edited at 2017-12-27 22:42 GMT]
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Gianluca Marras
Gianluca Marras  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 18:19
English to Italian
sometimes Dec 27, 2017

simply when my wife says: well you can go and buy that, and then go and this and that...
and when you point out that you are working and that your income is for the entire family you get a nice reply: it seems you have to save the world..



 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 18:19
French to English
a bit Dec 27, 2017

My partner will say something like "but it's the weekend, I hope you're charging extra" and I'll say, "well no, I could just do the whole thing on Monday, but I prefer to do a rough draft now then I'll have had time to mull it over before I proofread." I've mostly finished before he even gets up though.

Compared to the stress of having to leave the agency long before all the fresh-faced graduates doing overtime to impress the boss, and racing to pick up the kids on time, that's ab
... See more
My partner will say something like "but it's the weekend, I hope you're charging extra" and I'll say, "well no, I could just do the whole thing on Monday, but I prefer to do a rough draft now then I'll have had time to mull it over before I proofread." I've mostly finished before he even gets up though.

Compared to the stress of having to leave the agency long before all the fresh-faced graduates doing overtime to impress the boss, and racing to pick up the kids on time, that's absolutely nothing.
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Mario Chavez (X)
Mario Chavez (X)  Identity Verified
Local time: 13:19
English to Spanish
+ ...
Send them to a hotel Dec 27, 2017

Muriel Vasconcellos wrote:

I live alone with my dog, but I do have problems when I have guests. They feel free to interrupt me constantly, no matter how strenuously I emphasize that I need the time to work. They don't get stressed, but I do.

[Edited at 2017-12-27 08:42 GMT]


One thing I learned when I came to America: stay at a nearby hotel when I'm visiting people, unless they're very close relatives or friends.

This solution might not work for everyone and on every situation, however. This is my cup of coffee talking, Muriel.



 
Daniel Frisano
Daniel Frisano  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 18:19
Member (2008)
English to Italian
+ ...
Yes Dec 27, 2017

Huge stress for my parents. After doing this for almost 20 years, my mother keeps asking me worriedly on the phone, "did you finally get a job?". Wait until I tell her I am retiring, she'll freak out.

 
Joohee Kim
Joohee Kim  Identity Verified
South Korea
Local time: 02:19
Member (2017)
English to Korean
+ ...
Yes. Dec 27, 2017

My father always says "When will you make a 'proper' career? What you're doing is just a part-time job." No, I am FULL-TIME translator, dad...

 
Kristina Cosumano (X)
Kristina Cosumano (X)  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 18:19
German to English
Quite the opposite Dec 27, 2017

When I met my future husband, we were working in two neighboring countries with a 2–3 hour ride between us. When I moved to his country, I continued in my old career and traveled a lot, but started freelancing in translation. Now I'm home and work when I want to, and both of us are very happy with the arrangement. My husband also works partly from home. Sometimes we communicate via e-mail when we're both in the house.

 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 14:19
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
For a while Dec 27, 2017

It bothered my wife a lot when I had an in-house job and translated at night. And I can't say she was wrong.
Now that I'm a full-time translator, sometimes she and the kids complain because I can't do something. But in no way like before. Now, I get some comprehension, and they all understand they are the biggest beneficiaries after all.


 


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Poll: Has your being a freelancer been a source of stress within your family?






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