The Freelancing Samurai

When I started doing freelance work as an English copywriter/editor/writer of words and wielder of swords, I thought the difficulties I would face would be unique to my situation - being a female in Saudi (always the Boo-Hoo Factor), not having was6a (I guess the best way to translate this in English is "having friends in high places") or not being a member of the (literally) elite creative circle, and living in an Arabic-dominated culture.

Being female limits me in terms of logistics. It's a hassle to set up meetings - mostly to find a venue, to arrange for transportation, to not "appear like a loose woman" because I don't have a male next to me protecting my honor, and many other dramatic things. Boo-fucking-hoo.

Not having was6a to name-drop is less inconvenient, but inconvenient nonetheless. This is different from having a nice-sounding portfolio with a list of prestigious clients you've worked for. Was6a just means that if you have powerful friends, you have back-up. I suspect this is the main reason coat-tailing is prevalent in our society. There are many freelancers here who can charge as high as they like (and get paid!) not so much because of their talent but because of who they know. 

Which is almost in the same line as being a member of the literally elite creative circle. Money is power. The more money you have, the more people are willing to give you more of it. If you have money, it also means you either have was6a, or you are someone else's was6a, and that means you are a Corleone. And we all know what happened to Fredo.

But these don't bother me as much as the last one does, because it directly affects me. Jeddah, while very open to English, is still mostly Arabic. Of course I respect this, and this is not what bothers me. 

It's the fact that we are somehow acknowledging that English is becoming more and more important for businesses and our daily lives, but that we are half-assed about it. It's okay to have shittily translated documents and sign boards (from Arabic to English), it's okay to have full-on bad writing in our English-version newspapers and magazines, and to have Google-translated web content on our sites. 

It's okay to have shitty English. As long as we can say we have an English version. It doesn't have to be good. It only has to be in English.

The root problem here is the fact that when we do something, we don't strive to be excellent at it. 

If there is one thing to be learned from that (awfully misguided, IMHO) movie The Last Samurai, it is this quote, as Tom Cruise's American character observes the Japanese Samurai way of life, with this specific scene showing a warrior presumably teaching a child the correct way to prepare tea.

"They are an intriguing people. From the moment they wake, they devote themselves to the perfection of whatever they pursue."

If we are going to do something, why can't we do it right? But anyway, on to why it affects me.

Because when I tell clients how much I charge for the quality of work that I provide, I get protestations of how expensive I am. Especially, they say, when it is for a service that they can do themselves, seeing as how they themselves can speak English.

What do I do then? Do I lower my already-dirt cheap prices just so I can help put good, quality content out there and raise the bar for my industry? Do I walk away and find someone else who WOULD pay for quality work (probably no one)? Do I sacrifice my own needs for the greater good? Must I "teach" an entire society about the value of good work? 

It's exhausting. Sometimes I think there really is no hope, that there really isn't anything we can do to raise any bar for any industry here, so deeply-rooted are our problems. I am ONE person, and an unimportant one at that, and there is nothing I can do except try to earn money doing something I enjoy. #FirstWorldProblemInAThirdWorldCountry

But I realize also that these problems are not unique to me and my situation. Every other freelancer has a different variation of these problems. 

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About 15 years ago, my uncle was visiting us for a few days here in our home in Jeddah. He was in the living room where one of my brothers was tasked with sorting out the prayer mat cupboard (where my mother stored prayer mats).

My brother was doing a half-assed job: he was properly folding only the prayer mats that would show, and the rest of the mats, towards the back of the cupboard where no one can see, were all bunched up unfolded.

I walked in as my uncle (60 years old) sat my brother down (8 years old then), and said:

"In everything you do, you must make sure that it is all perfect. Inside and out."

That day, we came to a very important conclusion:

My uncle is a Samurai, and a Corleone.