Work for free!

Home - Business of the Video Shooter - Work for free!

A lot has been said of the freelancer’s business today. More than ever given these tough economic times the freelancer must be creative in marketing himself and his skills. Problem is there seems to be a plethora of low or non-paying jobs out there. There’s no shortage of work if you want to work for free,  And sometimes I do exactly that.

Working for free is completely different from working for low-pay. Working at less or much less than your customary rate cheapens your services and diminishes your stature in the eyes of your client. It opens yourself to a wide range of abuses, long hours and lack of respect. But working for free — ah, that’s a horse of a different color. Now YOU hold all the marbles – not your employer. Folks, this is psychological warfare – and you’d be very wise to engage in it! You’re doing your client a colossal favor, you’ve demonstrated your willingness to be flexible during the recession, and you’ve (hopefully) proven yourself indispensable to your client.

There you go. Think of it as “career development” or “targeted promotion” on your part. If you choose your employer carefully, the days you work for free can be the most lucrative days of your career.

3 Comments

  • danna kinsky , December 29, 2009

    Hello and thank you for last night’s event at birns and sawyer. it was very interesting to hear your thoughts. i never did get a chance to ask which hard drive you recommend. in any case, this working for free blurb is interesting. though tips on which employer is the right one to work for free for is very needed. apparently, i’ve chosen the wrong ones most of the time.

  • admin , December 29, 2009

    Danna, thank you for attending the B & S event last night. I recommend the Glyph portable drives which are extremely rugged and reliable. Here is a link to my 2008 Millimeter HDD coverage which you might find useful.

    http://digitalcontentproducer.com/storage/revfeat/backing_up/index.html

    Regarding working for free and choosing your employer, one rule of thumb is to select a company or individual that has at least 10 solid years experience in the business. Then think about your own skill set and how it could prove indispensable to the employer. You’re building a long-term relationship so you must be impressive and absolutely reliable at every turn. Consider what you love to do and the kinds of projects you’d love to work on, then choose an employer that will let you shine and show the world your greatness!

  • Emily , June 1, 2010

    Danna, thank you for attending the B & S event last night. I recommend the Glyph portable drives which are extremely rugged and reliable. Here is a link to my 2008 Millimeter HDD coverage which you might find useful.

    http://digitalcontentproducer.com/storage/revfeat/backing_up/index.html

    Regarding working for free and choosing your employer, one rule of thumb is to select a company or individual that has at least 10 solid years experience in the business. Then think about your own skill set and how it could prove indispensable to the employer. You’re building a long-term relationship so you must be impressive and absolutely reliable at every turn. Consider what you love to do and the kinds of projects you’d love to work on, then choose an employer that will let you shine and show the world your greatness!

Comments are closed.