There’s someone I come across regularly outside work who always has the answer. They honestly mean well and pipe up with the best of intentions but whatever the problem (or non-problem) might be, they know what should be done. And feel obliged to share their opinion, expertise and assistance with everyone, solicited or not.
Being around this person has actually been a bit of a wakeup call for me. As a freelancer on a day rate it’s tempting to try and deliver as much value as you can, wherever you see an opportunity. To pipe up in an agency office that you know a great supplier for that project you’re not actually working on, a fab new website that the pitch team you’re not involved with should look at and some great stats to bring to life that presentation the girl at the next desk is working on. This might be adding value, but I’ve come to realise that it’s also probably quite irritating.
What do you think, agency folk? Would you prefer your freelancers to get their head down and stick to working on what they’ve been told to, or to add value wherever they can?
Yeah, boring answer but it’s got to be ‘depends’. I suppose the agency view is generally we’re paying freelancers a premium so if they know stuff that we don’t then great, throw it in. But if you were at it all the time and some of it we knew anyway then suddenly you’re in annoyance territory.
It’s all about context. If the agency cannot find someone… or cannot find stats… etc then that’s adding value.