The ATA Chronicle - March/April 2023 - 30

BP
There are
many ways to
build a career
in translation.
Starting a
business is only
one of them.
y Are you looking to grow
your earning power? Being
an entrepreneur may get
you there (but you may not
get there quickly).
y Are you looking for a more
flexible lifestyle? Being an
entrepreneur may get you
there (but you may not get
there quickly).
y Are you looking for more
camaraderie? Working
with a team will definitely
give you the opportunity to
build strong and gratifying
professional relationships,
and sometimes even
lifelong friendships.
You should also consider
your strengths and weaknesses:
y Are you comfortable
making difficult decisions?
Sometimes there will be no
right answer. Your decision
will leave some people
unhappy and you'll have to
live with that.
Technical
Translator/
Interpreter
to work in East Liberty, OH,
wanted by Japanese
translation service co. Must
have BA in translation,
language, or related fields.
Reqs min. 3 yrs of exp in
translation service industry.
Provides precise translation of
Japanese & English tech'l
docs. Superior bilingual
abilities in Japanese and
English reqd.
Send resume to:
Honda Kaihatsu Americas, Inc.,
5650 Blazer Parkway #146,
Dublin, OH 43017.
y Are you comfortable bearing
responsibility for the
mistakes made by others?
As the business owner, the
buck stops with you.
y Are you resilient enough
to hear a lot of " no " and
experience setbacks?
Entrepreneurship can be a
lesson in humility.
Should You Incorporate?
If you have considered the
above and are ready to move
forward, here's what you
should think about before
you " incorporate, " or before
you launch your formal
business entity. By the way,
freelancers can choose to
incorporate even if they
are not planning on hiring
anyone else to work with
30 The ATA Chronicle | March/April 2023
them. The main reasons to
consider incorporation are:
Taxes: In some cases,
being self-employed via an
incorporated structure will
lower your tax burden.
Risk: In many cases, creating
a legal entity that's separate
from you as an individual
means that entities seeking
liability or damages can
only go after your business
and not after you as an
individual. (Disclaimer:
I'm not a lawyer, and the
specifics of this will vary
across jurisdictions).
Credibility: In many cases,
your clients will view you as
being more professional and
having more credibility if
you have taken the time and
effort to establish a business.
You also need to consider
the costs of incorporation.
Money: This will depend
heavily on where you
incorporate. I'm American,
but I chose to incorporate in
Hong Kong, given that I was
living in South Korea, and
much of our business was
located in Asia. The startup
costs at that time (circa 2015)
were around USD $2,000,
and we pay approximately
$2,500 in related yearly
administrative fees to
maintain the business.
Time: Incorporation involves
extensive paperwork. I hired
a company that handled
the whole process for me.
From start to finish we were
launched in about two weeks,
but the paperwork probably
only took about 10 hours of
my own time.
Here are a few ways you
can structure your business
and some important
considerations for each.
1
Solopreneur: A
solopreneur is
someone who runs a
business on their own,
without the support of
employees or partners.
Solopreneurs are responsible
for all aspects of their
business, from marketing
and sales to operations
and finance. To be clear, a
solopreneur can still hire
accountants, tax preparers,
logo designers, but
generally you're considered
a solopreneur if you're
responsible for handling the
majority of your company's
core business (in your case,
translation).
Pros: You have complete
control of your business (and
take home all the profits).
Cons: You can't make money
while you sleep. To have a
balanced lifestyle, you'll
need to make sure you can
earn and save enough to
survive lean seasons or
personal emergencies.
2
Boutique Agency (or
Lifestyle Business): A
lifestyle business is a type of
business that's designed to
support the owner or team's
desired lifestyle, rather than
to maximize profits or growth.
Lifestyle businesses are often
small and may be run by a
single person or a small team.
The goal for most lifestyle
businesses is to provide a
steady income and a flexible
schedule for their owner. For
translation companies, this
option allows you to focus
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