For The Love Of Money

[Zeus66]

I've been known to go on tirades about how much I hate the advice to "follow your passion" or "do what you love." But I have to do a mea culpa about that. I'm guilty of it. I confess.

I haven't been clear enough about my dislike for that advice. I think it depends on how deep you go in your own assessment of the things you love. For example, I love to write. It genuinely gives me pleasure and a sense of accomplishment.

But, if I don't write about things that enough people are interested in, it won't serve to make me money. And that leads me to this...

My real passion is making money. My love of writing can either serve that ultimate passion, or it can work against it. Writing (like any activity) takes time. It requires an investment of 'time capital.' As such, it can either be productive or counter-productive as it pertains to the fulfillment of my ultimate passion - making money.

If what I write about has too small an audience, or cannot be monetized well, then my deeper passion (making money) will not be satisfied. I'll end up disillusioned and maybe even bitter.

So, I actually am following the advice to "do what I love." The crucial part, though, is that I will willingly alter other things that I love to achieve this ultimate goal. I might want to write about politics today, but that's counter-productive and takes away from my deeper love of making money. So I'll exercise my love of writing by focusing on a topic that will move me closer to satisfying my foundational passion of seeing my bank account grow.

I hope this hasn't been too opaque. Some issues are hard to put accurately into words.

John

[stsnelson]

John,

You did an excellent job of explaining it. Couldn't have done it better.

[eaglechick]

You've hit it right on.

The saying do what you love and the money will follow is a lot of crap.

Maybe it works for some people but not for me.

Maybe it is a combination of the two.

Point is to make money you've gotta do some not-so-cool stuff.

[Steven Wagenheim]

Depends on what's more important to you and at what stage of your life
you're at.

6 years ago, I did anything I could (within reason) to make money. I wrote
what I had to and marketed the way I had to.

Today, I do what I feel like doing (even if it means not working at all)

I'd rather spend my time today in the recording studio or blasting away at
enemy tanks than writing about IM.

However, if I do write an article on something or create a product about
something, it has to be something that I feel strongly about and love,
otherwise I don't do it.

Again, it depends on where you are at in your life.

So ultimately, yes, if money is your top priority, then do what you can
to make it. If it's not, then do what you truly love to do.

The problem is, many people think that money is the answer to all their
problems and then when they get it, they realize that it wasn't and they're
still miserable.

I know many people like that.

So it's important not to get caught up in that trap. Problem is, most people
don't know it's a trap until it's too late.

Me? I always knew what I wanted and then what I was going to do after
I got it.

Money to me was a means to have the things that I wanted most in my
life...time to do the things that I enjoyed the most.

Spend time with my family
Write my music
Play my dumb video games
Not be tied to this computer

I just celebrated my 25th wedding anniversary a few days ago and went
away to Atlantic City for the first time in ages. I didn't look at a PC for
2 days.

It was heaven.

Each person has to decide what they want and, if it's money, what they
are willing to sacrifice to get it.