I charge my friends for professional services

I guess the title says it all. I charge my friends for my professional services. These services include computer repair, appliance repair, and writing/editing services. If we’re friends and I’m doing something for you that I would ordinarily do in the course of my professional life, you’re going to pay for it. I can hear the objections now from those who believe work for friends should be free, but I’ll explain why I charge my friends and why you should charge your friends as well.

Photo by Theme Photos on Unsplash

Your time is worth money. On your personal time, you would like to do personal things, yes? There’s a phrase I use often, “busman’s holiday.” A “busman’s holiday” is doing something during your recreational time that you would ordinarily do in the course of your job. If you normally drive people around as your job but you find yourself driving people around on your day off, you’re having a busman’s holiday. If you spend your day troubleshooting computers, likely the last thing you want to do away from work is to spend time troubleshooting a computer. If a friend is asking you to troubleshoot their computer, you should be paid for it.

Paying for your services sets them apart as a business. If you’re giving your friend the benefit of your professional services for free, they’re not going to value your services or your time. They will not believe the product of your…