Unpaid advice
How to Handle “Can I Pick Your Brain?”
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Someone asks if they can pick your brain. It sounds like fifteen minutes. It is usually the same work you invoice for, just without a price attached. Reply with a rate and a private link, not a free calendar slot.
The ask is the work
“Quick question” and “coffee chat” are how advice gets booked for free. The guest never had to decide to pay. Time can still be given away to people you choose. The rest get a rate or a fixed price before the call.
A reply with a rate
A useful reply names the work and the price. It does not argue about whether advice is free.
For an open-ended hour: “Happy to help. A 45-minute call is $X. Here is a private link — save a card, then join in the browser. The charge starts when the call starts.”
For a packaged review: “A portfolio review is $Y. Here is the link. Save a card before the call; the amount captures when the call starts.”
Choose hourly or fixed-price on the link. Hourly vs fixed-price covers when to use each.
You start the charge
Saving the card does not charge it. Money moves when you tap Start. If you never start the call, the guest is not charged.
Cost
Pricing and the merchant-of-record setup are in how to charge for a consulting call.
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