Don’t ask me to do it for free…

Do not ask me to do for free the only thing I have of some value: MY WORK!

Please, pay the fair price for the work!

Many people appreciate my work, and, thankfully, they are willing to pay for it. Some “appreciate” it, if I do it for free!

I do my work easily and with great pleasure, what doesn’t mean that I didn’t invest a lot to be able to do it the way I do and it doesn’t mean that, by doing it with pleasure, I should not be paid for it!

If you like my work, if it gives color to yours, if it helps people seeing what you say and what you mean, if it attracts the eyes of others, if it helps illustrating concepts, ideas, projects, talks, situations, if it creates synergy, if it is the target for cameras, it should worth something… because I can only do it with pleasure if I have lunch – and I have to pay for it, even if the cook works with pleasure and the waiter serves with the same pleasure!

I like to go to a good concert, I pay for it and the musicians, most of the times, play and sing with pleasure. I like to go to a football match and I pay for it, as football players need to be (very well) paid and most of them play (also) for pure pleasure!

Sometimes I do my work for free, by my own choice, because it is for a cause I support or simply because the audience is so interesting that they deserve or because there are other forms of compensation involved.

I do some parts of my work in a few minutes – draw a simple concept, create a group dynamics, do a talk, create a training program, etc. – what doesn’t mean it’s easy. Maybe it’s easy for me, as I have studied and dedicated many years practicing to be capable and competent to do it.

So, please, do not ask me to do it for free!

See you. Bring your wallet!

Daniel Lança Perdigão, Strategist & Visual Thinker, UpSideUp.pt