INTERNET CORPORATE COOPERATION? REALLY

http://www.isotranslations.com

Across the last few months you have read a lot about Internet skulduggery and flagrant dishonesty with intent to fleece the innocent and harm the not-so-innocent.  It seemed that around every corner and behind every solicitation for "help" there was a trap. It seemed to be well nigh impossible to find a straightforward, honest, hard working community of professionals who were actually working together toward a common goal without trying to exploit one another and others with whom they came in contact.  it seemed as though there was nothing that the Internet presented that existed for the welfare of the world at large.  I kept looking.  I was bound and determined to uncover a telecommuting opportunity that was honest, professional and within the bounds of my physical and mental abilities.
Along the way I subscribed to about ten or fifteen online job search services.  Some of them were no better than the online brigands that I had learned to dodge along the way.  I even blogged about some of the experiences I had.  Once I learned a few things and I started to talk back to the con artists, they slowly but surely dropped off and now I don't get harassed any more.  Of course I have stopped the online job search services since I have found www.ISOTranslations.com
I did get the reference to this company through one of the online job services.  I wish I could remember the name of it.  "ISO" [for short], has taught me that it is possible to not only have a telecommuting job but develop working relationships at the same time.  This is something that I never expected.  I am the quintessential grouch about the "friend" on Facebook.com fallacy.  We're not friends, I don't even know you.  Get lost.  That's my attitude.
Now, at "ISO" people who are friendly, intelligent, polite and respectful all at once.  They are busy in the office, no doubt, but they are also patient. They are good at communicating what they want, what they need and in reverse, good at making sure that the people in the "field" are provided with the necessary information to do good work.  The learning curve is there, of course.  Learning how to deal with a company who operates on a schedule nine hours ahead of where I work is a challenge over and above that of getting accustomed to the work process itself.  I have begun to awaken at about 2:30 AM in order to keep myself ready for the possibility of snagging work as it comes zinging over the airwaves.  In the meantime, I do other things, but I am here for the main purpose of being the first in line for the work that I can get.  This morning, for instance, I got up a little early and when my magic box lit up, there was the "deadline manager" online with a cheery, "Hello, Paul" staring me in the eye.  Turns out she had a problem and I was involved because I had been the proof reader on the project in question.  I'm glad to report that we were able to repair it.
So, as you can tell by the name of the company, we do translations.  What you can't tell by the name of the company is that it pays the people who do the translations, proof reading and managing.  Yes, it actually pays.  On time too.  Real money.  Not huge money, but money and according to a schedule that anybody and everybody can see.  For a person like yours truly who had about 5 months of working through the moral morass of shadowy slinkers that is a big, huge relief.
Finally, do not kid yourself, it is WORK.  It is not a come-on scam.  It is deadline oriented and you do have to get used to it.  One of the things that I never imagined I would have to learn is how to relate human to human to the sources of pixelated messages.  That's a new one on me.  I'm getting better at it.  I have even caught myself spending a few moments chatting with some of translators and proof readers with whom I am joined in the accomplishing of translation projects.  So I'm learning.  That's an interesting experience at my age.