Brad Wardell's views about technology, politics, religion, world affairs, and all sorts of politically incorrect topics.
Published on December 12, 2011 By Draginol In Blogging

I’m working a lot of hours right now.  But why?  At some point I think I should do some research on this.  It’s been years since I’ve “needed” to work from a financial perspective.  So what is the motivator?  Heck, I don’t even have a salary anymore but yet I love to work.  Clearly, I’m insane.


Comments
on Dec 13, 2011

You give the anwer to your question. "Heck, I don’t even have a salary anymore but yet I love to work." 

You like what you do. You're not insane, you're only part of the 0.005% of people in this world that like what they do to the point of doing it without earning money.

You need a money base though, and that's where the problem is. If everybody would have food, shelter and minimum heath care assured there would not be 0.005% like yourself but 75%.

But that's not the world we have yet, because probably people with power don't want to give up the power of controlling the masses with the most poweeful tool they have: fear! It's really sad but that will change. Maybe one more century needs to pass though.

on Dec 13, 2011

Well I think most people work just for the money.  Me personally, I have to work for money but fortunately I do love what I do, so I'm happy in that aspect of it.

Of course, I would like to be sitting on a beach all year somewhere...

 

on Dec 13, 2011

Well, who wants to seat by the beach all year? Kinda boring no? 

on Dec 14, 2011

The day I have a job I like is the day I am no longer working. It would seem Draginol is not really working, he is doing what he likes.

on Dec 16, 2011

We do not get paid for our hobbies, but often work very hard at them.  So the answer is simple - because you enjoy what you are doing.

on Dec 16, 2011

I get paid for my hobby, or for my work? I can't tell anymore

on Dec 19, 2011

adamsolo
I get paid for my hobby, or for my work? I can't tell anymore

You are lucky that your hobby pays!

on Dec 23, 2011

What makes you work is the feeling it gives you more prestige and status. This is the reason raising your taxes makes you feel like working less even though you don't need the money the taxes are taking. Makes you feel like your effort isn't esteemed.

on Dec 30, 2011

I think Daniel Pink's book (Drive) may have something to say here. I haven't read it myself (it's been on my list for a while), but I've heard the high level summary from a lot of different places: money isn't actually all that good a motivator for intellectual work, once you've hit a certain point where it's no longer something that needs to be worried about.

After that point, according to Pink, your primary motivators are autonomy, mastery, and purpose. That is, you get to decide what to do and how to do it, it's something that challenges you and forces you to improve, and you can see a greater purpose for what you're doing.

My guess is, you're well past the point where financial incentives have any real pull on you, and you're instead working on things that interest and challenge you, instead of just the ones that pay the bills. I wouldn't be surprised if you're enjoying your work MORE than when you were making money doing it, just because you're working out of interest instead of necessity.