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Obviously right? Not really. As a connoisseur of daytime court shows, one would expect to have seen human stupidity in business enough to know better than to perform a task, provide a service, or sell any product without some form of written agreement right?

What many miss is the fact that there are individuals out there know how to throw you off task and get work out of you without signing a thing.  One popular tactic is “The Emergency Project.” This is a project that often due to poor planning on the part of the organization) needs to be done immediately.  Because the turnaround is so tight, there is no time for “outlining the schedule”or “defining the terms of the agreement.”  By the time you realize you need an agreement, it is too late. They don’t understand why you need it-”What you don’t trust me?”

It actually has very little to do with trust. Having a contract, memorandum of understanding, or letter of engagement is a solid way to ensure that both parties are on the same page. There is absolutely nothing worse than completing a project without a contract and having the client tell you it is not what they wanted and they are not paying you.

Know this: There are clients out there who are familiar with this loophole and have a history of getting things done for free or at deep discounts because of it.

My advice: Get it in writing. If they have a problem putting something in writing, it is because they not you who has something to hide.