For the longest time, I had this habit of doing things for free. Be it technical advice or product consultations, in my 20s I figured I needed the experience more than the money. It devolved into a habit, after which I kept doing it just for the sake of maintaining relationships. That just meant that I would get shortchanged by people and not create enough value for myself. People had a habit of asking for discounts or free work which meant charging money for my consulting gigs was looked down upon as being greedy. By not valuing my time or work, neither did anyone else.
Eventually, I felt drained. I was taught that hard work would lead to success. I felt like I was working hard, but didn’t really have anything to show for it in terms of earnings. I was giving away my time and energy without getting anything in return. Here are the lessons that I learnt about why it’s important to value your work and time.
Stop giving away your time
I felt it was okay if I didn’t charge for my work since I was not spending anything else on it apart from my time. It took me a long time to realize that time is your most valuable resource. You, me, a monk and a billionaire, all have the same 24 hours in a day. Ask a rich person if they will trade all their money for getting the last 20 years back and they will be delighted at the prospect. But the reality is, nobody can get that time back. Every hour that I was spending away, I could have done something that mattered to me. Learn a new skill, build something new or spend time with my family.
When I began to put a price on my time, I realized that I started being very selective about what I said yes to. My time was equally valuable as someone else’s.
It’s okay to charge for your expertise
I had this perception that charging for the work I do somehow meant that I was being greedy and swindling people. Just because it seems easy to you doesn’t mean it’s easy for someone else. The favours that I did for others snowballed into hours of work. Your skills, experience and expertise are worth something. Start valuing it.
Burnout is real
There was a time when I was saying yes to everything. That led to getting drained mentally, feeling like I had absolutely no energy left, waking up tired everyday or not sleeping the night before. It was not pretty. It was exhausting and took a toll on my mental and physical health.
By respecting your time, setting healthy boundaries and limiting the things that you say yes to you keep your energy alive, which leads to a healthier and happier you.
You teach people how to treat you
Ungli diya aur haath le liya (you offer your finger and they grab your hand instead) is a common Hindi phrase that we use for people who keep taking away from you. They would keep asking for more and expected me to do that for free and I used to get frustrated but still do the work. The problem was not them, the problem was me. By constantly saying yes to free work, I was teaching people that my time was not valuable.
When I started asking for compensation, there was a clear boundary of what I could or could not do in the given time. The expectations were clear, and people began respecting that. If they had a requirement that they really needed a solution for, they were willing to pay for it.
Saying ‘No’ is a form of self respect
I had this notion in my head that saying no to people meant that I was disrespecting them or being rude, so I kept yes to everything, then got frustrated when I saw my earnings and yet somehow still work and deliver the things that I had said yes to. It was unmanageable and I was about to explode.
Saying no does not mean you are being selfish or unkind, it just means that you are respecting yourself. When I became comfortable saying ‘No’, things changed. My health improved, my mood improved and I stopped constantly being on edge.
People won’t value what you don’t
When you keep doing work for free, people start assuming that your efforts don’t have any real value. It feels great feeling like the dependable, nice person people come to when they are stuck. But you realize that most of them only come to you when they don’t want to give money. If there’s a paid project, they will think of somebody else and not you because in their minds, they have tagged you as the guy to approach only for free work.
People kept approaching me for favours, and I kept spending time and energy on making sure that I delivered. When I finally put a hard boundary and began to ask for money did the situation change. The people who approached only for free work stopped, freeing my time. And I began to find time for people who genuinely wanted good work done, which improved my earnings. They began to respect what I did and more importantly, I started respecting it myself.
Value your work
When you keep giving away your work, you begin to devalue yourself and your own self worth. Money is what keeps food on the table and providing for your family. A work colleague was kind when he said “respect the work that keeps the food on your table”. When you work for free, you are sending out the message that what you do isn’t worth paying for.
Your work has value. Your time and energy have value. They are worth something. And the sooner you realize that, the better you will feel about yourself and the work that you do.
Start valuing yourself now
If you are in the habit of doing things for free or undervaluing yourself, it’s never too late to start. Don’t be afraid to ask for compensation for your time. Respect and honour your own work and others will start doing the same.
Getting paid for something that you have expertise in feels great. Respect yourself and your time. There’s only so much left of it that any of us will ever have.
[Featured image from freepik.com]