Sometimes you have to do free work

Thinking short-term vs. Thinking long-term

Too many people think “short-term.” With short-term thinking the expectation is:

“If I’m doing work right now, I must be paid for it right now (or at least have the expectation that I will be paid for it after the work is complete). There is no such thing as free work because you work to make money.”

That’s a very close-minded way to think. Unless you create the new Instagram and sell your new app for $1B in 18 months of launching, thinking short-term is a great way to greatly cut your chances of being successful.

So, what is “long-term thinking”?

1. You try to do as much free work as possible because you know that somehow or another the free work you’ve done will funnel its way back to you with a paying gig, solid referral, or the purchase of one of your products in the future.
2. You understand that anybody and everybody can be a connection in the future, regardless if they can directly make you money or not.
3. Hard work always pays off. Unless you specifically pick a dead-end job, your hard work will ALWAYS pays off.
4. You know you’ll never be paid for your free work, BUT you know that you’ll at least learn something valuable while doing the work.

“Free work” can be a big project, such as creating a video for your friend’s new business. It can also be something small, such as taking 5 minutes out of your busy day to help someone via a phone call or Twitter with a problem they’re having that you know the solution to. Yes, 5 minutes is enough to set an impression.

With the rise of digital, this has all become so easy. Think long-term, don’t worry about money right now, and learn.