Sneak Peek into this week Paper Talk Podcast: When to work for free

Have you ever been asked to work for free? For those of us in the creative fields like paper flowers, this happens all the time. Seriously. All. The. Time. If you haven’t encountered it yet, you will. We’ve been there, and we know how tricky it can be to navigate.

Sometimes, working for free can bring valuable exposure. It can open doors. You can make lasting connections with clients and vendors. Other times, working without pay brings only headaches and resentment. Those of you who have had one of these negative experiences are probably nodding your head in agreement and shuddering with the memory of long, thankless hours of work that netted basically no gain.

Figuring out which situation you’re heading into is a difficult task. In the latest episode of our podcast, Paper Talk, we delved into this subject and agreed that deciding to work for free is a highly personal choice that should be examined on a case by case basis. 

One way to ensure that your experience will be a positive one is to establish clear parameters upfront and know exactly what you’re getting out of it. If you’re working for free because you want great photos for your website, make sure the photographer you’re collaborating with knows what kind of shots you’re looking for. Or if you only use Instagram to advertise your work, make sure your collaborators will be posting on Instagram, too. 

There’s so much more to talk about with this subject. As Kate Alarcón of The Cobra Lily, our episode guest, said: “That’s one thing that’s nice about our community, is we can help each other.” Hear much more in-depth discussion and learn from our personal experience by listening to our latest episode of Paper Talk today.