What's a four letter word that starts with F?

Why, it's the word "free." I'm so fricken sick of it. (Except when I gets me somethings for free.) Most of the time people ask me to provide design/creative for free. Whilst wogging with my fav client/friend last week, we discussed why otherwise generous people would ask a person to provide their services for free. It all boils down to the fact that people don't place a high value on a service as much as they do a tangible product. One wouldn't walk into Target and ask if they can have a BBQ for free, would they? OK, someone probably has, but that's besides the point. Services, alas, are just seen as time. Why charge for your time when you can do it for free?

The latest is a potential client that could have been a super fun project. Coulda. They asked me to come up with a few ideas for them. Normally I don't do design on spec. It's just not done. Shoulda listened to my inner manager on this one. But it was so much fun that I got wrapped up in the creativity of it all and went ahead and spent two (or three) hours coming up with two different concepts for them. Mocked 'em up and everything. They are awesome, by the way. I'm so in love with both. The sticky, stinking problem? The client has used another design firm for the past 142 years but they are starting to feel like they are being taken for granted. So the client wanted to "light a fire" under the old design firm and told them they would be compeating against Moi, the most creative and fabulous designer who wears PJs to work. I guess that indeed lit a fire. After the client ooohed and aaahhhed over my two awesome ideas, they decided to go with their usual designer. Why? Well the bitches offered to donate all their services for this project. For free! Oh, for pucks sake.

The other way of looking at it is that they had to give it away otherwise I would have swiped that account and they would be left boo-hooing in their stale design studio. I bet they don't even wear PJs at the office. I really love my two concepts. Now all I need is a client with a big print budget to use them with. We're talking foil stamps, die cuts, and the distinct possibility of embossing. Damn. What a waste.

B-School Update:

• I recieved my "official" scores back from the GMAT people. Not much of a surprise since they give you the unofficial scores when you finish. The only news was the writing assessment score. On a 0-6 scale, yours truly scored a 5. It's the 73 percentile. Average is a 4.3. Take that bitches. And I didn't even try that hard on the writing, I was saving myself for the purgatory known as the quantatative section.
  
• I have my entrance interview on Wednesday with an entrance interviewer. Will report back from the front.