Pay for the trial you need

Integrity · Little Light original

Before choosing someone for a project, you want to see how they think. A sample seems reasonable. Then the sample grows: another version, a presentation, an answer to a problem your business actually needs solved. What began as an introduction has quietly become work. Wanting evidence is fair. So is recognising the effort required to provide it. Keep an assessment small enough to serve its purpose, or arrange payment when you need a substantial trial. Be clear about whether the work will be used. Someone's eagerness for an opportunity should not make those questions disappear. The way you select a colleague is already part of the relationship you are offering. You can be careful with a budget without treating another person's time as free. Build the opportunity so that a talented person with limited spare hours can consider it too. Fairness begins before a name appears on the contract, in the conditions under which you ask someone to show what they can do.

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