Bilingual? Here are some sidehustles you can start today. 

There are many different jobs available to bilingual people. Sure, having a second language can be a great asset while working in the corporate world, but there are also a lot of language sidehustles in the rapidly growing field of translation.

Now, working in the translation industry doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to work as a translator. 

The key to being a successful translator is understanding what you’re good at, what you enjoy, and staying (far, far away) from the rest. 

So let’s say that you have excellent reading and writing skills in your native language and advanced research and reading skills in your second language. This is the perfect combination for becoming a Translator.

But what if your writing skills are not that great but you can read both languages fairly fluently. This makes you a great Fact Checker: somebody who reads over other people’s work to ensure that nothing was lost, or missed, in translation. You could also work as a Project Manager who helps wrangle actual freelancers and makes sure that all milestones are met. 

Say, however, that you prefer speaking to reading and writing and that you have an advanced (but not necessarily fluent) level in both languages. These are the makings of an interpreter. (And in case you think all interpreters have specialized training, they don’t. I have worked in law, medicine, and entertainment, and I studied ancient literature.)

Many people feel that that translation is incredibly difficult because you have to write in a second language. Well, when you work as a Transcriber, you can actually transcribe and proofread in your native language. If you have a project manager, you won’t even need to talk to foreign clients.

Some of my students felt as though they didn’t have any particular skills that would qualify them for a language career, but they love doing social media in their own language. They went on to become Social Media Managers. This is a valuable, and well-paying skill. Companies worldwide hire native speakers who have both an interest and an edge in social media to manage their accounts for them. This is a great way to get paid to do something that you already love doing.

So as you can see, there are many different options for bilinguals to want to use their language skills to earn extra money.

I always say that anything that happens in one language happens in two languages. It’s just up to us to find the people who are trying to do it and charge them for it.