Since we are in a bullmarket, I see projects pop up left and right. Which is great, but I doubt most of them actually did the work to properly set up their teams.

As we saw in 21/22, one of the fastest ways a Web3 project falls apart is by bringing in freelancers without putting anything in writing. I’ve seen developers, artists and community managers sink whole projects simply because the expectations weren’t clear, the money wasn’t agreed, or the ownership of the work was left ambiguous.

A contract doesn’t need to be long or complicated. It just needs to make clear what the work is, how long it runs, what’s being paid, who owns the end product, and what happens if the relationship breaks down. It’s also where you protect confidential information and limit your risk if the freelancer walks away or delivers something that causes problems.

Too many teams in Web3 run on trust alone. That works until money or IP gets involved, and then the trust evaporates. The only thing that keeps everyone aligned is a contract. Write it down from the start and you avoid most of the disputes that can otherwise cripple your project.

A freelancer agreement doesn’t need to be complex, but it does need to be there. It sets expectations, protects your project, and gives you something to fall back on when things don’t go as planned.

At a minimum, make sure it covers:
- the scope of work
- start and end dates
- how and when payment is made
- ownership of deliverables and IP
- confidentiality
- what happens if either side wants out or a team member does not perform well needs to leave

That’s the baseline.

Without this, you’re just hoping for the best and hope is not a strategy.

ps. if i'm highly invested in a project I would even ask the teams to confirm if their corporate housekeeping is in order, or if they're just 'vibing'.

pps. thanks AI for this image wth