I did it! I wrote a blog post every month for a year.
It was one of the goals I set during my last big business retreat in October 2021. Some months I made it just under the wire but that’s not the point. Reviewing my goals and breaking them down into concrete monthly and weekly actions meant that I did what I set out to do.
This year has been full of highs and I couldn’t have done it without the fantastic community of colleagues I’ve had the pleasure to be part of over the last year.
Warning: This post is mostly about what I’ve achieved in my business this year, so if you don’t like that sort of thing, turn back now.
CPD
The ITI, CIOL and Bond online conferences were massive highlights of early 2021 and I’m very much looking forward to the in-person iterations next year. They helped me hit my required hours of CPD only months into this financial year. That didn’t stop me attending lots of other CPD events, reaching double that target so far this year.
Revision club is often the highlight of my week. I am a member of two revision clubs (one for French and one for Spanish) and I cannot express how much I enjoy discussing the ins and outs of our translations. It has been a privilege working with you all.
Client work
I’ve had some fantastic projects with new and longstanding clients committed to furthering human rights and supporting everyone to flourish while protecting our planet. Working in the fields of human rights and sustainable development, I am sometimes frustrated by what I read and translate, but I hope I am in some small way making a positive difference through my work. There are good news stories too, so it’s certainly not all doom and gloom.
Associations
This year I joined MET and got actively involved. I’m helping as a HIVE editor and attending virtual co-working sessions (VCOWs) several times a week. I’ll be helping to host the METM Online conference next month too. If you’ve looked into MET membership and hesitated I would tell you to go for it. It’s a welcoming community of brilliant people who are eager to share their knowledge and talk about their work.
On the ITI front, I volunteered to help run events for the ITI French Network with Alanah Reynor. We haven’t put on any events so far but watch this space... It has been an absolute pleasure working the Alanah and the rest of the French Network team so far. Thank you for welcoming us so warmly.
I’m helping to run the ITI SHEA Network’s Twitter account. Things may have been a bit quiet of late but we’ll get the ball rolling again soon. There may be some more news about another new network coming up. Exciting to say the least!
Mentoring
Having taken part in the ITI Spanish Network’s mentoring scheme as a mentee many years ago, I was keen to get involved as a mentor once I felt I had the requisite experience. I actually signed up as a translation mentor for both the ITI Spanish and French Networks. So far I’ve mentored one translator in each language and have loved the experience.
I also put myself forward as a business mentor for the ITI French Network and working with my mentee was a wonderful, inspiring experience. I can’t wait to try it again soon.
A few things that went awry
I did not meet my client contact targets but I’ve changed up my strategy, improved my record keeping and am all set to start afresh when I get back from holiday. Even so, I did start working with some great new clients and am continuing to work with many fantastic longstanding clients. I feel very lucky in that respect.
I didn’t meet my income goals every month or even on average. On the bright side, I wasn’t far off and I did make the conscious decision to work a bit less this year to give me time to look for higher paying work. Over lockdown I occupied myself with working; it wasn’t healthy and didn’t give me the time I needed to do all the non-work and professional contribution stuff I wanted to do.
Things I’m looking forward to next year
As I was writing this the CIOL published their programme for the 2022 conference. It’s official... I’m going to be presenting (squee) at the conference next year on how to get your CPD right. I’m terrified and excited, and feel a little ill at the prospect.
The ITI conference in person in Brighton is set to be absolutely incredible. Are my expectations too high? If last year’s online conference is anything to go by, certainly not!
I’m also really keen to organize an in-person business retreat for my fellow ITI East Anglia members. I’ve floated the idea at our informal chats and a few people seemed keen. I know it will be a lot of work to organize but it’ll be a great experience for all involved.
There are other exciting things happening that I can’t talk about yet but as soon as I can I will, because I really am bursting to.
I’ll be going on holiday next week and running a business
retreat for myself when I get back. I’m looking forward to readjusting, setting
new goals and cracking open a new planner. I know I’m incredibly privileged and
I’m thankful every day for what I have.
To end, I would like to shout out to my incredible partner, Ant. Without him, I wouldn’t have been able to achieve half of this. He is a constant source of support and encouragement. Teamwork makes the dream work.
