Please note: This is a guest post from Jeff Goins of Goins Writer.
“I had a million dollars and I spent it all.“ —Sublime
A few years ago, I made a million dollars.
I’m not saying that to brag, I’m just stating it as fact. I never imagined making a million dollars in my life, but I did. And honestly, I expected this accomplishment to make me feel… something. Significant perhaps?
Instead, I was left underwhelmed. Not empty, not fulfilled. Just indifferent. What, I wondered, was behind this feeling?
Around this time, I began to work on my new project which would eventually become Real Artists Don’t Starve, a book about creativity and business and why art and money can go together. So, here I was: writing a book on why money wasn’t a bad thing but not sure I believed my message anymore.
So, I did what I always do when I have questions. I asked my friends for feedback. One person, the preacher who officiated my wedding, wrote and said, “That’s great that you’re not overwhelmed by your own success. But I’m not sure underwhelmed is what I would be feeling if I were you. I think I would feel grateful.”
Oh, yes. Gratitude. That.
What happened over the next couple of years was a series of steps that led me to stop growing my business, focus on the things that really mattered to me, and put money in its proper place.
Money can’t fulfill us
I grew up lower middle class. My parents often fought about money and we were trained to not answer the phone during dinner because that’s when the bill collectors would call. I was afraid of debt and never wanted much money. I just didn’t want to need anything from anyone.
This ambition drove me towards success and before I knew it, I had launched a business helping other writers called Tribe Writers and was making ten times my previous income as a nonprofit marketing director.
Making money became easier for me. And I enjoyed the process. So I did more of it. I set higher goals and achieved them. I reached for more and obtained it. It didn’t feel greedy, more like a game that I wanted to keep winning.
Yes, it was nice to pay off debt and get nicer stuff, but I noticed after a certain point, the more money I made, the less happy it made me. It wasn’t that it made me miserable or anything like that. It just ceased to impact my life.
The research on this is interesting: once you get past a certain income level, more money doesn’t really affect your happiness at all. And after a certain point, it can make your life more difficult and more complicated.
What I learned was just because I was good at something didn’t mean I had to keep doing it. So I decided to stop trying to beat least year’s number.
Money is a better means than master
When he was at the height of his success, Walt Disney received a letter from a critic who implied that Mr. Disney was in the business of making movies just for the money. He replied, “We don’t make films to make money. We make money to make more films.”
For Disney, it wasn’t about the money, but he understood that it cost money—a lot of money—to make the kind of art he cared about making. He had to pay his artists, he had to pay for the film, he had to pay for the actors. It all cost something.
Of course, we understand this. For most of us, money is necessary. We have to buy groceries and pay the mortgage. Certainly, we can minimize our expenses, but money is part of life. What I learned in my very underwhelming year of making a million dollars is that—at least for me—the acquisition of wealth is not enough to drive me. There has to be some bigger picture, some greater vision that I’m trying to obtain.
My friend Stu taught me this when I was feeling disillusioned about my business. Stu is a very successful digital entrepreneur who runs a charity that builds schools in Kenya, and he told me, “Jeff, I stopped making money for myself a long time ago. What drives me today is generating income to build more schools. That’s why I do it.”
After I heard this, I immediately started giving 10% of the gross sales of my business to a fund that gets dibursed to various charities and nonprofits, including organizations like The Hope Effect.
It turns out, though, that money makes a better means than master. What I mean by that is if you’re doing your work to gain more, this is a pursuit that will leave you feeling empty, bored, and disenchanted.
Money is a bad metric for meaning
When I was writing my book Real Artists Don’t Starve, I was able to interview the fourth man who walked on the moon: Alan Bean. At roughly fifty years old, Alan left his career as an astronaut to become a full-time artist.
Everyone thought Alan was crazy. Who walks away from a job at NASA, after all? But he did it, and he ended up doing very well as an artist. As a matter of fact, if you go to Alan’s website right now, you can find his artwork on sale for anywhere from $50,000 to over $400,000.
In my interview with Alan, I made the mistake of saying art must have been Alan’s passion for him to leave his job as an astronaut for it. That’s when he corrected me, saying, “I didn’t leave my job as an astronaut because I had this creative urge. I left because I felt it was my duty to do these paintings to celebrate this great event I was blessed to be part of.”
Alan makes a lot of money off his art. But, like Walt Disney, he doesn’t make art to make money. He makes money to make more art. As a writer, I’ve accepted the fact that I have to make money off my writing if I want to spend most of my time doing it. But honestly, I don’t do it for the royalty checks. I do it, because I have to. It’s my duty.
A final warning
In the book Shoe Dog, Phil Knight wrote about his somewhat sudden success at Nike: “When it came rolling in, the money affected us all. Not much, and not for long, because none of us was ever driven by money. But that’s the nature of money. Whether you have it or not, whether you want it or not, whether you like it or not, it will try to define your days. Our task as human being is not to let it.”
This is true. Money affects us all, even when we don’t want it to. I realized this when I started making more money than I ever had. At first, it was fun. And then, it almost became a burden. I started to fear losing things I did not even possess just a few years before.
Finally, I took Phil’s advice and chose to not let money define my days. Like Alan Bean, I went to work because it was my calling, not because I was driven to increase. And at the encouragement of my friend Stu, I started using these resources to play my part in projects that were bigger than me.
And that actually did make me happy.
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Jeff Goins is a writer who lives in Nashville. His new book Real Artists Don’t Starve teaches creatives how to make a living off their creativity without selling out. Learn more about it at dontstarve.com. You can also visit him at goinswriter.com.
Sandy says
Great article. Money is not everything but it is essential.
Jeff Goins says
I like saying “it’s not everything, but it’s not nothing, either.”
Jeff Goins says
You bet! Thanks for reading.
Heather says
Wow. I’m at the very early stages of a business adventure ( thinking stage!), and it is driven by ambition to provide for my family in a way I haven’t been able to so far. I can only hope I will succeed as you have, and I am definitley going to keep the lessons you have learned in mind. Your post has given me more motivation- to be able to provide not only for my family, but for others as well!
Ashley Murphy says
First let me say, reading the blog’s title “becomingminimalist”, caught my eye. After last year’s second self-published book launch, Under Contract: Life in the Middle of Dreams. I begin thinking at the beginning of the 2017 year the direction I was heading.
I sensed the calling to step away from “writing”. Not that I wouldn’t write again. Yet, I sensed the calling for my “voice” to be heard in a different context. My daughter the year before had me watching YouTube with her. Dabbling in watching a few channels myself, I continued praying about the direction my voice would be heard. I sense the Lord calling me to start a YouTube channel. I looked around the room, “who me”? So, I begin learning a lot about the outlet. In my learning, I came across several channels geared towards “minimalist”. Minimalist is somewhat a natural characteristic of mine. So I highly value this blog and even more so this guest post.
Like Jeff, I didn’t grow up with a lot. At a young age, I married into a family who didn’t struggle as much as my family dollar sign wise. Pushing on, what most young couples do, we bought a house. We started with one, moving onto house number two a few years later, and onto the house we built. Which is our current house, all while my husband has grown a business and I came home from the outside work world to be home with the kids. A opportunity for me to live comfortable raising a family and focus on my marriage. In those years, I’ve had the opportunity to grown as an artist, something I was told once not to do because I’d starve.
I must admit, I was 26 when we built the home. I’ve learned a lot about happiness through living here these 13 years in this home. Lessons I wouldn’t trade and ones if I could tell my younger self not to build big. I spent the first several years filling this place up. And now I am back tracking to the bare essentials, a minimalist life style. I’ve for once been happy back scaling. I am reminded of my roots going up without much, it doesn’t take much. I believe we all must walk through similar paths to some capacity to gain the understanding, gain the balance, of living in true happiness. While making money to make more, you fill in the blank. More time for family, health and wellness, and our passions.
Thanks for being vulnerable here Jeff. I hope your post brings light to all no matter what finical path they are on. May they embrace the journey finding freedom.
Jeff Goins says
Thanks for reading, Ashley! I enjoyed reading your story, too.
Karen says
Hey Jeffery, thanks so much for that marvellous post. I’ve never wanted money for anything but travel. Houses, apartments, expensive clothes and toys leave me cold! In fact when I look at houses, I feel sad. I think because to me they are prisons, with lots of unhappy people living in them. I would live in a motor home, or housesit all over the world, rather than “settle down”! I’m 63 tomorrow so there’s no hope of redemption for me, is there!! Minimalism is my way of life. Thank goodness!
Boitumelo says
Thats a very positive way to look at fullfillment, happiness and money. Thank you
Jeff Goins says
I love travel! Money is best spent on experiences, IMO.
Anne Peterson says
Jeff,
Really enjoyed your perspective on the subject of money. Having struggled financially, it’s hard for me to believe that money would not make things easier. I’m sure that it would. But, I’m hearing you say that there is a trade-off. And I don’t remember ever hearing that after someone makes a certain amount the excitement is not there. Thank you for being vulnerable. I look forward to the day that money will not be something that stresses me out.
Jeff Goins says
Thanks, Anne. To be clear, I never said money doesn’t make things better when you’re struggling. It did for us. But having more and more doesn’t really do anything to your happiness. It can even have an adverse effect.
Tina says
I think people should try to produce as little garbage as possible. I have made things out of old paper, expired coupons go to the armed forces
John says
Great post, Jeff. I retired early from a high paying career in order to pursue my artwork and writing. It wasn’t difficult to adjust to a reduced income, and I’m finally immersed in the creative life I always dreamed of. We only get one life. Choose wisely!
Jeffery Goins says
I love that you did that, John. I’m a big fan of your art.
Krista O'Reilly-Davi-Digui says
I have preordered a copy of your book, Jeff. I appreciate this – money is not a big driver in my life (yet quite a useful tool) and most of the messages I hear promote acquisition, increase and appearance as indicators of success. I want a voice to talk about things that matter to me; I want the ability to eat simple, real food and pour out to others who are hungry; I want to live simply and go on mini adventures, to keep learning and growing and do work that feels meaningful to me, paid or unpaid, while I have breath within me:)
Jeff Goins says
I love that, Krista. I want those things too. And thanks for the support of the book!
Rosie S says
I recently changed to a lower-paid job because I think it will be more fulfilling for me and more in line with my talents and passions. Some of my relatives have been judgemental of this, or have not understood why I would change to a job that pays less money. Your article has encouraged me and reminded me of why I have made this decision – thank you.
Jeff Goins says
Wow! That’s incredible. Good for you, Rosie.
Tina says
Many years ago I worked at a job which
Internally made me sick. I changed jobs and loved my new job.
littleblackdomicile says
We are in an industry that historically has had the reputation of being for the wealthy. After 35 successful years, and still going, I’m happy to be part of our younger clients desire to accomplish all they want in their homes staying within their principals. Personally, the amount of money we’ve needed has always been “enough”. That number changes and evolves and is different for everyone!
Jeff Goins says
That sounds like a great perspective.
Tony W says
I read once your basic needed are met earning anything over $75k does not make you any happier.
I never wanted to earn a lot of money. I recently learned to use money as a tool and I seem to seek it more without I’ll affect.
It must be great being successful doing what you love.
Jeff Goins says
I’ve read that, too.
Kathy says
The $75K figure is rather arbitrary, given that it will enable you to live like a king in certain areas of the country and in others it will keep you barely out of the ghetto but still driving an old beater car and purchasing hamburger instead of steak at the local discount grocery store. I think most of us never quite reach our ideal financial figure because the figure keeps moving higher as we compare ourselves to the new set of Joneses with whom we feel obligated to keep up. But when we stop that sort of financial one-up-man-ship and start focusing on getting a house that will be the right size for our family and in a safe neighborhood, getting a car that is reliable and has the feature we most care about (whether amazing fuel economy, comfort for long road trips, or whatever), purchasing clothing that fits well and is flattering, and stop caring about name brands and labels and impressing others… Oh, the freedom that brings!
A quote from my childhood that has always stuck with me:
To have enough to share,
To know the joy of giving,
To thrill with all the sweets of life,
That is living.