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A Transcriptionist’s Tale, by Amanda Friday…

When I was younger, my parents always teased that I would never be able to find a job that I could do in my pajamas. I didn’t get into the transcription business because of that, but it definitely has become a running joke over the years! I have been a medical transcriptionist since 2007. I graduated from the Career Step program, which I found invaluable. I don’t know of any general transcription training course, as with general transcription you receive any kind of report under the sun, but for medical transcription I definitely recommend it. There is so much to learn language wise, procedure wise, pharmaceutical wise that jumping into it headfirst would be a detriment to your productivity. That is, if you could even find a job without that training in the first place!

 

After five years of medical transcription, I found myself getting burned out. I was sick of the medicalese and doctors dictating procedures or exam findings at the speed of light. Just because they say it a million times a day didn’t mean I knew what they were saying! It was a real struggle to make the short “commute” down the hallway to my home office every day, knowing I had the same kinds of reports as the day before to look forward to.

 

On top of starting to dread working, my largest account was sent overseas, causing my income to drop dramatically. I think offshoring American medical records, or anything that relates to American jobs, is just criminal. The complete lack of responsibility that these companies have towards their American employees is a travesty. To be fair, my company fought tooth and nail to keep my account in the US, but in the end money won out, as it usually does, and boom. Account gone. Practically overnight.

 

Staying home has been such a luxury as it affords me more time with my family. My husband works an odd schedule and without my working at home, I would see him one weekend a month. We don’t have children yet, but look forward to not having to pay any childcare costs, which are skyrocketing. My husband is the only one that commutes into work, so gas payments are down and the wear and tear really only occurs on one vehicle instead of two. I knew I didn’t want to work outside the home, but I felt my options were limited and I may have to reenter the outside workforce.

 

I looked into general transcription and am so glad that I did. It’s a joy to no longer type physical examinations and laboratory results! Every report I’ve accepted through CLK Transcription has been something different. Work is exciting and challenging, but in a good way! I can honestly say that I have learned something from every single report I have transcribed for CLK. And the flexibility CLK allows is tremendous.

 

In addition to transcription work, I also narrate and produce audio books so I need to be able to manage my time efficiently. With CLK, it’s a breeze to meet audio book deadlines, as I am not tied to my desk. If I’m feeling behind on my recordings, no problem. I just don’t sign in that day. No muss, no fuss. It’s fantastic. I feel incredibly blessed to have found CLK Transcription. I couldn’t be happier to be working with CLK and look forward to many, many more years!

 

Amanda Friday

http://www.facebook.com/AmandaFridayVoiceoverArtist

It is always nice to hear that you did a good job! Don’t you think?

Below is a wonderful blurb developed by a client about CLK Transcription. Things like this make my day!
“About CarolLee Streeter Kidd, president of CLK Transcription and her company…You may have worked with numerous transcription companies over the years, but there is only one CarolLee Streeter Kidd. CarolLee is the hardest working woman you will ever meet. She takes personal interest in all of her clients and connects to them in a personal way, on the phone, via phone and Facebook/Twitter. There is not one transcription company out there that will listen to you intently and hold your hand throughout the process, delivering your transcripts exactly the way you need. But CarolLee will! Her commitment to excellence is head and shoulders above the rest. The company has worked with over 500 journalists, authors, ghost writers, scholars, and educators for over 10 years.
Check out CLK’s Brag page to see all the leading corporations, journalists, authors, and others, CLK Transcription has assisted!
 
CLK provides accurate, timely transcription for whatever your needs are. The company well understands tight deadlines and are happy to accommodate you.”
****

These words mean more than money to my team and me. We love what we do and are happy to be in a career we trained for, continue to train for, and love! We do have a special place in our heart for the non-medical side of transcription, but we also carry multiple medical accounts as well.

We know how busy our clients are and we understand their budgets and deadlines. We pride ourselves in working with them to master both of those challenges.

We offer the following services, and more:

  • Transcription of audio/video
  • Voice mail transcription
  • Audio conversion – tape to mp3, or other digital to digital formats
  • PDF development / conversion
  • Database development by either typing in your information or direct scan into a workable document
  • Time coding of transcripts for use in televised productions
  • Sorting / categorizing your published / soon to be published work
  • Proofreading drafts for accuracy in spelling and grammar
  • We even offer a call in dictation, for those who have equipment malfunctions or may not be proficient with equipment needed to record and transfer files. This service is available, whether we transcribe the audio or not.

We also like to help you keep costs down, so we offer / accept several methods of transfer, free:

Dropbox, where we share a folder with you rather than you pay the service to accommodate the size of your files.

FTP site, safe, secure, and easy to use. (Some browsers do not support ftp transfers and may require an additional program download (free))

Sendthisfile (size/use limitations)

Yousendit (size/use limitations)

And of course, we accept file transfers via email, and many other online programs, as well.

We also offer a free email through the CLK domain that you may use, password protected, to organize your “junk mail” or for those “sign up” sites that usually clog your professional email in-boxes. This leaves access to you, and no more sorting through the junk and possibly miss that important email you’ve been waiting for.

And for those of you who wish to have a ftp site for your professional needs, other than sending files to CLK, we can set you up through our domain to utilize a folder and share with your contacts, associates, or project manager for a low monthly fee.

Payment for CLK services is easy as well. We itemize your invoice, showing the filename length of audio, and amount charged. We offer several methods of payment (check, money order, Paypal, Dwolla) – and no prepayment is necessary. We invoice twice a month and offer 15 days leeway for you to remit payment for the invoice – which is technically up to 30 days from the time you submit the work to having to submit payment for it. We also offer discounted rates and payment plans for those with the strictest of budgets.

It is easy to communicate with CLK – by phone, via instant message, FB, Twitter, LinkedIn, or email. We are available 24/7 to accept files, and offer extended office hours 7 days a week to assist you personally or walk you through any step of the process. We understand our clients do not have a 9 to 5 day, so we remain here for you.

Lastly, we do love our writers, authors, journalists and freelancers – and we offer discounts throughout the year to members of ASJA, UPOD, NASW, FLX, AHCJ and APH.  We look forward to joining forces with other major organizations as well, and would love to hear from those who may want to utilize our services.

So whether you have interviews, meetings, webinars, seminars, telecasts, broadcasts, books, dairies, IEPs, or even business cards and recipes you would like to have transcribed, organized, or converted – find out how we will save you time and money, visit us today – www.clktranscription.com – Where we are not professional bloggers – we are transcriptionists!

Come and join us on the various social media sites – we love to share your work and promote the great writers of today and tomorrow.

Twitter = @CLK_Shortcake

Facebook = http://www.facebook.com/CLKTranscription
and
http://www.facebook.com/CLK-Trans

LinkedIn = http://www.linkedin.com/in/clktranscription

Are you a writer/producer/author/CEO/parent/scholar/physician struggling with your budget? Time is money too!

CLK Transcription truly understands the struggles for time and money that any writer has.

We have worked with over 500 journalists, authors, ghost writers, scholars, and educators – even corporations in dealing with their budgets.

We understand the needs of maintaining cost effectiveness and time constraints that everyone has. Whether they need to stay within budget in order to make a buck for themselves or because the bankroll just isn’t there. Whether they need to find time to handle the other aspects of their project – like research, additional interviews, meetings – or just the family trip to a park or the soothing bath to ease the tension of the day.
So, yes we understand, but how do we save you time and money?

  • We offer quality transcriptions, quality digital conversions, quality hard copy conversions and we do it for less than the national average.
  • We have a  30-day payment policy that begins up to 15 days from the return of your project which means possibly 45 days to make your first payment.This is important when you have to wait for payment from your client.
  • We offer payment plans when needed and we offer several ways to pay.
  • We offer options to keep your cost down in the development of your work – call-in dictation service where you get a copy of the audio as well as us.  This service is available whether we transcribe your audio or not. If we do transcribe your audio, there is no charge for this service.
  • We accept any downloadable file type, and can even download from YouTube and transcribe, and of course forward the digitized audio to you as well.
  • We digitize your cassettes and CDs/DVDs when we receive them for transcription at no extra charge so you too get an electronic copy if you wish.
  • We can time-code your transcriptions for video editing. We can even cut and splice your audio for easier editing – another service offered our clients whether we transcribe the audio or not.
  • We offer many different ways to send your files to us – including a safe secure FTP at no additional charge to clients we transcribe for. It is a safe place to store your audio for backup if you wish.  If you choose, the FTP folder is “cleaned” for security purposes every 2 weeks.  For those who do not need transcription services, but just want a safe place to store their work, this option is available for a low monthly fee.
  • We offer discounts to our clients and referrals for various “events” – like just because we love what we do. Some others to watch for are our refer a friend discount, ASJA discount, UPOD discount, IEP discount, Educational project discount, the NEW birthday discount…and again whatever we can come up with to make life and your time and money management just that much more manageable.
  • We also use whatever format you decide you need for your reports. It is as easy as letting us know via email how you want it done.
  • We offer fast turn around, in most cases your report is complete same day or next morning if less than 60 minutes and within 24 to 36 hours if longer. (but we do work multiple files simultaneously, so if you send us 30 10-minute files in the morning, you could potentially have them all the next morning.
  • CLK Transcription can also utilize our resources to assist you in finding other services or sources you may require in the completion of your project, and we love to make connections for you to assist in furthering your work. Many have touted us as Retweet queens, or “sharing” rock stars. We just want to see your grow as well.  We take pride in your work too!

All this WILL save you money and allow you time to handle those other aspects of your project or just your life by having the time free.  How much is your time worth?  CLK knows!

I have over 30 skilled transcriptionists to handle the files, and we double proof our work before we send it back.Our transcriptionists have handled files on topics ranging from medical, banking, finance, family, sex, business, tech, health, food, and just about any other topic you can think of. What we don’t know, we have excellent research skills to educate ourselves on.

We have been acknowledged by three bestselling authors in their books and on two national television shows, and have worked with award-winning magazines and publishers, informational and educational blogs, as well as some really outstanding and amazing physicians and research organizations, not to mention incredible universities, scholars and concerned parents of special needs children.

I began CLK Transcription, Inc because I loved what I do, and because I want to generate jobs here in the US. Many of the team are family members of those serving our country, or vets who have served us proudly. Others have spent thousands of dollars to educate and train in this field, because it is what we love. I do not offshore any work at all, and we do not use speech recognition.  The human ear is tough to beat when it comes to transcription.

So, if you are a writer, doctor, scholar, educator, parent, journalist, or just someone who needs an audio transcribed or grandma’s cookbook digitized, CLK can do that – and we WILL save you time and money.

 

Check us out on LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/clktranscription

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/CLKTranscription
and
http://www.facebook.com/pages/CLK-Transcription-Inc/100158850050342

Twitter – @CLK_Shortcake

 

Find out why we are the most referred Transcription Company in the US.  We would love to assist you with your transcription needs, and more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CLK Transcription’s clients say we ROCK! Yes we do, and here is why!

I am always praising my team, and many may think it is just to tout my company.

Many others know nothing could be farther from the truth.

I could easily just continually send accolades about the work my company does, or that I oversee – but I know without my team – nothing is possible.

I have team leaders, team players, and those that sit the bench until called upon.  They all have their responsibility and they always give their best.  And that is exactly what I ask for.

No one is perfect – but we give our best and work hard to be as close to perfect as possible. That is why each team member backs up the other, to assist, critique, backup and advise.

That includes our clients. We want them to advise us on their special likes and dislikes, whether for every file, or for a particular file.  Without that information, we can’t possibly give them what they want.  We also appreciate the positive and negative feedback on our work, so that we can be that much closer to perfect for them the next time.

So when CLK’s clients say “You rock!” – I agree – CLK Rocks because we have one hell of a team – and they give their best everyday.

  • PDF / hard copy conversion to Word Doc
  • Audio transcription
  • Medical transcription
  • audio conversion (tapes, DVD, CD to electronic copy)
  • Audio conversion (electronic format to alternative electronic format)
  • Electronic signature
  • Brochure and flyer development
  • Voice mail transcription…and more

 

We would love to assist you with your transcription needs, and we WILL save you time and money.

 

Check out our recommendations on LinkedIn.  http://www.linkedin.com/in/clktranscription

 

Feel free to follow us on FB ( http://www.facebook.com/CLKTranscription and http://www.facebook.com/pages/CLK-Transcription-Inc/100158850050342) or Twitter (Twitter = @CLK_Shortcake) – we love to share a good story, article, post, link.

www.clktranscription.com

 

What’s new at CLK? I found some time and money!

After many years of handling the website of CLK myself, I finally realized the best route to go this time was to bring on a professional to review, work with me, and clean up and update everything.

I am not sorry I did it.

They say you have to spend a little to make a little.  They are right.

Yes, I am upgrading my website, and yes, I decided to let the professionals handle it so I had time to do what makes my clients happiest – transcribe, re-record, convert, and develop the best transcription, audio/video, and Excel projects ever.

 

I followed my own advice.

 

I say it all the time – let us save you time and money and allow you to have that extra time to handle your other important aspects of your project or your life.

 

There have been blogs written about it.  There have been posts about it.  There have been Tweets about it.  Many others have found how hiring a transcription company can free up much-needed time, which in the long run, allows more money to be generated when you can promote your business, continue with the current project, or market for a new one.  It can also find you the time to cook that special meal, attend a soccer game, all the really important things – spending time with family and friends.

Now I can be sincere and say I know this firsthand by practicing what I preach.  Now I know even better, how important that time is.  You should too!

 

Whether it is…

  • voice mail transcription so you can shop, meet, or just enjoy a day out,or
  • audio transcription of your interviews, webinars, radio shows for your article, book, or other project, or
  • development of electronic copy of your white paper, or even conversion of your cassettes and DVDs to electronic audio…

… in order to save or share with others, having someone else handle it at a fair price in a reasonable time while maintaining quality, can save you time and money too.

 

CLK Transcription is a US owned and operated transcription company that handles all types of projects; medical and non- medical.  We have a full staff of independent contractors with specialization in areas of banking, brokerage, health, family, education, sex, history, science, relationships – you name it.

We are transcriptionists, not just medical transcriptionists.  We love what we do and we have the experience to do it right, no matter the topic.

We do not use speech recognition and we never off-shore your work. From mere seconds to hours of audio, partial page or pages and pages of white paper – your work is done by professional transcriptionists using their experienced ear…not a machine.

 

If you want to find that time and money everyone is looking for, check us out.  We are just an email away from starting your project and our services will help to increase your productivity.

 

Stay tuned for our new website.  It should be up and completely overhauled shortly.  Until then, I am back to work doing what I love to do now that I have time to do it – transcribing.

 

www.clktranscription.com

 

 

 

Are you an IC Transcriptionist? Why it’s important to be honest. Happy Anniversary to CLK Transcription

Working with independent contractors is tricky enough with all the regulations about what is an IC and what is not.  Utilizing ICs, I am well aware of the limitations, and still I enjoy doing so because I know it is helping someone build their business.  I am their client.

There are many pitfalls to hiring IC’s too.  My biggest pet peeve is the inability of some to be honest about what it is they want from this business, what they want for their business.

For example, when someone comes on as IC and says things like “I am available all day every day” and then they are only on to work maybe one day a week.  Or the ever familiar “I can handle difficult audio” and they can however they turn away every variation of audio except clear one-on-one interviews because it may take a bit more research or time.  They just don’t understand this limits their ability to grow.

There are moments when I am so busy that I can send out e-mails asking if anyone is available and there is no communication at all in response.  But send out one e-mail saying a higher rate project is available and everyone comes out of the woodwork. As an IC, it doesn’t matter when you are available or what you can handle – it’s my job to monitor my workload and the ICs I use and who has proven what t me as far as abilities.  But honesty does matter to me and when an IC is not forthcoming about availability, to me, it calls to question every aspect of their professional ethics.

When I discuss this business with newbies to CLK Transcription, I am very specific as to what the work assignments will be, what is expected, and how as an IC, I cannot guarantee workloads or how much money they make – that is up to them – their abilities and their availability, yet I find that some just don’t get it.  They don’t get that the most important part of a person’s professional reputation is honesty.  Honesty about abilities, capabilities, and every other aspect of their working relationship with their clients.

Don’t get me wrong.  I have an awesome team.  I have a team that is in constant communication with me and knows their own abilities. Whether they are on-call only or daily warriors for CLK.  But I also have those who I deal with, still peripheral teammates, who never communicate, never respond to e-mails, never available on any kind of regular basis – but when I say “more money is available for these project files” they jump on and wonder why I can’t assign them that project.  Here is why I can’t:

If I have teammates that put their best forward whether every day or once a week, communicate with me, and do their best consistently, how fair would it be for me to overlook them to assign a larger project file to someone else who never communicates and is never available during those periods where I have limited coverage and request additional assistance for my projects.  Ultimately, everyone gets work, but it is good business sense to keep those people busy who help me stay busy.

It is just common business sense that one takes care of those who take care of them. Those that communicate and those that step up all the time, not just when more money is involved.

Some ICs do not last with CLK.  Although they are not available, can’t turn around a ten minute audio in three hours, and do not communicate, they complain that there is no money or no work.   (This is especially interesting when I look at my schedule and see that we average over 200 files every two weeks, and over 500 hours of audio a month on average).

Some leave to go to “better” assignments.  I wish them well.

I know that for every two that may leave, if they stay in the business, one always comes back.  They realize other companies have expectations as to weekly line counts or just time they should be sitting at their computer waiting for work.  They realize that with CLK, they have flexibility because they are an IC, not an employee, and although other companies say they are ICs and responsible for their own taxes, they must be there ready for work, whether the work is there or not.  Some find that their family obligations are more involved than they thought it would be and a 9-5 IC job does not work for them.  Or they find they weren’t ready to move on because although CLK works with those with limited skills by utilizing a two-proofer review and offering training through an earn-while-you-learn internship, other companies do not.  They find that although I use newbies, fresh out of school, other companies want two or more years experience.

Some leave to be able to do just medical transcription, and CLK is a Transcription Company, not a Medical Transcription Company, and if they can’t handle the regular straight transcription of everyday conversations, medical is not going to be easier.

Those warriors who have been with CLK for years are transcriptionists, able to transcribe anything and everything that comes through our offices.  They have great research skills, great professionalism, great communication, and are able to work with others to get the project done right.  And we all know when one of us drops the ball, we all feel it, so we work as a team to make sure balls don’t get dropped often and when they are, we make darn sure our clients are satisfied with the “fix” offered.  We know we are not perfect 100 percent of the time, but boy do we want to be.

I guess I am on this rant because I love what I do.  I enjoy working with others who want to grow in this business and I love to know we are doing our part in making our own money, handling our personal business and taking care of our families at the same time, and we can be the best we can be assisting our clients in what they do as well, all the while being honest with ourselves and our clients about our professional abilities. We are Professional Transcriptionists

To my team I say THANK YOU for your hard work and dedication to making each and every one of our clients feel as if they are our only clients.  Without you, the IC transcriptionists, CLK could not be the highly recommended transcription company it is, averaging 5 new referrals a week.  Six years ago today CLK became incorporated and we look forward to growing and enabling even more ICs to grow into their own as well.

Happy Anniversary CLK Transcription.

www.clktranscription.com

Dear Interviewer. Part two in a transcriptionist’s quest to better serve you…

I believe a transcriptionist is a journalist’s/writer’s/physician’s/educator’s/student’s best friend.  We are able to transcribe your audio and provide you with quality documents, and in doing so, save you time and money.

Thee are some tips that you can keep in mind, as someone who has the need for audio transcription, that can make it easier for the transcriptionist to provide better service to you.  Some have been mentioned here in a previous post – http://wp.me/pLEiA-6B

Here are a few more that some of my team would like to share.  These tips, I am sure, are echoed throughout the transcription community.

There are a lot of times that researching things like, spelling of people’s names, cities, special drugs like cancer research drugs, technology terms, sometimes even acronyms can be tricky.

What is interesting is some people will go out of their way to say a word, and then spell a word like Apple Sauce, but names like Anna Koolakokaloma are just said, usually real fast and not spelt – except graciously they will say Anna with two ‘n’s.

If the audio is not the best, or the person speaking is difficult to understand due to background noise, cell phones being used, ESL, etcetera, it can take even longer for the research to be done and we all know “time is money,” both to the client and the transcriptionist.

So, please help us produce the most efficient, accurate, and professional report for you by providing as much information as you can regarding the interview or project being transcribed, even a website that we can reference for information can sometimes be helpful.

We pride ourselves with our research skills, but there are times that having that information beforehand can save us both time and money.

If there is more than one speaker being interviewed, having them say their names when they start talking is so helpful.  You’d be amazed at how most people sound alike on a recording.

Chances are if the person you are interviewing is sitting across the room and you are sitting with the recorder it will be impossible to hear them.  Move it by them or have them speak louder.  Consider sitting still if you are using speakerphone with the recorder sitting next to it.  When using speakerphone, noise on your end cuts out what the person being interviewed is saying.  So instead of hearing them, I’m hearing the papers being moved, you walking around, etcetera.  I even had one where the interviewer was taking notes with paper and pencil and the writing was louder than the person.

Naming your audio file is one thing that can help you in the future.  I have had clients send files that are automatically named by the device they are using to record and save the audio.  When they send the file to me, I will usually put the interviewee’s name in the file name going back to the client, but if unknown, we simply use the audio file name as a report name – so the client can match up report to audio file.  Occasionally a client will ask me ‘do you have the interview I did for John Smith?’  Unfortunately they do not supply names of interviewees and do not name the file in such a way that it is easily searchable.  (Probably why they are asking me if I have it).  So, it is important to name your file with something that is pertinent to you – or to give me the information so I can name the report accordingly.  This absolutely saves the client time when they are searching for their audio and their work in the future.

Of course there are times that difficult files or the arena of the interview cannot be controlled.  CLK Transcription prides themselves in being able to handle even the most difficult of files.   There is no extra charge for difficult files, for multiple speakers.  We consider them just regular routine work for us because we deal with so many great journalists.  

We understand that the profession you are in is demanding, and we work hard to meet your needs.  Contact us today to find out how we might save you time and money – even with the most difficult of audios.  www.clktranscription.com

Random thought of the day: Some words are overused. Here are some of my pet peeves.

I have watched and listened to many people over the last few days that has led me to form the opinion that certain words are overused, and used with no sincerity or knowledge of meaning behind them.

Innocent:  People use this word to describe others or their own actions.  If an action is questionable, which is the only reason someone would have to use ‘innocent’ to describe it, it is hardly innocent.  It may be harmless, asinine, thoughtless, or sometimes even more sinister – but hardly innocent.

Juvenile:  I am sorry but when someone over the age of 18 does something incredibly stupid, it is just that – incredibly stupid.  Many juveniles don’t act that way until they see adults being stupid.  let’s stop using a term to describe adolescents to describe adults behaving badly.

Handicapped:  Just because an individual has alternative ways of capably accomplishing something does not make them handicapped.   However, there are some who may be considered juvenile (see above) that are just incredibly stupid, which in my mind, makes them more handicapped than some who must use alternative ways to achieve a means to and end.

Difficult:  All things are difficult until you learn them.  We learned to sit, eat, walk and talk – we can learn just about anything.  It is the wanting to learn and do the best we can that is difficult.  Everything else is just work.

Income: I keep hearing this word, but have not seen an ‘income’ without the ‘outgo’ that goes with it, starting with a large percentage of my ‘income’ outgoing to the IRS.  We should probably call it, residuals.

Insurance:  Now here is a word that throws me.  It should really be called ‘assurance’, because if you don’t have it you are assured to feel screwed (especially with the new laws) when you need it, and if you have it, you can be assured that you will be more stressed than you were before you needed it for health, home, or vehicle reasons.  I believe big Pharma loves this mechanism that happens to keep our blood pressure raised and minds confused because it allows them more government funding for research.  Funding of course that comes out of our ‘residuals’ (see above).

Respect:  Some people say they deserve this, but have never earned it.  This is, in my mind, one right you are not born with.  Sometimes you can earn it quickly, but most times it takes work and if you have it, you should never get comfortable with it, because if you act juvenile (see above) you can lose it faster than you got it.  I also believe you must have it yourself ,for yourself before someone else can share theirs with you.

Employment:  I can’t tell you how many times I personally have heard people say they want a job, but then don’t ‘show up’ to do the job.  By showing up, I do mean physically and mentally showing up.  I have also personally heard people, even in this economy, say things like ‘that’s not my job’.  I believe, that if you want to work and you receive a paycheck for legitimate tasks, and you happen not to appreciate the tasks assigned to you, you have three basic choices.  Everyone does.  One – do it with a smile.  Two – do it and ask for a raise.  Three – move on and allow someone who appreciates the opportunity to earn a paycheck to earn it.  Sitting at your job, not doing your job, hurts everyone.  Not just you and your employer, not their clients, but also the person who could be there, earning a wage and taking responsibility for their lives.  So it is not employment, but work.  Employment is using your abilities to get the task done in your job, which you do get a paycheck to do.

Love:  This word most of all is over used.  People, especially the young, use the phrase ‘I Love You’ so easily and freely, they lose the whole idea behind the words.

I believe that when you love someone those words should come from the heart and from the knowing.    It comes from wanting to be with that person, caring for that person, being there in times of need for that person, and them there for you, yet being able to be apart without a suspicious thought rolling around your head when you are.  Loving someone for who they are, beyond that ‘honeymoon’ stage that young couples have.

An extension of  overuse of ‘I love you” is  ‘I want to share my life with you‘.  When in that honeymoon stage of ‘love”, people do not share lives, they share time.  They forget, or do not know, or do not realize that sharing a life together means sharing the work, the play, the bills, the responsibilities, the friends, and even the time alone, apart from each other.  When you can do that and still lose your breath when thinking about the other person, that is love.

 

I do believe that when you love someone, truly love someone, those words should come freely.  It should never be something that you can hold back.  It should just overwhelm you to where the words come out, at the most peculiar times.  I believe that if you love someone, it is the first thing you want to say in the morning and the last thing you say at night – just because, if you lose the next moment to say it, you are fully aware that they knew exactly how you felt.  But it should not be something that is given to every person you know so easily.  It takes away from the meaning.

 

These are just a few of my pet peeves of overused / misused words.  Do you have any?  Who knows, maybe others share them with you.  I would love to hear them.

 

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In my opinion, here is what makes a good businessperson…

In the past several weeks I have been met with some professionals (and I use that term because they use it only) that I was giving my business to.  I was their client, their customer, their money in the drawer during this sucky economy.

 

The first was a professional who did construction, maintenance – you know the ‘all around handy guy.’  When asked to do emergency work that was being paid for by me, it ended up being a four-day job with no work and no communication.  I moved on.

 

Then it was the mechanic who floored me in a number of ways.  First I asked if the job could be done in two days, because well, I needed my vehicle back in two days, and I told him politely that if he couldn’t, I would have to find someone else to do the job, if possible, in two days.  (just a tire rod replacement and inspection, which I know only takes a couple of hours).

He was offended and told me I should show him more respect. What?  Am I not paying him?

Oh and the second way he floored me.  He called me to tell me it was done, and then said I am going to lunch at 12 so be here before then or wait for it.  Now I was on my way, about 20 minutes out, and it was 11:30.  You would think rather than putting me out, and making me wait to PAY him, he would hang around for a few minutes IF I were late – he does own the shop after all.

After paying, I was then harangued about how I should show respect for the good work that is done and not threaten to take the work elsewhere.  Well, I am a customer.  I pay for what I want.  If you can’t give it to me, then I will find someone who can.  That is the price you pay for calling yourself a professional.

I should respect him even though he can talk to me, a paying customer that way?  I think not.

 

Here’s how I treat my clients.  When they need something I either deliver it, or they go elsewhere.  I certainly wouldn’t tell them take it or leave it.  I certainly wouldn’t go to lunch and not accept a payment, making them wait to pay.  i wouldn’t put their work on the back burner because they had a rush job.  I work harder to show them I can do it, and do it the way they want.

 

Has this become a primitive way of thinking?

 

 

In this economy, I think the best way to maintain clients – not just get them and move on – is to treat them like paying clients.  because well, they are.  If I can’t give them what they want, why waste their time.  By being honest, they may just come back next time to me when I can give them exactly what they want.

They may just spread the word about how wonderful their interaction is.  They may even refer others tome. And I have found they do.

 

Now, I firmly believe that when you get crappy service, you should mention it.  And many will repeat the information about the crappy service over and over and over again.

But let’s not forget the good service.  As a client myself, when I like something, I share and share often.  I refer and promote and recommend all the time.  That is the respect they EARNED when I do business as a paying customer.  Notice, I haven’t shared the name of the crappy customer service companies.  I won’t give them weight!

 

That is the respect I try to earn as a business owner/operator for my clients.

 

So, if it is primitive thinking that gets me here, then so be it.  It works for me.

 
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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