Yes, I know…this is a very sarcastic and even cynical saying. Yet…there’s a big part of me that thinks this is true. Recently I’ve been doing some voice over work for start up YouTube channel. This was my first paid voice over work and I was really excited to be a part of the team. As I was focused on helping build the channel, I was doing things outside of what I was hired to do. As “the voice” of the channel, my job was to record great sounding audio of me reading scripts. I was killing this assignment…great audio, excellent/engaging script reads. Great! No so fast.
As the script writer was not a native English speaker, much of their script writing did not make sense. Ok, no problem I can work with the guy to help him along. It quickly turned into me reviewing every script and NOT getting paid for it. Ok…again, no problem. I’m a good dude, helping out another dude trying to make a better life for himself. Next, it was “Hey Daron, can you record this tag?”. Sure! Was I paid…no. You can see where this is going.
Without getting into the nitty gritty, I’ve decided to part ways with this individual…so the takeaway? The lesson learned? Know the value that you are bringing to the table and insist on being compensated for everything above and beyond your agreed upon duties. If they are unwilling to pay for services…find someone who will value your talent.
As for the dude…good luck in your future endeavors. You’re going to need it.
