Totally. I am a corporate lawyer and I specialise in contracts. People (who are in a position to pay) ask me to just glance through an agreement and highlight any red flags or hit them up with templates lying around all the time. All the time. These people are employed, own businesses, and can easily afford to pay me for my services.

I usually just tell them that I have a lot of paid work pending, and I don’t have the time right now to take up their requests. Which is true. Why must I make a paying client wait to do something for free for someone who doesn’t value my educational degree and time.

A lot of times, these people are ‘acquaintance sort of friends’. Networking does have its downside.