When Money Is Hardly A Motivator Anymore - What Do You Do?

[Stayer]

At 17 my goal was to become Australian and well-off along the way as Immigration through studying cost around 100k.

So, after working for 12 years as an Affiliate Marketer and getting two Degrees along the way (one at home and one in Australia, both full-time), I got my citizenship last year and I can buy pretty much any toy I want, except that I kept educating myself and discovered that I don't really need any.

What I also discovered is that I hardly worked last year at all. I realized that there is a whole world to explore outside the computer screen in front of which I spent 12-16 hours a day for the last decade.

I admire my dedication of working such long hours every day with no weekend breaks or regard for health for years at a time. But now as I look at those years of my life - they appear to be the years when I felt the most miserable. I had sex for the first time in 8 years one year ago.

Sure, I thank myself for the commitment I made in my early 20s, but I somehow got smarter or something as I can't justify going the same route and putting the same amount of hours while sacrificing health for myself anymore. Over those years I read books ranging from The Fastlane Millionaire (which exactly describes the reason why I made money, although through Affiliate Marketing which MJ don't like) to mind-changing The New Earth from Eckart Tolle (which helped me stop being stressed out everyday about the possibility of not reaching my goal of 1M in bank account before I turn 30). Last year I started doing meditation, working out and eating better. So my mind is sharper than ever now, that's why it simply doesn't buy into the bullshit of needing more money to feel happier to keep me going, which it did before.

My goal now -

I still want to reach this 1M. I probably made it in sales but the idea is to have it in the bank account. The Affiliate Business model I used before will not allow me to go much further, hence the reason why I need to find a motivation to start something new.

My excitement now -

Last two years I get contacted by friends of friends who known that I make websites and ask me to make a website for their business here in Australia. I find doing this very satisfying. Years of working for myself taught me discipline so I don't F*ck around with clients. This is the reason I get recommended, I believe.


My question now -

How do I get the same drive I had back? These days, I also feel like I'm getting closer to comprehension of the idea that serving people comes before the money since the money can only motivate you to a certain point.

 

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[Rickson9]

Excellent question. Once you have enough money to buy anything, what do you do with your life? Do you spend your limited years just making more money and then die at whatever enpoint that you reach?

Drive and passion are impossible to predict. They're as flighty as the wind. However, there is a difference between external and internal motivation. Good luck on your self discovery!

 

[InLikeFlint]

I think a good motivation could be a lifestyle of freedom to travel, look at all the cool pictures of remote islands and use it as motivation to vacation there someday.

Personal matters aside, you could look to do something to better the world. For example, donate a portion of all of your earnings and profits to charity, make a website that will inform people on an otherwise forgotten brain condition. Establish a legacy that will remain standing long after you have passed.

 

[stranger]

First of all, I'd go traveling if I were you. Visit new places, meet new people and etc.

 

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[InMotion]

Novelty usually wears off anything physical. Experiences are where its at I believe.

 

[SeanKelly]

I had sex for the first time in 8 years

I respect the fact that you lasted that long. I would've certainly lost my sanity and die hahaha

 

[Alana]

I think it’s the challenge in itself that pushes me more than the goal of big bucks. Living in a remote area (see my bio for specifics), it teaches me how little physical social status goods (like expensive jewelry, name brand purses, tailored clothes) mean very little in the big picture (if anything). I have all that stuff in boxes in my closet….who am I going to wear it for? My goats? I’m too busy enjoying myself outside, getting my hands dirty and living the farm life that I always wanted to live to be bothered with any bling. Granted, that doesn’t mean I spend my days in a moo-moo and dreadlocks. I wear jewelry/makeup every day, but I do it for myself and not to impress anyone.
Heck, I just realized that it’s been 3 months since I spent a single dollar— I have everything that I need and since I’m temporarily snowed in, I haven’t even purchased any gas or groceries since November ’12. Again, this doesn’t mean that I am rejecting money (and there is always things that I’d like to have or that the farm could benefit from getting), but overall I’m pretty good: I have my health, my husband, our farm/mountain. Life is sweet.
But I still like the challenge and the excitement that comes with business. I still get excited when I go on kickstarter.com and see all the start up businesses and I still love to critique business plans. You can take business gal out of the city, but you can’t take the business out of the gal.

 

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[Alana]

Here's an article by Forbes on what drives entrepreneurs:

What Drives The Best Entrepreneurs? Hint: It's Not Money - Forbes

 

[GuestUser8117]

One word. Freedom. Freedom to live how you want the live rather than living the life you need to. Freedom to the travel. Freedom to write a book. Freedom to play music. Freedom to start a business and create value just for fun, etc. Working is the last thing I would do if I didn't have to.

 

[haosmark]

Competition is always fun. Find yourself a rival and beat them at their game.

 

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[EastWind]

Find your life calling!

 

[nitrousflame]

Why do you want $1M?

If a simple dollar value is your goal, then ask yourself why?

Everyone will have different reasons to get motivated, but you must first describe your desire to yourself. For example, a couple of my friends were planning a week long trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Northern MN last spring and invited me along. I hadn't been for a couple years and definitely wanted to go, but I had just started a new J.O.B. and didn't have any paid time off built up yet so I regretfully declined.

They still went and had a blast without me.

After that, I told myself "never again." I made a commitment to myself that I would never let my job get in the way of an opportunity for life experience.

So then, more broadly, my motivation is freedom.

Find something you want, tell yourself why you want it, and let the motivation form naturally.

 

[JEdwards]

Competition is always fun. Find yourself a rival and beat them at their game.

It's all a game. Treat it as such..

 

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[Stayer]

Why do you want $1M?

If a simple dollar value is your goal, then ask yourself why?

I asked this question myself and stopped worrying about not reaching it in time.

These days I see more reasons not to go for it, eg. the sacrifice of the health and my sanity for a number in the bank account seem crazy to me. I don't base my self-esteem on the amount of money, anymore. I don't need to prove myself either.

My reason for having my first 50k-100k was paying for studying abroad in order to be able to immigrate to Australia (I'm of Russian origin). That was a damn good motivation. Not sure if you can buy a more drastic life change for the money (definitely, not for 1M).

 

[Stayer]

It's all a game. Treat it as such..

Yeah, I think that's how I slowly progress into seeing this whole money thing. Once your self-image becomes independent of how much money you have, you become a different type of player. You start noticing stuff you didn't see before, how the money flows, how the prices are set, what agendas people have and so on.

Despite making good money as an Affiliate Marketer I didn't learn much of the psychology except for my own as it is a lonely job. (in fact, I realized why I was making money only after reading MJ's book - I followed the process somehow intuitively). This is why, I find it pretty entertaining working as a web-designer for my friends. I discover different personalities, others' work ethics, concerns, get to meet old-timers who put some business sense into me. That's probably where the fun is.

 

[Brander]

Having done the immigration to Australia thing 10 years ago as yourself, the same staring-at-the-screen, to be in a position to not worry about income, even if I stop working, I have eventually come to the same predicament as you about 2 years ago.

My advice would be to experiment with various things. What stuck with me was "As a lower bound, you have to like your work more than any unproductive pleasure. You have to like what you do enough that the concept of "spare time" seems mistaken."

Probably the clearest thinking I have ever read on the topic:
How to Do What You Love

 

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[andyredsox]

• Serving people is right, but always think of yourself first. The best way to treat yourself is go out, travel to the coolest place around the world, relax and have some fun. Meet some new friends, motivate. And to make sure that your money will not go to waste, invest a small business, and maybe, you can reach your goal.