Success or Money? What Motivates You On Your Business?

Success or Money? What Motivates You On Your Business? Mind to Share?

Success or Money? Job or Business?

There's a reason why some people do things, and the reason they tell other people.

Most people aren't motivated by the money. That's just the results of being successful.

A lot of people I talked to over the years can trace their start in this business back to wanting approval or proving someone else wrong.

Maybe they want to be successful so their parents / family / loved ones look at them with admiration and are happy with their accomplishments.

Or maybe they are trying to prove to someone that they aren't failures, that they will be successful and do more.

If you look at most successful entrepreneur's backstories, their motivation is rarely about the money, the real drive that keeps them moving forward is some deep seated emotion that they have to validate.

That's what my motivation was. I was seeking approval from my father who thought I wouldn't be able to be successful without going the traditional route.

I proved him wrong, and the greatest reward I've ever gotten out of being successful online was not the money, but my fathers approval of what I was doing...

On his death bed he said he was proud of me and what I had accomplished. He wasn't worried about my mother struggling after he was gone. I would be there to take care of her.

That was my personal motivation.

Back in my former life I remember applying for jobs and meeting with the HR team as they run through the standardised questions for finding the perfect employee.

Over years I feel like I mastered answering the questions to a tee - I figure you know what they want to hear, give them what they want to hear, and usually you're onto the next stage of the recruitment process.

More often than not, one of the questions early on in the piece to sift out the stragglers in the line up for the job was "What really motivates you in your work"

They used to like an answer to be one of the following answers:

- I motivated by working with a successful team
- I am motivated by the people around me and being in a company that likes to reach goals
- I am motivated by KPI's
- I am motivated to exceed my manager's expectations
- I am motivated by being in a company that is the best in the industry

However now that the shoe's on the other foot and I don't work for the big guys but wholly and solely for myself, I wonder how I would answer this question if a friend asked me over a beer... really honestly, what would my answer be?

Am I motivated by the money
Am I motivated by the freedom
Am I motivated by the fact that I can wear my PJ's all day if I like
Am I motivated by the fact that I can travel and work without having to ask for annual leave
Am I motivated by the fact that I can work less hours or more hours and earn as much as I want based on my needs only

I can't really say which is the biggest motivator - but I can safely say that the freedom, the money and the ability to run my own show could come equal first in my life.

What's your motivation ?