And, Orthros, I do believe that passion drives us. My father loved trucks, since he was 14. It’s a pretty blue collar job, driving truck, some would argue that was not the best job suited to take care of his children but my daddy loved it and when he passed away last month, he left his two girls with a home, three classic cars, and everything else he collected for 79 years, free and clear. He didn’t owe anyone anything. And, he did that by doing what he loved. I think there is really something powerful there.

I would offer a counterpoint to one point. I say (within reason) do it for the money, and the love will follow. :) Meaning you should always have maximum money as the focus on the work you do within reasonable guidelines (working hours, for example) and ethical concerns.

“Do what you love” sounds great, but is often not as responsible as dutifully doing what is financially best for yourself or your family.

Even if there wasn’t a financial gain to be made during those hours, you still could have used the time to do something better. Go for a walk, spend time with your family or just read a book.

The two typos are “intresting” and “pat racks”–and two sentences later, “vinal” for “vinyl.”

I looked at your popular post about “Want to improve your law school exam grades? Go here.” and found that you misspelled Gregory Bowman’s name every time you gave it (as “Greggory”).

It’s possible that you are losing potential repeat visitors if others also find these kinds of errors to be an annoyance.

While money does tend to follow passion, it doesn’t always come in the channels we design for it. :)

Brad

To a point, though it is missing two key elements:

- You should do it with excellence. You won’t start out excellent, but you should aim for it.

- People have to have a demand for what you provide.

You might really have a passion for a pro sports team, but most people will end up losing money on that passion rather than gaining it.

If you can get a passion that has a market, and if you will do it well, you should then draw the money to you.

Brad

Likewise, we can consider the opportunity cost of time, rather than money. Would that hour be best used working, cleaning my car, or spending time with my kids?

I think all these are real issues that cannot be solved simply by evaluating how much I make at work (even if I take into account the “real hourly wage” like you discuss in your past posts).

For the last tip, keep an eye on the personal productivity category here. I am a BIG fan of getting things done.