I hate thinking about money now

You might be interested to know that there is such a thing as a social enterprise. These companies (and I consider my company one of these) are for-profit companies that also seek to serve a social good. A couple of better known examples include Tom's Shoes (estimated revenue $300 million), Better World Books ($65 million revenue), and the Grameen Bank ($175 million revenue). Somehow I don't think they have any trouble putting food on the table.

As to the OP, you might be interested in reading some of the resources on the website of the B-Corporation (Welcome | B Corporation), a non-profit which certifies businesses as social enterprises. The London Guardian also has some information on sustainable business (Guardian sustainable business | Guardian Sustainable Business | The Guardian). I also recommend checking out the Social Enterprise Alliance (https://www.se-alliance.org/).

And of course, you should also look into traditional not-for-profit organizations or NGOs.

No matter which course you take, you'll still need to think about money (even a non-profit has to pay its bills!) but it's certainly more than possible to make a good living without money being the only thing you think about.

No I just want to build a business where I am happy to get up each day, not one where I feel like I have to drudge out another prospect call for the mlm thing im promoting, or having to send out another clickbank promotional e-mail.

Wow. Just...wow. What a mindset.

Bottom line: if that's really how you feel, then self-employment is not for you. Stick with a day job and volunteer for causes you care about.

Ok,that being said...

I think you're going through what a lot of us go through at one point or another. You seem to be mired in the minutiae of IM, overthinking it and overwhelmed.

Been there, done that!

Time to step back and look at the big picture...and some key points:

1. You must deal with life/the world as it IS, not as you WISH it was.

It's so easy to get really upset about they way we think things SHOULD be. Why do we have to need something so crass as money? Why can't we all just live on a commune and help each other?

"All you need is love... </sarcasm>

You can spend a lifetime pontificating about such deep philosophical points. But the bottom line is we must all deal with life as it IS, not as we WISH it was.

You'll get a lot farther a lot faster if you accept and act on that premise.

You need money to live. You can either be self-employed or be someone else's employee. Those are really your only two choices. (Well, you COULD take up panhandling...)

Take your pick.

2. You want to help people.

Great!

You can do that by volunteering, starting/joining a non-profit, working for a company you care about or starting a for-profit business you care about.

Remember, you still need to eat and have a roof over your head. A for-profit business is also a vehicle to create value and make a difference. And there are many reasons to work for profit vs. doing non-profit work.

Think about human nature. We often don't value something if we haven't paid for it. That's just the law of the universe. Thinking everything should be free is a fool's errand. (If that's the philosophical road you're traveling...)

By definition, a for-profit business is an exchange of value. People pay for your product or service. When they buy, they want your product or service more than they want the money they're paying for it.

You're thinking business is about benefiting at the expense of others. That's self-interest. Short-sighted self-interest. Enlightened self-interest is about benefiting at the SERVICE of others.

Money and profit are inanimate. They're not evil in and of themselves. YOU imbue the good or evil in the business.

A FANTASTIC book I highly recommend to everyone is Money, Greed & God: Why Capitalism is the Solution and Not the Problem: Money, Greed, and God: Why Capitalism Is the...

Love, love LOVE this book! It compares several of the most common economic systems and the results of those systems over the years: utopia, socialism, communism, fascism, and capitalism. As someone once said "Capitalism is is the worst system ever devised, except for all of the others." So true!

It's not a big book and it's an easy read. Well worth it!

3. Assuming you still want to start a business, your next task is to pick a business that meshes with your values and goals.

Yes, you need to thoroughly believe in what you're doing. If you don't believe in it or feel like you're somehow scamming people, you'll never do what you need to do to be successful.

I understand what you're saying because I felt the same way. And I wanted a business I could feel proud of.

In my case, I took someone common business types and merged them together:

I really loved the idea of "offline marketing": that is, helping offline business owners market their businesses online. I'm an entrepreneur at heart and LOVE online marketing. However, I DESPISE the incestuous nature of IM. Nor do I like the often cheesy, scammy nature of IM.

So offline marketing was perfect for me. However, I tweaked the idea little bit more:

I decided to specialize in a specific industry instead of just local businesses: health and wellness. Health and wellness professionals aren't business-oriented at all and need a lot of help.

This is the PERFECT business for a few reasons:

1. I get to use my business skills to help others be successful in their businesses. That's huge because everyone always needs/wants more money and business failure rate is high.

When they succeed, it means they're happier, their kids get to go to private schools, they can move to a nice neighborhood, etc. There are a lot of personal and professional benefits.

2. Since their business is health and wellness, I have a hand in helping others get/become more healthy, lose weight, overcome eating disorders, cure or manage health concerns, etc. After all, if they couldn't attract more clients, those clients might not ever overcome their health challenges.

That's also huge.

So I kill two birds with one stone in my business.

3. By focusing on health and wellness, I avoid the incestuous nature of making money by teaching others how to make money by teaching others how to make money, etc. That was incredibly important to me.

I'm super proud of what I'm doing, knowing it helps others in a very real way, both financially and in their health.

That's what you need to do: find a business you love, that you can be proud of, that creates real value and meets your goals and values.

It may take some searching, but it's out there.

Good luck!

Michelle

Zodiax, Michelle (Nightengale) really hit it on the head. You need to change your mindset about money. If I were you, I'd read her post above several times until what she says really sinks in. It contains a lot of wisdom.

I love helping people. That's why I invested 6 grueling years of my life years ago to obtain a masters and doctorate in clinical psychology (in addition to 4 years for my bachelor's degree). When I had my own private therapy practice, was I taking advantage of my clients by charging a fee for my services? No. It costs money to rent office space, pay for malpractice insurance, market your services, attend continuing education courses, dress professionally, and so on. I also kind of like having a place to live, electricity, heat in the winter, transportation, insurance, and food to eat. Strange, I know...

When you go to a doctor, dentist, mechanic, and so on, do they provide their services to you for nothing? Do you get your clothing, food, Internet service, cell phone service, and so on, for free? Does the local gas station fill up your gas tank for free?

Money is a necessity. It's not "evil" in and of itself. Whether you strive to make 5, 6, or 7 figures a year is up to you. Some of the wealthiest people on the planet are also some of the greatest philanthropists. Not everyone "chases money for status". I didn't get two advanced degrees for "status" or prestige; they were a necessity for the career I had chosen.

There are myriad ways to make money in life that don't involve exploiting people in any way. You can help people and make money doing it - there's nothing wrong with that. Whether you make money "online" or offline really doesn't matter either. But it's a bit arrogant to insinuate that you're one of the "elite 1%" who understands what "real value" is, don't you think...?

Your attitude sucks. /thread

This forum isn't for entrepreneurs, it's for people wanting to make easy money on the internet.

Yeah I think my mindset is flawed.

What I meant to say was that I don't want to get up every morning doing something I hate just to grow a business.

I would love to grow a loyal customer base, under the condition that the purpose was nobel.

I'd feel guilty getting up each morning getting people to sign up for something like 'empower network' for example.

Even a nobel cause can turn a good man bad, because he sees the profits he is making and begins to focus solely on that.

In short, I think having a business means having a vision for humanity, and not having a vision of making it big as an affiliate marketer.

Also I struggle with depression and I am a sensitive individual in general. That's why I make threads like these. I am searching for my path into business development.

I am looking for something more than a bag of money, I want a bag of smiles, and money.

Yes I believe in hard work.

I just want to make sure that the thing I am going to sweat blood for, is noble.

Nothing would make me feel worse than going to the hospital trying to better my own bank account and nobody else's.

The last action stunt I did burnt me out, put me in depression, and made me question why I was doing what I was doing in the first place.

It turns out it was all for the wrong reasons.

Yes I can work super hard, and there is nothing wrong with that.

But I believe money should be a tool, not a master.

Like they say, money is a good servant but a bad master.

Money is just something that you can trade for other cool stuff. Why hate it? And where did this 7 figure fantasy come from? Most of us here just pursue internet marketing for freedom, even if we earn less than what we would working for someone else because quality of life is better this way, we feel.

Moreover, it really feels great knowing that you can earn as much money as you want as opposed to being trapped at an hourly wage job. Of course in practice this can be challenging but just knowing that your returns on your efforts aren't limited like that of an employee is one of the best feelings in the world.

People are wired differently; you may opt for working someone else and that's totally fine. Do whatever you want.

there are some great responses in this thread - in fact they are quite inspirational if you pay attention.

Zodiax, a large percentage of Warriors don't make money in the MMO niches - remember that there are something like 700,000 members in this forum so if you are basing your assessment of this forum by what you see in the WSO section, you are just not seeing the whole picture.

There are so many things you can do online, or offline for that matter, to make people's lives better - you just need to figure out what it is you want to do to suit your desires. I think you need to just spend some time alone and away from distractions.

Don't hate money - money is not evil but the lack of money causes more grief than good - while the accumulation of money can be used for so much good for yourself, your family, your friends, and whomever else you wish to help.

I wish you much happiness and success with whatever you decide to do.

Here are some tips that i have found to feel good and motivated about what you create/provide to earn money (products or services) :
->analyze your previous purchases of products/services and determine the strengths/weaknesses of each product/service, determine ways to improve the product/service, provide this improved product/service at a fair price.
->don't create/provide products/services that you would not consider worth to buy, focus only to create/provide products/services that you honestly think can help the buyer/user to understand/do something, you may earn less than the liars/scammers but you feel good and motivated about what you do and the buyers/users will thank you for your help.
->be the change you want to see in the world, but be realistic, your ideals and dreams can't change people or the system, you can only show a better way to live/see things/do things, some will follow, some will not.

nemo dat quod non habet

You can't give away what you don't have

This should be your mindset ALWAYS. Money is not the end all be all of things. It is just used as a means to help. Now tell me, Zodiax, would you be able to help your fellowmen if you don't have something to offer?

Some say volunteerism is the way to go, but I have seen a lot of these so-called volunteers unequipped with construction-building knowledge, so much so that they delay the projects rather than being a help. And some donations not worth giving away 'coz refugees don't have a need for the items given away.

Money, on the the other hand, is a universal barter for such goods. Remember money is not the root of all evil. The LOVE of money is. It's noble of you to disdain the greed attached to the green, but in this economy, getting allergic to it is certainly not a good idea. Just a poor excuse for being lazy.

Please don't throw the opportunity away. A lot of people would give a lot to be in the position you are now. Make the most out of it.