

Ask HN: Should i work for free to have a portfolio? - plasmid0h

Hi there,<p>i am a student at University finishing my School. 
I would love to freelance afterwards, but i have absolutely 0 projects in my portfolio.
Should i work for free to have at least 3-4 Projects in my Portfolio?
It&#x27;s a typical chicken or egg problem ...
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davismwfl
Honestly you shouldn't freelance right after school unless you already had a
significant amount of experience and projects under your belt.

That has no reflection on whether you have the right technical skills or not.
It is simply that you need project experience, mentoring and time seeing how
things really work versus what you get taught in schools.

As for working for free. No, unless it is for a charity or non profit etc.
working for free is a lot of times harder then being paid as your time won't
be valued the same. There are exceptions for people doing some marketing of
their skills etc.

If you want to build up some credibility and get some experience, help out on
an open source project or two.

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err4nt
There are two rates: 'pro', and 'pro bono'.

Every job you do needs to come under your 'pro' rate. No referral discounts.
No friend discounts. No family discounts, no ’deals' swapping services with
other freelancers. A professional charges a professional rate.

As a professional its important to charge a pro rate and get used to the value
of your work. when you are established and want to take on free work (pro
bono) THEN you can pick and choose which projects you will do for $0, but
theres not rate between full, and $0. Its also common when working with
charities to invoice the pro rate and then donate 100% back to the cause if
you aupport it. This invoice+donation still lets your client understand the
VALUE of what your providing.

Clients paying money, but less than you are worrh will degrade your perception
of your work, and are usually the worst clients you cN have because they ALSO
dont recognize the value of what youre offering.

Only take on pro bono projects that you can afford, and when youre starting
out you usually need the money.

My advice is be up front with people if you dont have a large portfolio, but
focus on the value you can provide them and collect the full amount that is
worth. They arent payong you for work you did for oters, ONLY what you do for
them.

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mod
Don't work for free, just build some fun pet projects.

I've had stuff like a poker equity calculator, craigslist monitoring program,
etc in my "portfolio" to showcase some different skillsets.

Obviously it helps to tailor it somewhat to the kind of work you'll be doing.

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nederdirk
I have totally no experience with this, but I would use a search algorithm to
establish your 'real rate'. Decide for yourself what figure you need to earn
as a bare minimum and try to sell your services for that price. After getting
a job, you know one price you're not worth. Raise your offer price by twice
the amount you think would be fair and try to find new work. Measure and write
things down, as far as possible avoid selling for the same price twice, don't
lose confidence in yourself.

Add: Don't listen to me, davismwfl's advice is better.

