Why High Level Financial Goals Are Bullshit
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This is a short post about something I was discussing today.
(I have a proper post coming up in the next few days which will kick some serious ass).
Anyway I was talking to a business associate about how much I hate the whole “set a high level financial goal to motivate you and set you to figuring out how to obtain it”.
IMO this type of thing is Business Guru Bullshit that’s designed to get people hyped up about the amount of money they’re supposedly going to be making so that they’ll buy “Guru Products” that will help them get to that goal *cough* *cough*
Let me tell you about myself, and see if you can relate to my current beliefs about this topic.
I’m a type A personality. I’m already trying to be better then the best. Not for money, but just because I WANT to be the best. I want to be known and recognized as being the best. And I don’t just want people to think and say that about me, I actually, INTERNALLY, want to KNOW that I’m the best. Like 15000% KNOW there’s NO ONE better then me at whatever I’m doing.
I don’t need the pressure of “making $2 Million in 2 years” to make me want to train, study, implement, fail, question, get coached, ask questions, improve, and so on to be the best I can be.
In fact, having that tangible financial pressure has made me feel downright miserable at times in the past. Oh look, it’s one year later and I don’t have my first million, why am I so unlucky? Or AM I unlucky? Maybe I’m just really bad at this…
Truth be told I look back at a lot of my huge financial goals and my skill level at the time and I think “Man, I was really good for how long I had been picking up that skill - I really should have been high 5′ing myself for being as good as I was at that time.”
Instead I was questioning myself and feeling really shitty.
As a somewhat seasoned entrepreneurial vet at this point I don’t even care about financial goals any more.
Because wanting to have $1 Million, $100,000, $10,000, or $10 Million doesn’t INCREASE your ability to ACQUIRE that money AT ALL! If you’re a new entrepreneur, let me tell you, you don’t even have enough information to CONCEIVABLY UNDERSTAND how a $10 Million business functions. Wanting to have that much income won’t increase your brains ability to figure out how to get it - because your brain doesn’t even have enough pieces of the jigsaw required to put the picture together - never lone IMPLEMENT that picture!
In fact it only increases the likelyhood that you will SPEND some of your money (like consumers do) on GETTING more money! Which is totally crazy!
MYTH: You have to spend money to make money.
TRUTH: You have to RISK money for the POSSIBILITY of making more money.
REALITY: Unless you know the market, the media channels to reach the market, the expected ROI on an advertising spend, your lead gen conversion rates and so on - you’re acting like a consumer when you spend money trying to make more of it. You’re not risking money for the possibility of a higher return - how could you be? - you don’t even know what the numbers are! That’s not a risk! That’s financial suicide! And you’re a sucker the punters are hoping to make a profit on.
Sorry!
So the next time you hear someone telling you to write down the amount of income you want to receive and then tell you that you need to formulate a plan for getting that money - you RUN - because you understand that wanting the reward for a skill you don’t have, doesn’t increase your ability to get that skill.
And in fact it is quite possible you will become disillusioned in your efforts to acquire that skill if you’re doing it for the skills payoff - instead of for the sheer enjoyment of knowing you have the skill.
Okay?
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October 5th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
I think if you’re not trying to be great at what you do, for the sole satisifacation of being great at it, then you’re destined to lose… if you look at your job and need financial rewards (although they are nice) to make you feel “successful” then pick a new career… I’ll take building a successful company, and being able to say “look what I made” over lining my pockets with cash anyday
October 6th, 2007 at 4:26 am
I agree that saying that you need to make X amount of dollars doesn’t do squat. What is needed, however, is a plan of action, not to make such and such amount of money, but as to what you want to have your business do. I’m not talking about a business plan, per say (although that is very important), I mean a future timeline for what you want your business to become. I tend to have my existing businesses come together and build new businesses, and I plan to continue that trend in the future.
October 6th, 2007 at 6:44 am
@DeMerchant: Exactly.
@Desty: I like the way you talk about merging your businesses. Good insights.
October 6th, 2007 at 11:06 am
I find big non-monetary goals useful but only if I let go of any emotional attachments to them i.e. have the inspiring goal, maintain a care free in the moment state of mind and go for it.
This is doable if you commit to daily mental and emotional fitness with meditation etc. It completely takes the stress out of the issue.
October 16th, 2007 at 5:42 pm
Fucking GOOD post.
This is EXACTLY true.
As soon as I dropped all my BIG
monitary goals and started making
series of smaller goals that I accomplished
1 after another I started “making it” because
each time I had a goal where the skill to
make that goal was either in my reach or
VERY close to being with in my reach.
And now I have the income and lifestyle that
all the people going to the thousand dollar
seminars are looking for.
Not because I dreamed big but because I
got busy improving my self and then
USING those improvments to simply ACT.
T