David McElroy

making sense of a dysfunctional culture

money

VIDEO: Can we do things we love and expect the money to follow?

By ·

I spent a good portion of my afternoon thinking about the disconnect that most of us feel between how we make our livings and the things we would prefer to be doing. Are people lying to us when they tell us we can find our perfect work and that we can do the things we love — expecting the money will follow?

I don’t have answers to those questions, but it’s something I wanted to talk about, so I made a quick-and-dirty video to air my frustrations and thoughts.

Are you doing something you love? Would you rather be doing something else instead? Are you stuck doing something because it’s the only way you know to make a living? I’ve sometimes done things I’ve loved and other times done things simply for the money. I’m still looking for the way to be my best self and be paid handsomely for it.

Keep Reading

Related Posts

When you’re finally facing death, how many people will love you?

By ·

Warren Buffett is one of the world’s richest men. He’s widely considered to be among the world’s most successful investors.

But what does Buffett consider to be success? Is it your net worth? Is it some measure of cash liquidity? Is success found in being one of the top 1 percent of earners? Or something else?

In her biography of Buffett, writer Alice Schroeder tells the story about a time when Buffett was asked that question. He had given a presentation at the University of Georgia and was answering student questions at the end.

“What’s your definition of success?” one of the students asked.

Buffett’s answer said nothing about money or land or stocks or comparisons to other people. He was concerned only about who loved him. He told the student that when you reached the point at which you faced death, your only measure of success should be whether the “people you want to have love you actually do love you.”

He elaborated.

Keep Reading

Related Posts

Money isn’t evil, but obsession with money brings out worst in us

By ·

They were a picture-perfect couple who seemed kind and loving. They both worked in careers that involved helping other people. They talked a lot about their faith and about “doing the right thing.” They seemed like wonderful folks.

But when they got in the middle of a business negotiation in which I was involved, their nice words went out the window. Their masks fell off. They were suddenly greedy and grasping, trying to scrape every last dollar out of a deal — even if that meant cheating the other party.

I’ve seen this over and over. Money doesn’t change people, but it does unmask who they really are. When they discover money is involved, you find out what their real values are. You find out how little they’ve meant the sweet words of love and happiness.

I’ve seen another example of this ugliness in the last few days. I’m no longer naive enough to be surprised by it, but it still hurts me. It still saddens me. It still leaves me wondering what sort of monsters we become when money becomes our god.

Keep Reading

Related Posts