Conference
De Back to Basics: Customer Service for Language Professionals – Christy de Back
Give your business a boost by answering Christy’s 5 questions in this online mini-workshop. Enjoy her fun tips and anecdotes, based on her 20+ years of experience as an independent language professional. Some of the topics include: how to offer added value, how to exceed expectations and turn customers into ambassadors. From ‘killing our customers with kindness’ to really starting to love them.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenter
Christy de Back is enthusiastic, driven and professional. She has worked since 1999 as a sworn interpreter-translator for Dutch and English and as a language trainer in English for the government and the business community.
Positive strategies to combat imposter syndrome – John Linnegar, Naomi Gilchrist, Betsy Hedberg (panel discussion)
We’ve all experienced that sneaking voice in the back of our heads telling us that we’re not good enough – even though we know that we’re trained, experienced, or at least competent and reasonable! What are some good ways to combat that internal nay-sayer? John Linnegar, Betsy Hedberg, and Naomi Gilchrist will give tips and insights into positive strategies to rise above imposter syndrome.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
John Linnegar began his career as a teacher of English, History and Mathematics. His passion for working with words was ignited by his high school teachers of English, Latin and German. Those strong grammatical foundations combined with a love of his mother tongue led him towards authorship and, as a direct result, towards improving authors’ texts for publication. He has been an avid ‘improver of authors’ words’ for four decades now, and remains dedicated to making their texts read as clearly as possible (and in the process saving a reputation or two!).
John is author of several texts dealing with matters grammatical and stylistic, including contributions to the Oxford English grammar: The advanced guide (OUP, 2015) and, most recently, with Ken McGillivray, grammar, punctuation and all that jazz . . . (MLA Publishers, 2019). He currently offers a personalised ‘online’ Grammar for Editors course aimed at those who need to brush up their English grammar and an online training course on Plain Language.
Naomi Gilchrist worked in various administrative roles (such as Executive Assistant and Training Coordinator) for over twenty years. When she decided that it was high time for a career change, she returned to study. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Translation, Naomi became a freelance translator in March 2021. Her language combination is English to Dutch and she specialises in Entertainment & Popular Culture. She joined SENSE in 2020. Naomi lives in Almere with her (Irish) husband and two children, who they are raising to be bicultural and bilingual. Their beagle Arnie completes the family.
Betsy Hedberg is a writer, editor, and learning designer who once worked as a counselor. Like many of her former counseling clients, she periodically suffers severe bouts of impostor syndrome. She's also learned some tools and insights to overcome, or at least ease, this affliction.
Editing slam! – Daphne Visser-Lees and Curtis Barrett
As editors, how far should we go (or not go)? During this session, two seasoned editors will share their approaches to editing an example text. We’ll also take a look at the advantages of working together when editing a document. Join us for a lively meeting!
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
Daphne Lees arrived in the Netherlands in 1978 to take up a one-year post as a specialist operating department nurse. A decade, one husband and two children later, a chat with a vascular surgeon in the scrub room led to her translating a PhD thesis. Interest fired up, she went on to acquire a diploma in English and translation studies and then to specialize in medical translating and editing. She has also taught scientific writing to PhD candidates and nurse graduates. Daphne retired from nursing in 2016 but continues to operate her business - Meditrans - from home.
Curtis Barrett received his PhD in neuroscience in 2001 from the University of Massachusetts, followed by postdoctoral training at Stanford University and 3 years as a senior researcher in Leiden. In 2011, Curtis stepped away from the lab bench to launch a new career as a freelance editor, consultant and trainer, helping scientists and clinical researchers around the world obtain funding and publish in high-impact journals. In addition, Curtis has teaching appointments at Wageningen University and Utrecht University, where he teaches academic and scientific writing to MSc students.
How the language industry has changed over the past 20 (or so) years – John Linnegar
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
John Linnegar began his career as a teacher of English, History and Mathematics. His passion for working with words was ignited by his high school teachers of English, Latin and German. Those strong grammatical foundations combined with a love of his mother tongue led him towards authorship and, as a direct result, towards improving authors’ texts for publication. He has been an avid ‘improver of authors’ words’ for four decades now, and remains dedicated to making their texts read as clearly as possible (and in the process saving a reputation or two!).
John is author of several texts dealing with matters grammatical and stylistic, including contributions to the Oxford English grammar: The advanced guide (OUP, 2015) and, most recently, with Ken McGillivray, grammar, punctuation and all that jazz . . . (MLA Publishers, 2019). He currently offers a personalised ‘online’ Grammar for Editors course aimed at those who need to brush up their English grammar and an online training course on Plain Language.
Intercultural business communication – Nandini Bedi, Kenneth Quek, Wendy Baldwin (panel discussion)
Formal or casual emails? Direct or indirect conversations about money? Small talk or – please no – anything but small talk? Nandini Bedi, Kenneth Quek, and Wendy Baldwin will discuss the trickiness of business communication across country lines and how to best to bridge those cultural differences.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
Nandini Bedi teaches English, copyedits, gives intercultural trainings and posts on her blog taal-tale.com. Via her trainings, she builds a bridge between the Netherlands and India. She does this with reverence and humour. She has settled in Oegstgeest with her partner, flown-out-of-the-nest-but-visiting twin boys and live-in cat, Sher Khan. More about her is available on www.nandinibedi.com.
Kenneth Quek is a Singaporean who resides in Helsinki. He is fully bilingual in English and Mandarin Chinese and works both as a freelance academic revisor for the University of Helsinki Language Centre and as a freelance editor and copywriter in the corporate sector. He has previous experience in private teaching, translation and journalism.
Wendy Baldwin is an independent authors' editor and Spanish-to-English translator, specializing in a range of disciplines related to the brain, language and cognition. She is also a writing and language instructor, working primarily with multi-language scholars and academics. She taught at universities in the US, Sweden and Spain, and she now operates as an independent academic writing facilitator and trainer, running structured writing retreats, online writing groups and other #acwri training for academics. Originally from Los Angeles, she has been living in Donostia/San Sebastián, Spain, since 2005. In addition to being a member of SENSE, she's also a member of MET and EASE.
The SENSE 2015 Conference was a one-day event in Utrecht, the Netherlands, for English language professionals.
The event took place in the Paushuize, a memorable historical venue in the heart of one of the Netherland’s most picturesque cities.
Participants came from the fields of editing, translating, interpreting, copywriting and teaching English language communication skills. More than 10 top speakers, from inside and outside SENSE, held presentations and discussions during the conference. Participants were able to debate on the changing state of the language, learn from best practices and brush up on the skills needed to be a successful language professional.
Conference Souvenir
If you were lucky enough to have been there on the day, you'll know what a wonderful success the conference turned out to be. If you couldn't make it, or perhaps would like to gain an idea of what the next SENSE conference might be like, download this special issue of our house magazine commemorating the conference: eSense 25th Jubilee Souvenir, 2015.
Paushuize
Situated on Kromme Nieuwegracht 49, just behind Utrecht’s landmark Dom tower and about 15 minutes’ walk from Utrecht Central Station, Paushuize is one of the oldest and most outstanding monuments in the city of Utrecht, with a remarkable history. It is so named because it was built in 1517 by Paus (Pope) Adrian VI, the only Dutch pope from the Netherlands.
A variety of beautifully restored period rooms and splendidly decorated salons, makes the building one of the most sought-after venues in the Netherlands.
Read an article about the venue in our eSense magazine: Conference venue is fit for a pope
Utrecht
Utrecht, the fourth largest city in the Netherlands, is the beating heart of the country and at the hub of the rail network. It’s a vital city, with a large student population: its university (founded in 1636) is the largest in the Netherlands. The medieval city centre is small enough to explore on foot and large enough to boast a wealth of culture and history, including world-class festivals, modern architecture, trendy shops and interesting museums. The inner city canals are unique: they are accessible by steps from the street and their wharves are now used as terraces by the many cellar bars and restaurants.
Keynote speakers
Professor Geoffrey Pullum is a British-American linguist specialising in the study of English. Since 2009 he has been Professor of General Linguistics at the University of Edinburgh. Pullum is co-author of The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language (2002). He is also a regular contributor to Language Log, a collaborative linguistics weblog.
Mark Forsyth is a passionate, self-described pedant when it comes to the English language, but his detailed knowledge of history has given him a common-sense approach to its ‘proper’ use. He is an author, blogger, journalist, proofreader and ghostwriter. He can be found dispelling the grammar myths we were all taught in his popular blog The Inky Fool.
Programme
Delegates arrived between 9.00 and 9.30 am to register and enjoy a coffee and some informal networking.
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Time
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Event
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9.00-9.30
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Registration, coffee
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9.30-9.45
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Opening & announcements
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9.45-10.45
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Plenary speaker: Mark Forsyth
Let us go then, you and me - A trip through English grammar
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10.45-11.15
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Coffee break
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11.15-12.30
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DATA SECURITY
Freek Wallaart
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SOCIAL MEDIA
Susan Aretz
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Leonie Porton
Stop sitting on the problem
David McKay
Treadmill desks for translators
Ann Hodgkinson
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EDITING FOR CLIENTS IN ACADEMIA (UniSIG)
Camilla Brokking
Ethics of thesis editing
Jackie Senior
Working as an in-house scientific editor
Curtis Barrett
Helping students source funding
Joy Burrough
SENSE’s Thesis Editing Guidelines
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12.30-13.30
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Lunch
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13.30-14.30
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SINGING
Robert Coupe, David Barick
& Barbara Borden
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CLIENTS
Nigel Saych
Sally Hill
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CORPORA
Mary Ellen Kerans
General and specific corpora with online concordance tools: quick information to help resolve doubts about language use
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BIOMEDICAL
Daphne Lees
David Alexander & Hannah Dekker
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EDITING
Lee Ann Weeks
Jackie Senior & Kate Mc Intyre
Share your expertise with fellow professionals: mentoring in practice
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TRANSLATION
Marcel Lemmens & Tony Parr
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14.45-15.45
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Plenary speaker: Professor Geoffrey Pullum
English: the language that ate the world
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15.45-16.15
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Tea break + exhibits
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16.15-17.30
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Plenary Panel Discussion chaired by Professor Mike Hannay (panellists t.b.a.)
Editors, translators and teachers as gatekeepers of the language
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17.30-17.45
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Close
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17.45-18.15
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Drinks - for delegates, speakers & presenters
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What the SENSE Mentoring programme can do for you – Nandini Bedi, Kate Sotejeff-Wilson, Jackie Senior, Jenny Zonneveld and Martina Abagnale (panel discussion)
The SENSE mentorship programme pairs up language professionals looking to further develop themselves professionally. Young or old, translator or copywriter; everyone is welcome to sign up! Nandini Bedi, Kate Sotejoff-Wilson, Jackie Senior, Jenny Zonneveld, and Martina Abagnale will go into detail about the benefits of mentorship and the options for learning within the SENSE network.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
Nandini Bedi teaches English, copyedits, gives intercultural trainings and posts on her blog taal-tale.com. Via her trainings, she builds a bridge between the Netherlands and India. She does this with reverence and humour. She has settled in Oegstgeest with her partner, flown-out-of-the-nest-but-visiting twin boys and live-in cat, Sher Khan. More about her is available on www.nandinibedi.com.
Dr Kate Sotejeff-Wilson MITI is an advanced professional member of the CIEP. Born in Wales, she lived in Poland and Germany, and now resides in Finland. She translates, copywrites and edits for academics, and is happiest in the space between languages, reading or on writing retreats.
Jackie Senior, BSc, has had a long and varied career as an editor and translator in the Netherlands, working at Shell, Rabobank, translation companies, plus more than 25 years in medical research departments at UMC Utrecht and UMC Groningen. She also taught the SENSE-ITV Editing course for 5 years and still does some freelance work. She is British, but has lived in the Netherlands for more than 45 years.
Jenny Zonneveld has a business background. Before she became a freelance translator, copywriter and editor almost 25 years ago, she spent more than 15 years at a firm of management consultants and worked in the UK, USA, Belgium and the Netherlands. She specialised in managing IT and Logistics projects. In her current work, her clients appreciate Jenny for her insight into language matters as well as all things technical.
Martina Abagnale is an English and Dutch into Italian translator based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. After starting her career as a project manager at a translation agency, she became a freelance translator in 2019. She specializes in legal and financial texts,helping companies prepare their documents for legal use in Italy. She regularly organizes (virtual) events for beginner translators.
Peer-to-peer knowledge-sharing – Martina Abagnale, Anne Oosthuizen, and Danielle Carter
Martina, Danielle and Anne met at the 2020 SENSE Jubilee Conference. Though initially brought together by recognising one another as fellow starters within the language industry, the three soon realised they struggled with quite different, but related things and could easily help each other out. They found that the advice from a peer is often more current and free from judgement, because this person has recently undergone a similar experience. Thus, they stumbled upon something the modern language industry is currently in the process of waking up to: horizontal (as opposed to expert-driven) knowledge sharing. It is this peer-to-peer learning that they brought to SENSE by establishing the Starters SIG, and also what informed every decision made in the planning of this year’s PDD. During this plenary, Martina, Danielle and Anne will share their experiences with collaborative, horizontal group learning.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
Martina Abagnale is an English and Dutch into Italian translator based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. After starting her career as a project manager at a translation agency, she became a freelance translator in 2019. She specializes in legal and financial texts,helping companies prepare their documents for legal use in Italy. She regularly organizes (virtual) events for beginner translators.
Anne Oosthuizen is a Dutch-English translator and editor. She completed her BA English Language and Culture at the University of Amsterdam and the University of Otago in New Zealand, and graduated with honours from Leiden University, earning her an MA in Translation Studies. Anne has been a freelance book translator and academic editor for just over two years. This year, she was one of the lucky few awarded a grant for special-interest sample translation by the Dutch Foundation for Literature. In addition to translating literary and non-fiction prose, Anne’s super special nice is poetry and song translation.
Danielle Carter is an academic copy editor and museum language services specialist. After working for several years in the arts and cultural sector, Danielle transitioned in the language industry, where she has found a niche copy editing academic books ranging from film studies to architecture to fashion, writing and editing coffee table books about arts and media, and revising translations and copy editing for cultural organizations.
Keep track to keep up: organizing your workflow – Ashley Cowles
As freelancers, we juggle multiple projects for multiple clients at any given time. Some will be easy to fit in – or so your clients will argue – while others will take more time. But when things get especially busy, it’s easy for projects to slip through the cracks… So how do you keep track of everything? In this presentation, Ashley will discuss ways to manage your workflow, time and clients.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenter
Ashley Cowles specialized in marketing copy for tech and innovation for close to 10 years before making the jump to in-house online marketing in late 2019. Her favorite way to keep up with the constant context switching that comes with juggling multiple projects for two vastly different teams involves making (and ticking off) lists. She lives in Utrecht with her husband and their two children aged 4 and 6.
Prompt! Investing in creativity... – Lizzie Kean and Carola Janssen
What gives you energy? And how do you earn a living doing that? These questions drove the professional careers of translator Lizzie Kean and writing coach Carola Janssen along different paths to come out at Prompt! Writing inspiration for language professionals. And they’re happy to share that same inspiration with you in this talk.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenters
Lizzie Kean was a professional musician from the age of 18. Although she still is, there came a point when she felt the need for a new challenge and she studied translation at ITV, gaining her bachelor’s degree at age 60. She now divides her time between the two, enjoying the synergy and the energy she gets from the combination.
Carola Janssen is writing coach and text writer at Kiezel Communicatie. She devised Prompt! Writing inspiration for language professionals. Kiezel is originally a Rotterdam agency that now operates from Eindhoven. In a previous life, Carola was a musician and her friendship with Lizzie Kean, with whom she is taking this new step, started up in that world.
More...
An ergonomic workspace: keep fit while you work – Jenny Zonneveld
We sit at our desks almost 24/7. Experts say ‘sitting is the new smoking’ & ‘poor posture is the most common cause of RSI’. A few years ago, I discovered the standing desk and I’ve not suffered from RSI since. In this short talk, I’ll explain my office set-up and how I keep fit while working.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenter
Jenny Zonneveld has a business background. Before she became a freelance translator, copywriter and editor almost 25 years ago, she spent more than 15 years at a firm of management consultants and worked in the UK, USA, Belgium and the Netherlands. She specialised in managing IT and Logistics projects. In her current work, her clients appreciate Jenny for her insight into language matters as well as all things technical.
On being a specialized generalist – Jasper Pauwels
Many language professionals will either argue in favour of diversifying your services or urge you to specialize in a specific niche. Few people actually talk about combing the two strategies, specializing in a few areas of expertise. Personally, I translate both legal documents and marketing copy, which is an unusual combination that occasionally raises eyebrows. During this presentation, I will explain how I diversified into these very different fields and why it works out for me. From a more general perspective, we will also discuss the pros and cons of diversification, specialization or choosing the middle ground.
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenter
Jasper Pauwels works as a full-time freelance translator, translating from English and French into Dutch for many clients across Europe. His translation and proofreading services cover a wide range of topics, with a strong focus on legal and marketing translations. He holds two degrees in translation from two different countries – a Bachelor of Translation from Zuyd University of Applied Sciences in Maastricht, the Netherlands, and a Master of Translation from the University of Antwerp, Belgium.
2021 Professional Development Days (PDD)
Day 1: Saturday 18 September 2021, from 10:00 to 15:00
Day 2: Saturday 25 September 2021, from 13:00 to 17:15
With all-day networking available in the online networking platform Wonder.
Tickets cost €25 for SENSE members and €40 for non-members. The ticket grants access to both days.
IMPORTANT: If you have not yet registered for this event, you can still register for Day 2 of the event. Please visit the registration page for Day 2 to register for the second day of this event. If you have already registered for this event, your ticket is valid for both days. Members, remember to log in!
Are you not a SENSE member? Consider joining! You can find more information about joining SENSE here.
PDD Day 1: Saturday 18 September 10:00–15:00
| 10:00–10:15 | Welcome and announcements |
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| 10:15–11:00 | Peer-to-peer knowledge-sharing Martina Abagnale, Anne Oosthuizen, and Danielle N. Carter |
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| 11:00–11:10 | Break | ||
| 11:10–11:40 |
Intercultural business communication |
How the language industry has changed over the past 20 (or so) years John Linnegar |
How to increase your visibility and market your services (blogging as marketing) Claire Bacon |
| 11:40–11:50 | Break | ||
| 11:50–12:20 | Intercultural business communication (panel discussion, part 2) |
The freedom of freelancing: deciding on a digital nomad journey Maaike Leenders |
Spanish wine and translation: What could they possibly have in common? Rebecca Reddin |
| 12:20-12:30 | Break | ||
| 12:30–13:00 | On being a specialized generalist Jasper Pauwels |
Money management: why you should pay yourself a salary Martina Abagnale |
Personal branding: Lessons learnt through trial and (t)error Anne Oosthuizen |
| 13:00–13:40 | Tea break & networking on Wonder |
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| 13:40–14:10 | What the SENSE Mentoring programme can do for you Nandini Bedi, Kate Sotejeff-Wilson, Jackie Senior, Jenny Zonneveld and Martina Abagnale (panel discussion, part 1) |
Working as collaborative translators in arts and culture Danielle N. Carter |
Keep track to keep up: organizing your workflow |
| 14:10–14:20 | Break | ||
| 14:20–14:50 | Mentorship (panel discussion, part 2) |
Editing slam! Daphne Visser-Lees and Curtis Barrett |
Prompt! Investing in creativity... |
| 14:50–15:00 | Closure, thanks, and announcements | ||
| 15:00–16:30 | Virtual afternoon tea and networking | ||
PDD Day 2: Saturday 25 September 13:00–17:15
| 13:00–13:10 | Welcome and announcements |
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| 13:10–13:40 | Positive strategies to combat imposter syndrome John Linnegar, Naomi Gilchrist, Betsy Hedberg (panel discussion, part 1) |
An ergonomic workspace: keep fit while you work Jenny Zonneveld |
Prompt! Investing in creativity... Lizzie Kean and Carola Janssen |
| 13:40–13:50 | Break | ||
| 13:50–14:20 | Positive strategies to combat imposter's syndrome (panel discussion, part 2) |
Money management: why you should pay yourself a salary Martina Abagnale |
The freedom of freelancing: deciding on a digital nomad journey Maaike Leenders |
| 14:20–14:30 | Break | ||
| 14:30–15:00 | Spanish wine and translation: What could they possibly have in common? Rebecca Reddin |
Networking on Wonder |
De Back to Basics: Customer Service for Language Professionals Christy de Back |
| 15:00–15:40 | Tea break & networking on Wonder |
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| 15:40–16:10 | Recognising and working with inductive/deductive communication styles Nandini Bedi |
How the language industry has changed over the past 20 (or so) years John Linnegar |
Language skills in global times (maintaining language pairs) Ellen Singer |
| 16:10–16:20 | Break | ||
| 16:20–16:50 | CPD: Changing professional development with Lloyd Bingham |
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| 16:50–17:00 | Closure, thanks, and announcements | ||
| 17:15–19:00 | Virtual borrel and networking | ||
Money management: why you should pay yourself a salary – Martina Abagnale
Freelancing means uncertainty, we have all heard that. It means not knowing how much money you’ll make each month, a pendulum between feeling the richest person in the world and wondering whether you can afford dinner. But does it really need to be that way? What if we paid ourselves a salary?
Click here to sign up for this event or to view a complete programme of all presentations.
About the presenter
Martina Abagnale is an English and Dutch into Italian translator based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. After starting her career as a project manager at a translation agency, she became a freelance translator in 2019. She specializes in legal and financial texts,helping companies prepare their documents for legal use in Italy. She regularly organizes (virtual) events for beginner translators.