You Can Work For Free, But Don’t Work for Nothing

A common question that every creative asks is "can I work for free?"

Of course, there are a thousand nuanced answers to this, but my simplified take is: "you can work for free, but don't work for nothing."

Ideally, yes, you get paid. Even if you're at the early stages of your career, it's good to at least try and get some sort of monetary compensation.

But, barring that, ask for *something* in return. Connections in the industry, tickets to conferences, profit shares, and skill trades are all fair game.

And no, just getting credit doesn't count. They should be giving that to you anyway.

So remember: it's okay to work for free, but don't work for nothing.