"Does free work sound like a bottomless pit of time expenditure, with no chance of compensation?"
I hear perspectives like this a lot. I'm glad the author of this post got it by the end of the article, but many don't. They complain about working for free.
Plenty of people do things, including volunteering for no money, because they want to.
If you don't want to do something, don't. If you do, do it and enjoy it or learn or get from it whatever you want.
If you're going to worry or complain about not getting money for it, you're probably doing it for the wrong reasons. Don't do it or figure out better reasons.
I hear perspectives like this a lot. I'm glad the author of this post got it by the end of the article, but many don't. They complain about working for free.
Plenty of people do things, including volunteering for no money, because they want to.
If you don't want to do something, don't. If you do, do it and enjoy it or learn or get from it whatever you want.
If you're going to worry or complain about not getting money for it, you're probably doing it for the wrong reasons. Don't do it or figure out better reasons.
Then enjoy it.