How not to get exploited when you do things for free
Ok, we are hippies, freegans, economic transitionists. Whatever we are called, we don't really like money, marketing, bigging it up. We don't like what money does to people. We prefer to live in abundance, we love how the natural abundance makes us feel. The basket of veg that came from the garden, finding an apple tree busting with fruit, that is riches to us. The closest we get to persuing money is that I make insect repellent to sell, but I am not bothered with marketing. But the insect repellent I make is made with belief that making products as simple a possible, without poison is best for people, animals and the planet. If you believe this too, you might buy my bug oil or might buy something else. We are too much the hippies to shove our products down your throat. They taste crap any way. We believe that world of money is failing. It has always failed. It simple doesn't work, because the people that have the most want more and don't give a crap what happens to anyone else or the planet to get it. The 90% that live on less than three dollars a day use as much of the planets resources as the top 10%. We believe it is better to live in poverty than in the over consuming %10.
So we do stuff for free. We pick up free things out of skips, and fly tipped in alley ways. We give things away rather than put in the extra effort to sell it. We forage we grow our own. We give away stuff we grow, and refuse payment in money. We swap our time for favours. We do stuff and never expect any form of payment. If someone says they are broke, I give them a basket of veg. This builds a natural capital of friendship, not based on people owing us stuff, but simply a kindness of sharing.
BUT THERE IS A MASSIVE PROBLEM WITH DOING STUFF FOR FREE, SOME PEOPLE DONT GET IT!!!!!
Some people quest money above all things, if you offer them something for free, they will exploit you. They will pay a lip service to the gift economy to get free labour when they can afford to pay a person a right livelihood. Simply if someone has considerably more monetary wealth than you have and they don't understand that people have a right to a right livelihood, WALK AWAY.
You don't get to live comfortably in highest 10% without exploitation. and yes that means me, you and everyone you know. We are all in the top %10 of global income. The cheap chocolate from child slaves, the cheeseburger made from farmed meat served by a 17 year old being paid £4.75 a hour, we are all exploiting others to get cheap goods and services. This world needs to change. we need to be part of movement to redistribute wealth to the lower 90%, or get rid of money and live simply off the land. So buy fairtrade, don't strike break a fast food restaurant, don't buy sweat shop clothes, and don't do free stuff for people that can afford to buy your service.
I teach foraging. I have spent most my life learning and researching wild foods and fungi, and I love passing on the knowledge I have gained. I hate getting paid to it, I prefer to give away the knowledge. You see in nature nothing "free", it doesn't cost money, but it certainly isn't free. A wood full of fungi is a natural resource, it is not there to exploited by people for money, and that includes me. Now when I have being paid to teach foraging, I have deliberately undercharged for service. But rather than get people that are grateful, I get people that want more wild food for even less money, or whinge about the walk, or whinge that haven't come to eat "common weeds" . So I am put under financial pressure to over exploit nature for the entertainment for exploiters. I am made to feel like a prostitute with a nasty punter. Generally the more money people earn the more they simply don't understand the concept of "free". So at the moment I prefer to work for free for people that get it, but I reserve my right to demand a right livelihood from those can afford to pay.
If you want learning foraging contact us through facebook. stupidly simple facebook page.
So we do stuff for free. We pick up free things out of skips, and fly tipped in alley ways. We give things away rather than put in the extra effort to sell it. We forage we grow our own. We give away stuff we grow, and refuse payment in money. We swap our time for favours. We do stuff and never expect any form of payment. If someone says they are broke, I give them a basket of veg. This builds a natural capital of friendship, not based on people owing us stuff, but simply a kindness of sharing.
BUT THERE IS A MASSIVE PROBLEM WITH DOING STUFF FOR FREE, SOME PEOPLE DONT GET IT!!!!!
Some people quest money above all things, if you offer them something for free, they will exploit you. They will pay a lip service to the gift economy to get free labour when they can afford to pay a person a right livelihood. Simply if someone has considerably more monetary wealth than you have and they don't understand that people have a right to a right livelihood, WALK AWAY.
You don't get to live comfortably in highest 10% without exploitation. and yes that means me, you and everyone you know. We are all in the top %10 of global income. The cheap chocolate from child slaves, the cheeseburger made from farmed meat served by a 17 year old being paid £4.75 a hour, we are all exploiting others to get cheap goods and services. This world needs to change. we need to be part of movement to redistribute wealth to the lower 90%, or get rid of money and live simply off the land. So buy fairtrade, don't strike break a fast food restaurant, don't buy sweat shop clothes, and don't do free stuff for people that can afford to buy your service.
I teach foraging. I have spent most my life learning and researching wild foods and fungi, and I love passing on the knowledge I have gained. I hate getting paid to it, I prefer to give away the knowledge. You see in nature nothing "free", it doesn't cost money, but it certainly isn't free. A wood full of fungi is a natural resource, it is not there to exploited by people for money, and that includes me. Now when I have being paid to teach foraging, I have deliberately undercharged for service. But rather than get people that are grateful, I get people that want more wild food for even less money, or whinge about the walk, or whinge that haven't come to eat "common weeds" . So I am put under financial pressure to over exploit nature for the entertainment for exploiters. I am made to feel like a prostitute with a nasty punter. Generally the more money people earn the more they simply don't understand the concept of "free". So at the moment I prefer to work for free for people that get it, but I reserve my right to demand a right livelihood from those can afford to pay.
If you want learning foraging contact us through facebook. stupidly simple facebook page.
Comments
Post a Comment