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Fun and Money

Years ago someone pointed out to me that there are only two reasons to go to work in the morning: Fun and Money. Have some fun, make some money, call it a day. I firmly believe this to be true and have taken it to heart.

When a creative person launches his own creative services firm, it's with these two objectives of fun and money in mind, but in the beginning, it's really about the fun. The driving motivator is not really the desire to make money, but it's about the freedom to surround yourself with other talented, creative, like-minded people and together solve some interesting design challenges. The culture of the firm you are trying to create becomes very important. People need to be willing to work long hours, pull the occasional all-nighter and share this passion for design that radiates throughout the firm, beginning at the top.

But as the years go by things change. Those parts of the business that used to be rewarding are now draining. The people and passion that used to be exciting, are now frustrating. And what most owners will eventually admit, when they're ready to be honest without themselves, is that they want to make some money. Many artists, even artist business owners, have a hard time admitting this need for money, or admitting that part of the expectation of running a business should be profit. But the unavoidable truth is this: the fun gets drained out of the business when the financial reward isn't there. Fun without money is not a reason to go to work in the morning. Why is this?

I've come to see that most people have a less than healthy attitude towards money. Some crave it too much, but more often I see people denying their need for it. At the most basic level we need money because it is a store of value that lets us feed, clothe and shelter ourselves and our families. Beyond that, money can create the circumstances that bring us abundance in many different ways. Money doesn't buy happiness, but not having any can make one dreadfully unhappy. So let's admit we need it.

Moving up from that basic point, as business owners we also need to make money because we need to be able to provide for those who work for us. We want to be in a position of financial strength so we can ride out a downturn without having to let go a valuable, blossoming employee. We want to be a in position to help - ourselves, clients, staff, charities - when help is needed. Financial strength is an asset that allows you to attempt many things with security. One of my children once asked me why I go to the gym. My reply, 'I've been strong, and I've been weak. I've decided I'd rather be strong.' This decision to do what it takes to be strong, or be comfortable in your weakness is one that we all make about our health, about our moral character and our finances.

I will venture a guess that we need to taste strength first before we decide that it's a good thing and we want more of it. People who don't exercise often look at people who do and conclude that what drives them is vanity. People who have never experienced financial abundance look at those who have it and make judgments about greed. Once you have strength, you see that it is the root of confidence and opportunity.

The final point I'll make about money is that, in business, it is a yard-stick by which we measure success. And this, to me, is the most troubling thing about the seemingly endemic avoidance of profit I see in creative services firms. When you say you are not concerned about the profit of the firm ('just so long as everyone gets paid and we meet our obligations') you're really saying, 'I'm a business owner but I really don't want to be reminded of how well (or poorly) I've done in running this business.'

You need to make money, and lots of it, because you have undertaken an enterprise of which one of the outcomes has to be profit. Anything worth doing is worth doing well. Prove to yourself and others that you are good at what you do. Push yourself and see how good you can actually be. But yourself in a position of financial strength and you will never want to be weak again.

If the business is no longer fun anymore, then you're either not making money, or you've made all you will ever need. If it's the latter, your solution is obvious. If it's the former and you do decide to you want to make some real money, I think you will find that the fun will return when the money starts to flow. For all of the reasons I've mentioned above and many more, there is no fun like making money.