Consider two scenarios:
Scenario A:
Say, your friend asked you to help him with something that is your line of work. Whatever it is, this is what you do and you normally get paid for doing this work. Obviously, he will pay for your out-of-pocket costs (materials, fees, or whatever else you'd have to pay out-of-pocket). Do you think your friend should pay you
for your time? If not, great. If yes, how much:
- less than what you'd normally get for it, because it's a favour;
- same as what you'd normally get;
- more than what you'd normally get, because he's a friend and you don't need to be too competitive.
Scenario B (the other side of the coin):
Say, you have asked your friend to help you with something that is his line of work. Whatever it is, this is what he does and normally gets paid for doing that work. Obviously, you are willing to pay for his out-of-pocket costs. But do you think your friend should charge you for his time helping you? If no, great. If yes, how much:
- less than what you'd pay for it to someone else, because it's a favour;
- same as what you'd expect to pay to someone else;
- more than what you'd normally pay someone else, because he's a friend and you don't mind letting him make a few extra bucks off you.
Think of whatever you do to earn your living (trade, creative, consulting, government, whatever) and use it to assess your responses.
I have been on both sides of this fence and, I admit, I often felt conflicted by the dilemma. In other words, my feelings were not balanced/same in each scenario. I am interested to learn what others think of it.