The right approach for me

I’ve heard and read the recommendation to always avoid doing speculative work for free. In most cases this advice refers to website graphic design, and is intended to avoid wasted effort and pilfered designs.

I’ve always found that the experimentation the most effective way to investigate new ideas, whether methodologies or technology. Frequently, these experiments — prototypes if you prefer — are also the best demonstration of innovative ideas to everyone else.

This conflicts with the avoidance of working for nothing. All this leads me to conclude that the correct approach depends on personality and the application.

My preferences are to follow my interests and keep prototyping. Why… because I’d do it in any case, just to satisfy my own curiosity. It would seem sensible to make use of this effort, but how?

Free access to a web application provides valuable user feedback and data on server performance. Whilst the rights to the software may be retained, running the application comes at a price. Server and network resources are necessary, but often the greatest cost is the man hours required to implement any software solution.

Website graphic designs requested during the bidding process is often a relatively finished product, open to misuse and varied personal tastes. This type of speculative work is best avoided. It’s too easy to burn time whilst gaining little interesting experience; graphic design at the mercy of personal tastes.

Software, including client-side scripting, comprises a range of different behaviours, and the best way to communicate functionality is with a working example. For me, this is where the ‘fun’ is to be found. Few clients would express personal tastes in code and the feedback on functionality can be very enlightening.

This raises the critical question: What price do I put on my time? The answer is not constant, depending on what I’m doing. In my opinion, fun can compensate for a reduced income. The less enjoyable the activity, the higher the price. I always consider this when deciding how to spend my time on a project. The meaning of the term ‘free’ is not confined to my finances.