Chasing Money Makes Me Absolutely Sick (sometimes…)
Just Want to Be Free
Wouldn’t it be nice not to have to ever think about paying bills, rent, food, etc. Unfortunately, I don’t have that luxury. Many people don’t. Starting a business, start-up, organization, what have you, certainly isn’t easy and making money is, for the most part, needed to make a lot of things happen in life.
It’s a Thin, Thin Line
The line between doing something that you’re passionate about and something that you do just to make you plenty of cash is pretty thin, shaky, and gray at times. Sometimes I find myself asking questions such as “will this make me money… is what I am doing now going to help me pay my bills… how can I make even MORE money from this deal?”
And guess what? That sort of thinking makes me SICK sometimes. Money this and money that. It’s like money can take over your life (if you let it.) Money can really destroy creativity, innovation, and even your spirit.
It’s sad when we are forced to decided between our passions / creativity and making money. And it’s not always easy being in that perfect sweet spot of harmoniously having both.
But Life isn’t Perfect
We can’t expect everything to be dandy and perfect, so most of us will work up to that point of freedom. Don’t get me wrong, we can all attain freedom at any moment. Freedom of the mind from stress, fears, worries, etc.. In this context, I’m talking about the freedom of not letting “money” poison our lives. Money is a great tool to have, but remember, it’s all about the person behind that money. Money doesn’t have power, people do.
Be careful when chasing money. It can really change people. Sure, I want to make money. But, now more than ever, I realize that I won’t let money destroy my passions and spirit. Don’t let money take over your life. If you’re busting your ass — right now — to be in a position where you can have that sort of freedom, then right on! Keep at it. But if you’re stuck in a rut of being mad, angry, stressed, and intellectually drained in pursuit of making that money and your entire life is suffering, then you are a slave and need to find the path to freedom.
5 Comments
lawrence
October 10th, 2007 at 10:59 am
it’s called paying your dues - unless you were born with a very shiny, big silver spoon in your mouth - everybody has to pay, pay their dues
for the weak souls out there, who can’t ‘afford to pay their dues’ - they’re the entreprenuial failures. nothing will be handed to you, nothing. you have to pay - not money, but your “dues”
if you don’t like what you’re chasing, then find another profession. because money doesn’t have the prettiest of faces
David Askaripour
October 10th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
hey lawrence. it’s true, nothing in life comes easy and those willing to fight through obstacles and walls will reap the rewards. the purpose of my article was to underscore the notion of being happy and content with such a pursuit and not letting the “money chase” take over your life — because it doesn’t need to. “weak souls” well, i’m not too sure about that. i wouldn’t call people weak because they decide no to sacrifice happiness for money — but i do understand what you are saying.
Jon
October 11th, 2007 at 8:24 am
“Money doesn’t have the prettiest of faces.” I like that, I’ll have to remember that line.
Nice post David. I’m coming to terms with balancing what I love with what makes money. I think I’ve always done a pretty good job of it but it just takes constant reevaluation and making changes as necessary. Thanks for the post.
David Askaripour
October 11th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
hey Jon. Thanks for reading the post — glad that you liked it. yes, reminders and reevaluations never hurt and they help to keep us sharp and on track. just keep your passions in perspective and don’t let money overshadow them.
Jay
October 14th, 2007 at 8:48 am
Hey guys, I wish I could say that money isnt everything but to me it really is. You can call me a slave and everything else but being bought up in an environment where my parents struggled to bring us up, all I have ever been able to do is to get by. I like to think of myself as intelligent being a student of life but the future for this generation looks bleak for various reasons such as increase property prices, influx of people entering country, outsourcing of jobs abroad, salaries not rising in line with true cost of living. Now I agree about finding the balance I wish I could but how can anyone whilst we have all this stress on our heads?
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