Should freelancers work for free?

The web community is great at sharing knowledge, but there's nothing like actual face to face collaboration for learning interesting new work processes and techniques. Designer Roy Barber has embarked on a project whereby he spends every Friday freelancing for free at a different agency, which, he says, gives him the chance to work with some of the smartest people in the industry. In return, the agency gets an extra pair of hands for the day and he writes up the experience and his learnings on his blog.

Barber told us that he got the idea for his project when he took on a work experience student: "I realised what a great benefit it was for him to work with me – he learnt about how to manage as a freelancer, which is something he wouldn't have got from a large company. He inspired me to do the same but in reverse: there are things that I can learn from larger agencies that I would never experience as a freelancer."

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

The Creative Bloq team is made up of a group of design fans, and has changed and evolved since Creative Bloq began back in 2012. The current website team consists of eight full-time members of staff: Editor Georgia Coggan, Deputy Editor Rosie Hilder, Ecommerce Editor Beren Neale, Senior News Editor Daniel Piper, Editor, Digital Art and 3D Ian Dean, Tech Reviews Editor Erlingur Einarsson and Ecommerce Writer Beth Nicholls and Staff Writer Natalie Fear, as well as a roster of freelancers from around the world. The 3D World and ImagineFX magazine teams also pitch in, ensuring that content from 3D World and ImagineFX is represented on Creative Bloq.