Work for money.

Why you should never work on any project for free.

I think I should say that again… work for money.

Why am I talking about this today? For most of my career, I have been too scared to confidently talk about money. I just wish the client can get in my head and pay me my imaginary fee; that amount I’m too scared to say out loud. Every time I have to price projects, I’m scared that the client will say: “I will get back to you” and never get back to me. So, I have been too scared to confidently talk about money. Can I confidently talk about money now? No. I’m not fully there yet, but I’m working on it. I realized something that has helped me and that’s why I’m talking to you about this.

You see, I’ve realized that how my clients talk about money is a good indication of the sort of clients they will be. Are they willing to pay money for my work? Are they willing to do that? It dawned on me that this is really important because this goes a long way to show what they value. Because if what you do is important to them, then they should be willing to pay for it, right? Business is a value exchange. So if they don’t want to pay for it, or they don’t want to pay what it’s worth, then they don’t value it, which will amount to you wasting your time. Time and again, I’ve had experiences when I did projects like this and in the end, the client just left me and my work there and walked away. He abandoned both me and the project, leaving me with nothing but my losses. You’re a creative, so I know in one way or another you’ve experienced something similar to this.

Money is a standard part of any business transaction, so watch out for businesses who are not willing to part with it or ones who don’t understand the financial value of hiring you. Never work for free.

But what about volunteer work you ask? Since I said don’t work for free, does it mean we should not do volunteer work? No. Don’t work for free, I mean that. This principle applies even to volunteer work. When you take on voluntary projects, you need to be very clear from the beginning what you’re getting in return for your efforts. This can be certification, or you building your network, or even adding a solid project to your portfolio. Whichever one it is, you need to be clear that this is what you’re doing this for.

Once again, am I a pro at pricing my work? No. I’m not a master of doing all these things, but I know what I need to do. I’m working on it. I really hope that you too decide you brave up and work for your money.