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What was your motivation to earn a living from home?
I crave autonomy in relation to work and the way I am going about my day. I’ve identified since I used to be in highschool that I didn’t wish to should work for another person. Once I labored in an workplace after school, I completely hated the truth that I needed to be there proper at 8:00am and couldn’t go away earlier than 5:00pm for any purpose with out making preparations two weeks forward of time. It felt like a jail to me! We’d truly get in hassle if we clocked in at 8:03, or clocked out at 4:59. I like to have the ability to determine for myself once I wish to work, once I need/have to take a nap, once I do my chores — it was so onerous getting all of it achieved earlier than 8:00am or after 5:00pm, or squeezing it in throughout my lunch hour. And we solely acquired 10 paid days off a yr. If we wanted greater than that, it was a difficulty. Truthfully, I don’t understand how I did it for thus lengthy! I’m additionally an avid traveler. Having the ability to work from wherever permits me to select up and go each time I need. My husband and I are heading to Ecuador for a 12-month keep this summer time — simply because we will! We’re each past excited and I’m so grateful I’ll have the ability to preserve incomes an earnings even whereas overseas.
Inform us a little bit about your property enterprise and the way it took place.
I’ve been working from residence as an expert transcript proofreader for court docket reporters since 2012. I do all of my work on an iPad — though I began out utilizing a printer, paper, and a pen! I used to work in a court docket reporting company. I began out answering telephones, moved to transcript manufacturing, then ended up in advertising. Except for the proofreading/content material writing, I hated advertising… the administration thought that advertising was the identical factor as gross sales (it’s not!), in order that they despatched me out to make gross sales calls so much and I used to be depressing! The workplace knew I had eagle eyes, and any commercial or content material to be distributed needed to undergo me so I may verify it for errors. In a enterprise that prides itself on accuracy, typos simply make you look dangerous! I took on a pair court docket reporters as purchasers whereas I used to be there, and once I departed (which, whereas not a contented story… it’s a juicy one!), I saved studying for them. Then, considered one of them instructed me that I wouldn’t have the ability to learn for her anymore as a result of her company required her to make use of considered one of “their” high quality assurance proofreaders. I acquired the hunch to ask that shopper for the contact data of the one that’d instructed her that. She gave it to me, and I despatched off a request to “audition” as a high quality assurance proofreader for her company. I didn’t even should audition! They wanted proofreaders badly, and began sending me work the very subsequent week. I began getting just a few new purchasers right here and there, then just a few extra — folks had been passing my identify alongside! I saved accepting work and, even when it acquired demanding, saved plowing by way of it. My pace and stamina elevated over time and earlier than I knew it, I used to be proofreading 20-25 hours per week and incomes double what I’d been making as a advertising supervisor at my previous workplace. I couldn’t imagine it. I all the time say that me changing into a transcript proofreader was a complete accident, as a result of it was. I nonetheless suppose again and get chills. Despite the fact that I left that court docket reporting workplace on actually dangerous phrases, I might not be the place I’m as we speak with out that depressing job — so I even have an odd sense of gratitude towards my former boss.
What was your first step in getting began?
Nicely, comic story — my former boss (the one who hates me now) truly gave me my first transcript to proofread! She needed to see if I used to be any good. I used to be very good. That was once I was nonetheless working as a receptionist. After I learn that first transcript, I can nonetheless keep in mind the intestine feeling I had that I used to be going to finish up doing rather more than reply telephones for the remainder of my working life!
Is there any particular tools or abilities required?
You have to have persistence and a really sturdy eye for element. Your eyes don’t go over errors simply. Transcript proofreading is sort of a bit completely different than conventional proofreading, too, so it’s vital to be prepared to be taught the ropes and never suppose simply because you possibly can spot errors that transcript proofreading will likely be a chunk of cake. It’s so rather more than simply spelling and grammar. In reality, more often than not, you possibly can’t repair dangerous grammar in a transcript. We will’t change the report if a witness misspeaks. The court docket reporter data every little thing word-for-word.
As for particular tools, you simply want a pc and entry to the web/e-mail. You possibly can print transcripts out and mark them up by hand, or use a pc to do it. My private desire is an iPad mini! I paid $10 for an app that has streamlined my course of to be what I really feel is probably the most environment friendly method to proofread in existence. I don’t advocate the printer/paper methodology, particularly if you happen to actually wish to make a residing. Some folks suppose an iPad is just too costly, however it’s a one-time value! Ink, paper, printers, and scanners will find yourself costing rather more than an iPad over time, plus scanning each web page you appropriate again to your shopper is an extremely sluggish and tedious job.
What has been your greatest shock alongside the way in which?
To today, it nonetheless blows my thoughts how few folks know {that a} profession like this exists. I assume it shouldn’t shock me, although, ’trigger I had no concept, both! However there’s by no means been a time once I’ve met somebody new that, once they ask me what I do for a residing, had any concept it was doable to earn an honest earnings utilizing simply e-mail and an iPad.
If there may be one factor you possibly can return and do over, what wouldn’t it be?
I might’ve began sharing my information so much sooner. I proofread for 3 years earlier than I developed a user-friendly, sensible method to share my methodology with others.
The place do you advocate others getting began in your trade flip for assist?
As a result of I discovered myself getting requested “How can I get began?” so typically by so many individuals, in 2014 I made a decision it was (lastly!) time to offer them a very good reply and develop a strong method to educate folks my craft. I based my web site, ProofreadAnywhere.com, and after many months of planning, drafting, filming, formatting, writing, rewriting, proofreading, and modifying, in early 2015 I launched a self-paced on-line course referred to as Transcript Proofreading: Principle and Observe. It’s a step-by-step, turn-by-turn roadmap for anybody who needs to interrupt into the trade. Nothing else prefer it exists — prior to now, anybody who needed to proofread transcripts simply needed to, nicely, wing it! Within the course, we begin college students out with the very primary stuff, comparable to what a transcript is and the way a court docket reporter creates a transcript. After we lay a basis, we transfer into the more durable matters like the various varieties of errors you’re on the lookout for, after which the enjoyable, hands-on stuff like follow transcripts and how you can get purchasers.
What’s one on-line enterprise instrument you fortunately pay for month after month?
I take advantage of FreshBooks Cloud Accounting. I pay for it yearly, and at over $200 a yr, it’s not low cost, however it has been an indispensable instrument for my enterprise! Each time I get a transcript, I instantly open FreshBooks on my iPad and enter the brand new job into my shopper’s bill. That method it’s there and it’ll get billed. I proofread for 20-30 court docket reporters every month, so protecting observe of every little thing can get loopy!! FreshBooks helps me keep organized — and creating the invoices is sort of laughably simple! The customer support crew can also be tremendous responsive and useful.
Go to ProofreadAnywhere to be taught extra about Caitlin’s story and her proofreading from residence program.
