Exploitation is bad and should be avoided. However, it is not always clear what exploitation is. For example, although we often fear it to be, a collaboration between people that involve a power differential is not always exploitative and knowing the difference can be difficult. In research, power differentials exist in the relationship between researchers and research participants, especially when the research participants belong to vulnerable communities, but also between professors and early career researchers. In this Brown Bag Lunch discussion, we will discuss what exploitation is, how to assess whether a relationship is exploitative or not, and how to avoid exploitation in relationships with power differentials.