Beware of Proposal Snakes

let me know if the following scenario has happened to you. it happens all the time in the agency world. someone asks you to propose a solution to a problem. they claim to have difficulty visualizing things (that’s why they’re hiring you, they’ll say) and need items to be laid out carefully before them. they may seem pressed for time, or they may challenge you a bit and say they want to make sure you have what it takes to see eye to eye with them. you elect to form a few ideas and suggest a plan of action. you even make sure to state that this work is yours for the hiring and list fees. they snatch the work from your fingers and slither away with it — deciding they can now (magically) handle this without needing to compensate you. they may even bite your hand and offer that there’s someone else “more qualified” and pass along your work as instructions to them. this is highly unethical, downright-dirty business. proposal snakes meet karma. this is gonna hurt a little bit!