Francisco Miraval
Since the beginning of the year, several people and organizations called me to ask for my help or my services and all those calls had two elements in common. First, in all those cases the request was to help worthy community projects. Second, in all cases I was asked to work for free.
Certainly, the economy is improving, but that doesn’t mean that people are no longer in need of help and that we should stop helping others. It is also true that we all have the moral responsibility of helping others as much as we can and as often as we can so we can improve the quality of life in our community (and all over the word.)
But, why I am always (or so it seems to me) ask to work for free?
I must say that, thanks to the blessings of the universal spirit, I am not lacking contracts or work. And I must add that, in gratitude for those blessings (which, as in the case of any blessings, are undeserved), I am happy to help as much as I can with every project I feel it is worthy of my support.
However, I don’t like the idea that because I accept to help, my services (or for that matter, the services of any other person) should be provided with no compensation when, at the same time, those who are asking for “a favor” are still receiving their proper compensation and, on top of that, they also benefit with my work. I find that situation at best problematic and, at worst, totally unjust.
“We don’t have a budget,” I was told. Well, just because you don’t have a budget are you going to conclude I am under obligation of work for you for free?
One more time: every single called I got was about a good cause and a good program and, because of that, it is a good thing to help them. Yet, I still fail to see the benefits of giving away years of education and expertise as if there was no value in then.
Even worst, I have seen how the advice I provided and the suggestions I shared are latter incorporated into plans, proposals, requests for grants, and job descriptions benefiting directly the income of those who asked me to work for free.
I know very well that just a few of the many opportunities I receive are for me. Most of the time, those opportunities are to be shared with others. And if others can take advantage of those opportunities, so be it. It is a win-win situation for everybody.
At the same time, I can’t accept the confusion between my willingness to help with the imposition or the expectation of always and only offering my services for free. I will keep helping as much as I can. I will not change that. Yet, the time of “I know him and therefore I will ask him to work for free” is over.