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Meet a CLK Transcriptionist, Sarah A. Airforce wife and mom, with a sense of humor!

I like long walks on the beach, love to surf, I am a cancer…

just kidding…lol

I am 27 years old. I am a native Southern California girl who grew up in the small town of San Juan Capistrano. I currently live in New Mexico with my husband Daniel and out two daughters Jade (8) and Faith (1 1/2). We are stationed at an Air Force Base out here near the mountains of Alamogordo. Jade goes to school in California but I make frequent visits throughout the school year to see her and then she is back out here with us for the summer.

I LOVE transcription work, especially that pertaining to the medical field. I am certified as a Medical Transcription but do enjoy all aspects of the transcription job. I am currently in school to become a Medical Biller and Coder.

We have one pet. His name is Bo. He is a rescue Border Collie we found left for dead on the side of the road out here. He is paralyzed from the waist down and had to lose one of his hind legs. He is an amazing dog and full of inspiration for our family that no matter how bad it gets we can always pull through. He is in a wheelchair most of the time but is able to walk (quite miraculously) just using his front two legs and his back leg as balance (like a kangaroo).

I love to surf, skateboard, play with the kiddos, work, and do anything outdoors with the family. I also love to paint and do scrap-booking.

 

www.clktranscription.com

 

For those interested in becoming an independent contractor for CLK, please send why you chose this profession to transcription@clktranscription.com. (I do not do resumes)

I am going to be an Oma again!

When my first grandson was born, nearly 10 years ago, I was going through so many emotions. Happiness because he is an angel from the moment he took his first breath. Worry – is my son ready to be a daddy? Will he be able to handle everything that comes with being a dad? He left college to take the responsibility by the horns – because deep down he knew he was going to be a single parent. It may not have been the ‘right’ decision at the time, but it has proven to be the best decision for my grandson.

Life changed for my son, and he has been a wonderful father, a single father who went from sole custody for years to fighting the system to retain custody, to knowing his son ain’t going nowhere and won’t be in harm’s way any more – at least as long as he can help it. And my grandson flourishes.

But it has been difficult. I have tried to help as much as I can, and although at times I may feel like I did too much, and probably did, I know my son appreciated it.

But again, it has been difficult for him. He had little or at times, no life outside of work and his son. Then a little over a year ago he reconnected with a high school sweetheart after years and much distance. A nice girl. A girl he fell in love with all over again, but a girl with three kids of her own. Add in my grandson, now there are four children, soon to be five children and another adult that my son is responsible for. My son’s future is what worries me. He has been working so hard and struggling with one child, and now here is taking on the responsibility of three more, and another adult with a baby now on the way.

When he informed me that he is going to be a daddy again, to a little girl in April 2013, I was speechless. Personally, I don’t believe he is ready. With the economy the way it is, raising one child is difficult. I wanted to be happy in that moment. I could not. I saw him working so hard to give his girlfriend and her family everything they needed (and wanted) and saw him being crushed and oblivious to it all.

I saw his challenge grow immediately. His credit rating went downhill after all his hard work to get it to a decent level. His pockets were emptier. He was stuck between hearing me moan and groan about how he is handling life choices and being in love and wanting to make his new family happy – at all costs. I felt he was ‘in’ this alone, and he didn’t care.

I tell him that to be in love, to share a life, means to share everything – including responsibility. I didn’t feel he had that yet, and sometimes still don’t. I saw others being more important rather than the family as a unit. I saw that there was no help, and it concerned me. It still does. He is under a lot of pressure…pressure to keep his family happy. Pressure to keep his family fed, housed, clothed. And then there was the pressure from me.

What? Me pressure him. You bet! Sure he is not in it alone. He does have his girl. But my two cents, whether he wanted to hear it or not was that love don’t pay the bills. One person cannot do this. I know. I struggled with two kids and did have a second (and sometimes third income). They have one. How in the world can you move forward with your life and make sure your children have the life they deserve?

Get another job? He hardly has time to sleep. He is active at work. He is active around the house. He hardly has time for friends. But that is what happens when you have one child, much less five to take care of, and a girlfriend that wants to be happy too. Not everyone understands this. Not everyone is ready to be the responsible one. He does and he is. He doesn’t resent the choices he has made. He struggles. But we all do, don’t we.

So I will worry, but I will never worry if he is ready to be a great father – he already is!

I will continue to watch, and of course, be a proud mom and probably still say things he doesn’t want to hear because he knows I don’t hold back – good or bad – and yet I will be there for him – albeit not as much as I used to. I have to understand that there are two adults in the equation, and I am not one of them. They have to figure it out together – and hopefully they will.

But as the time moves towards the birth of my second grandchild, whom they have named Serenity Jade Kidd, I will add some happiness in there. It won’t be a fake smile. It will be tears of happiness as well as tears of worry. After all, I am his mother. I am the Oma. If I didn’t worry, I would not be a very good at either, would I? And although this is my second grandchild, technically I will now have five – three boys and two girls that will call me Oma. I have my work cut out for me as well.

So yes, I am going to be a Oma again, but I started this  journey being a mom to an awesome son who has made me proud and who I hope knows that his mother loves him beyond all else – even if I seem to be a meddling know it all.

Keep him and his family in your thoughts and wish him luck, will you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting the most out of your child’s IEP evaluation

IEP: Individualized Education Program.

 

An IEP is meant to help meet the educational needs of children with disabilities.  An IEP is supposed to help children reach educational goals.  What happens when parent and educators do not agree on what those goals should be or the process in which they are being achieved (or not achieved)?

 

If you find yourself wondering if the program your child is enrolled in is right for him/her, and you don’t seem to be satisfied after the IEP evaluation process, maybe you or a service provider is not hearing the same information provided at these sessions.

 

Consider recording the sessions and having them transcribed so that you, the educators and other service providers have a record of the conversation.

 

No more I said / they said when it comes to your child’s educational development.  No more wondering if you understand what exactly is being done.  No more being told “you misunderstood”.  Not when it comes to your child’s future.

 

Many times, the transcription of your IEP evaluation is helpful to any legal team working with you as well.

 

CLK Transcription has been involved with developing quality transcripts of IEP evaluations, and we are available to help with yours.

 

We offer a discounted rate for IEP Evaluation transcription projects, because we know and understand our youth are our future.

 

Contact us today and find out how we can help.

 

CarolLee@clktranscription.com / www.clktranscription.com

With all that you have to get done, it’s okay to ask for help.

As a journalist/writer, when you have a project that has been assigned, there are so many steps to get through to be able to develop the perfect piece, the perfect end-product, that it’s a wonder you have enough time in the day to even think about them all.

There are phone calls to make.  Interviews to set up and then to hold.  Outlines to write, and even the final article/chapter/paper to complete.  Possibly even photos to choose. Editors to deal with.  The list goes on and on.  All the while, juggling the business of life that is always there, and quite frankly more important that any article, book, paper you will ever write – your family.

So when you can, it’s nice to know it’s okay to ask for help.  Help that will give you that hour, hours, or even days to handle the other aspects of your project and the important parts of your life.  And when you can find that help, and it’s within your budget, that is all the more reason to consider asking for it.

CLK Transcription understands the needs of the journalist.  We understand their deadlines and we understand their budgets.  We have been fortunate to be able to assist many with their audio/video transcription and we have grown to understand that their audio is a valuable tool in their work, but that the transcription of it is time-consuming and cumbersome for them to handle on their own.  It, quite frankly, can interfere with the completing the project itself and absolutely interrupts the family time they could have if they just didn’t have to do it themselves.

The good news is THEY DONT!

CLK Transcription can handle their audio/visual transcription and develop a quality document, recording the entire interview and return it to them in most cases within 24 hours or less.  Now they can get on with the project and get on with their enjoyment of a little bit of family time.  We even transcribe voice mail.  Yes, many can get that service for free, but are the messages usable, understandable, or delivered timely?  If it’s free, do you get what you pay for?

We are able to work with any downloadable audio, and yes, we work with cassettes, DVDs and CDs.  We even convert white paper to an electronic document.  And if you have an audio you want to transcribe yourself, but just need it converted to a different medium – we can do that too!  We even offer an FTP site for those who need the transferability of their files to others.  All at a cost that fits within your budget.

So, when you have a project and you need a little or a lot of help with the transcription, why not find out how we can assist you with that?  You may just find the time and money you have been looking for.

We are an email away from starting your project today and having it back to you tomorrow.  We are US owned and operated and never send anything off shore. We offer a confidentiality agreement to every client.  We never use speech recognition, and every project is proofread before delivery.

Additional discounts are available for any educational project, doctoral, IEPs, etc.

Contact me for details.  Carollee@clktranscription.com

http://www.clktranscription.com

A few of my favorite little things. Keep your diamonds and gems. I don’t want them.

I woke up this morning to my son making breakfast, making coffee, and baking brownies.  I thought I was in the wrong house.  Now don’t get me wrong, my sons, both of them are incredible, and they have their moments where they really make me glow, but to wake up earlier than me and start breakfast for me and make coffee for me, on top of cleaning dishes – that was amazing.   I figure my boys are not typically mushy anymore now that they are grown, so it was his way of saying he is thankful for me.

 

If there is any other reason, I do not want to know it.  I am happy thinking the way my brain processed it.

 

I grew up in a difficult household, with a difficult family, so the grand gestures of affection and all that go with it have become to mean nothing to me over the years.  They were always done for a reason, a cost – usually emotional prices that I paid to be able to get a glimmer of hope for something little for myself too.

 

Over time I came to realize the little things mean so much more.  They are usually not thought out, spontaneous, and are like drunken conversations – what is really meant and true to the heart.  Do you know what I mean?

 

The breakfast in bed just because, the pouring of a cup of coffee because I am too busy, the call just to say “Hi” and did I make it home safe, the walking of the dog so I can sleep in.  Those kinds of things. The real love, attention and affection and respect that just happens in your day to day life for no reason except that you are.

 

With every friendship and relationship – personal and professional, the little things are more and more important and what those little things are differ from person to person, moment to moment.   Just a reminder that we are significant to each other and we are thought of.  The little things.   We love each other.   We like each other.  We enjoy each other.  We respect each other.

 

My girlfriends certainly can’t bring me coffee in bed, but they do call to say hi, and send a joke through e-mail at just the right moment.  They know when to chat me up because I am feeling especially blue.  And I do the same.

 

My clients can’t have casual conversations over coffee with me, but they can respect my team’s hard work to continue to send us work and make referrals, and we can offer them our best always.

 

My team can’t work for free, but they can give me and our clients the best they have, and I can thank them for their best and appreciate them all.

 

My lover can’t always be the one I can bitch to, but he can always take a moment to say ‘hey I missed you’ or ‘I was thinking of you yesterday’.  He may want to move mountains for me, but knows that sometimes the best thing would be to teach me to move them myself when things need to be done.  He can make me laugh, and I can show him I care by being there for him as well, with a smile in my eyes if not on my face.

 

My parents couldn’t give me the world as most parents want to, but they did teach me that I can have it if I work hard enough for it.  Even if that lesson comes from reverse psychology and seeing what I didn’t want to be.  My world is mine, and I can show them I appreciate it by living my life and being a strong independent woman, a good mother, a hard worker, and a good friend.  I can understand and appreciate how the tribulations of my childhood, made me who I am today.

 

My siblings can’t be there everyday, close and loving, nor can I, but when the tough times come, we band together – no matter what.  We can take a moment every once in a while to catch up and show that in spite of it all, we are family.

 

They say diamonds and gems are a girl’s best friend.  Not this girl’s.  A few of my favorite things do not cost a thing –  attention, affection, respect, and appreciation at the most spontaneous time imaginable. Those things make my world a much nicer place to be – even if it is just the way my naive brain processes it at that very moment.

 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.  I am thankful for my past, my present, and the future – full of the little things that will make my life that much more interesting.

 

 

 

 

http:www.clktranscription.com

A Touching Transcriptionist’s Tale – Get Your Hankies Ready

I already know I have a fantastic team of transcriptionists here at CLK.  I already know that each of them have a story.  Here is another.  When you think that working from home is a luxury, I hope this gives you just a little more insight.  The only luxury is being able to be where our heart needs us most.

Why Transcription? ~by  Nicole Gennrich

Let me first say I love the work that I do for CLK.  Who knew you could never get bored doing your job.  It’s the same physical movement but the subject is always different.  I find it fascinating every day.  But I can honestly say that’s not what first drew me to the possibility of transcription as a career.

I’m fairly young and spent a lot of time trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.  I had a daughter who I took to daycare every day so I could go to work.  I knew I hated missing so much time with her but knew, just like every other parent, that the bills had to be paid as well.  I was the marketing manager at a small water treatment company; liked my job but didn’t love it and didn’t really have any training to do anything else.  One day my whole view of my job, daycare, and the world changed.  My daughter’s daycare was closed that day so a “friend” of mine was watching her for me.  I received a frantic call from him that she was having a seizure.  I told him to call 911 and left work immediately.  When I got to my house the ambulance was still there so I rode to the hospital with her.  We had to stop a long the way because she was no longer breathing on her own and needed to be intubated.  After she was examined by the doctors they pulled me in a separate room and informed me that she had been shaken very violently and would probably not wake up again.  She was 18 months old.  They took her by helicopter to the best children’s hospital we have.  I knew if she could be saved they would save her.  Three days later in her ICU room I said goodbye to my baby and held her as they unhooked her from life support.  After spending a lot of time not being able to move I decided I had to figure something out.  I returned to my job but had been demoted and replaced because of my extended absence.  Understandable…life goes on for the rest of the world even when it has stopped for you.

Anyway, I had spent too much time and worked to hard to go back to where I started when I first joined the company.  I also realized I loved and missed being a mother and knew I needed to find something to do so I could be there if I ever had another baby – trusting someone would not be an option anymore.  That’s when I heard an ad on the radio for a seminar about medical transcription.  I went to the seminar and found out about going to school at home and working at home.  I started my medical transcription course with At-Home Professions and loved it.  It took me awhile to finish but I got it done.  In December 2007 I had a baby boy and knew I could be home with him.  I had a hard time finding work as a newbie to the medical transcription world.  But then I found the posting for transcription with CLK.  I wasn’t sure about the general transcription part but thought I’d send my resume anyway.  I can honestly say I love the general transcription more than medical now.  Why I choose transcription – it’s fun, fascinating, and I know my son is safe when I go to work every day.

Why I became a transcriptionist…Leticia W.

I asked the CLK team to jot done a few reasons why they became a transcriptionist and what they love about it.  Here is one story from one member of my team:

So, I thought, what do I want to be when I grow up?  I wanted a job where I could learn new things every day.  I wanted to have variety and some challenge in the work, throw in a little pressure or a deadline once in a while, and at the end of the day, be able to see my accomplishments for the day and know that I had done the very best job I could.  Also, I needed the flexibility in a job to allow me to be able to handle responsibilities at home that I had, plus, I love to type.

After careful consideration of my options, and the skills I had acquired through the years, I decided to become a medical transcriptionist.  So, I joined Career Step in December of 2007, took their medical transcription course, graduated the beginning of December 2008, with Honors, and started working with CLK at the end of December 2008.

Becoming a transcriptionist is one of the best decisions I could have ever made.  It allows me all the things I love in a job and then some.  I look forward every day to getting up and going to work. I found myself without a job in May of 2007 and I was completely lost.  I was in my early 40s and just didn’t think I could start over looking for a job and working my way back up the corporate ladder, especially the way the economy was headed.  It was time for a change.

LW

Visit us at www.clktranscription.com where transcribing isn’t just what we do  – it is who we are!

Working hard to meet the quality demands of our clients, and at the same time, the family and economic demands of the US transcriptionist.

Yes, I am behind on my bills but that doesn’t mean you can be an ass!

I got a call from a bill collector today.  Yes I deserved the call.  After 10 years with this company, I am behind for the first time ever.  When I saw the number, I was ready to put my embarrassment aside and take whatever “discipline” I had coming.  Like so many others, I too have had difficult times managing to stay on the edge of the hole without falling in, because once in, digging my way out is much harder.  Full disclosure here – how much I owe this company – $500.00 total, but it is not more important to me than my mortgage, my utilities, and my worker’s paychecks, which I struggle to make at times due to…well see below.

What I was not expecting was the tactless and extremely rude remark from someone who doesn’t live in our country, to me, someone who has been on top of the game for some time, and has recently fallen behind like so many other Americans in this wonderful economy of ours.  An economy I have called – the check is in the mail economy before in this blog.  http://wp.me/pLEiA-39

The conversation started out with:

“Hello Carol.”

I kept my cool, even though I think it is unprofessional to call me by my first name as if we are friends, and even worse, calling me by my mother’s name.  I did not even correct him, I let it go.

It continued nicely for a bit, even with this man noting that this is the first time I have been in arrears ever with this company and that he understands I may have just had a difficult time lately.

He then noted he understood I owned my own company, and wondered why I could not pay this particular bill and wondered if I treated all my bills in the same manner.

I started to get heated, but still kept my cool.  I was after all late and did owe money.  I explained that being my own boss and company owner does not mean I am rich, and that unfortunately many of my clients pay me 30 plus days, but I have to pay my workers every two weeks.  I understand I am behind, but am working to bring myself back current ASAP.

Then he did it.  He took all the time in the world to do it and took me to the place I did not want to go.  He brought out the truck driver in me.

He says, and I quote, “Don’t you own your home and have a mortgage?  Why don’t you take out a home equity loan and pay your bill with us?  You could sell some of those clothes you buy, or maybe even stop going to restaurants so much.  Maybe you should consider having your family pitch in to help you or go on welfare to assist you with your other bills”

If I were a splurging type individual, maybe that would have shamed me.  But it made me mad.

My reply was to the point, and I will get as close to a quote as possible, removing the words that only truckers should hear.

“I do not go out to eat – in fact the last time I went out to eat was over three years ago and dinner was bought for me.  I do not buy clothes often, and my last purchase was over a year ago for sneakers, which by the way replaced a pair bought 7 years ago.  The money on this credit card was used for my business when a computer blew up, and not on luxuries.  I do not need welfare; I earn my money and work hard for it.  I do not ask anyone for money, much less my family who are worse off then I am at times.  And as far as my home goes, I do have a mortgage that I fight to pay every month, like most other Americans, and because I am behind in some bills, who in their right mind would loan me money.  Why would I ask if I already know what I have is not enough to pay what I owe already?

Speaking to me this way will not get you payments.  Speaking to me this way will not make you a bigger person to me.  Speaking to me this way just makes me more angry that a US company would use off shore idiots to do a job that an American can do, probably better, and work toward fixing our economy instead of paying our dollars to some __________ person who has nothing better to do than to belittle and anger the very same people who ensure he gets a paycheck.”

I then told him to have a nice day and hung up.

Do I feel bad – absolutely not.  Do I know I still have to pay this bill – absolutely, yes.  Will it be the first one on my list when the checks come rolling in – NO.

They can come take my TV set for all I care.  Better yet – take my phone.  I won’t be answering it for him anymore.

I Work From Home So I Make My Own Hours? Yeah Right!

When you work from home, everyone thinks you have time for everything besides work. You can chat, run an errand, babysit, volunteer to bake for a friend’s upcoming dinner – anything, because you work from home.

The phone will ring and you say “I have to get back to work” and the person on the other end laughs and keeps on talking.  They know there is no time clock for you.  They do not get the idea of deadlines.  After all, you do work from home.

The doorbell rings and even though you know better than to answer it, they see your car in the driveway and continue to ring the bell or worse, bang loudly on the door itself, so grudgingly you welcome them in for a quick chat.

Kids will come into the room with the most inane questions or comments.  It seems as if they never want to talk until you say “I have work to do.”  They are easy though, just mention chores and they find a way to leave you alone.

The pets will make a mess that can’t wait to be cleaned up, the kids are hungry, the laundry basket grows fuller, the kitchen sink is full, the floors need attention from the vacuum, and the dust just keeps piling up.

So why do we work from home?

Because we can make our own hours?  There is nothing to make – the clock gives us 24 hours in a day, and sometimes we use them all and then some not to mention 7 days a week.

Because we can be with the family more?  Yeah, when they constantly interrupt with questions, because they are nowhere to be found when the work is done and the chores are next on the list.  And scheduling a family hour is just as hard sometimes as scheduling a week of vacation.

Because we can concentrate better?  Have you read above?

Actually, in my world, I work from home (actually let’s get this straight, most of us have an office within our home – yes it makes a difference) because I can be home for my family and friends, for the chores that need to be done, and for my pets, as well as the work that must be done for my clients.

I work from home because I can work 24 hours in a day if I wish, or 17, or 8 or even 2 depending on the workload.   Being available longer hours increases my chances of being able to help others, and in the long run, we all win.  I work from home because I can take care of business, take care of my family and take care of myself much better even with the added stress, longer hours, and many interruptions.

Lastly, I work from home because I find that I can learn more, do more and love it more when I am in the office I designed, organized just how I like it, and able to have those distractions to remind me that there are reasons why I work at all.  And the best part is the dress code!!!

I love what I do but it is not just what I do, it is who I am.

I am proud to be a mom, friend, sister.  I am proud to say that I am a US Transcription Company owner, transcriptionist, educator, and mentor with a home-based office.  I love the work I do for the journalist, writer, doctor, and corporation – from their most difficult audio to their voice mails to their conversion of PDF to WORD documents.  Those that work in a conventional office or those that like me that find working at home a way of life.  Feel free to bang on my door anytime.  Coffee is always on.

http://www.clktranscription.com