Working in the Gift

 

I don't have a pricing model or a fixed fee. Instead, I offer my work as a gift, trusting that you will gift in return what you think is a fair value for my work.

 

I offer my work as a gift for a number of reasons:

 

Value

My partner and I travelled in South America for a year, without any money. The journey changed our lives. I feel I learned something about the true value of things, and I believe that money can distort value. I won't let money be the driver behind the quality of my work, nor do I want you to feel that you can't afford to hire a freelance copywriter.

 

Faith

I trust people, and I believe that if I work to the best of my ability then I can produce quality work that will add value to your project and so to your life. And I believe that you will return my gift fairly. It's not about money, it's about mutual trust. I want to come away from our work together feeling complete, happy with my work and satisfied that you are too. 

 

How Does it Work?

Really well, in fact. Across the world there are now many organisations working within the gift; coffee shops and law firms, web-developers and farms, publishing houses and freelance writers. Open source software and the Creative Commons operate within the gift too. There's even going to be a gift-based pub opening in Ireland soon. The Gift Economy is an ancient concept which is undergoing an exciting revival. I want to be part of that and invite you to dive in too.

 

So, once I've offered you my work as a gift I trust that you will value it honestly and offer an appropriate gift in return. This could be through the traditional means of a money-based gift, referrals to your friends and colleagues and those within your social network, or perhaps you'll consider a skill exchange, or the trade of goods. Maybe it could be a combination of the above, or none of them. Whatever you choose, I will offer my work to you as a gift. There will be no formal contracts or strings attached.

 

If you'd like to read more about the Gift Economy I highly recommend Charles Eisentstein's Sacred Economics, which you can read by clicking on the image above.