Episode 41: Smart Habits for Using Technology in Our Work with Jost Zetzsche

Smart Habits for Translators

Today’s episode is all about using technology in your work. Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Even though many translators and interpreters like putting pen to paper, we depend on technology and tools to make us more productive and maintain our work's high quality.

This is also a controversial topic, especially the debate surrounding the advances in machine translation (MT), how this technology affects our work, and what lies ahead.

We also often get questions from listeners on the beginner end of the spectrum about translation environment tools or CAT tools: which ones are best and how to choose the right ones when you’re starting out. We’re no experts on this topic, but when we discussed who to invite as a guest, our decision was easy! And we’re thrilled that he said yes to our invitation.

We’re excited to welcome our colleague Jost Zetzsche today!

Jost Zetzsche is a translation industry and translation technology consultant, a widely published author on various aspects of translation and localization, and an ATA-certified English-to-German technical translator. In 1999 Jost co-founded International Writers' Group, LLC, on the Oregon coast. Originally from Hamburg, Germany, he earned a Ph.D. in the field of Chinese translation history and linguistics at the University of Hamburg. He sits on the editorial board for MultiLingual Magazine, the Journal of Internationalisation and Localisation, and the ATA Chronicle. In 2018 he was awarded an honorary membership to American Translators Association (ATA). Since 2016 he has been contracting with United Bible Societies to help create and maintain the Translation Insights and Perspectives tool.

Here’s a summary of our conversation with Jost:

• When and how he started his freelance career and how it evolved over time

• What his typical workday looks like and what changes he had to make due to the COVID-19 pandemic

• How Jost protects boundaries between his work and personal life

• What smart habits have been crucial in his career

• What his thoughts are on using technology in our work as translators and interpreters

• How to choose the right tools and technology for your job

• How to stay informed and be aware of the technological changes and developments that concern translation

• How to overcome the fear that technology will make human translators’ jobs redundant

• What 3 tools Jost would recommend all translators to try

RESOURCES WE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Learn more about Jost Zetzsche and his work

• Learn more about The Translator’s Tool Box and The Tool Box Journal

• Follow Jost on Twitter

• Check our Jost Zetzsche’s books: Characters With Character: 50 Ways to Rekindle Your Love Affair with Language and Found in Translation: How Language Shapes Our Lives and Transforms the World (co-authored with Nataly Kelly)

• Discover the Translation Insights and Perspectives tool

• The ATA Chronicle

• IntelliWebSearch: a terminology research tool

• ABBYY FineReader PDF

Get a full list of links and resources for this episode:

https://smarthabitsfortranslators.com/podcast-episodes/41