‘To earn more money, figure out how you can create more value in the life of others.’, Tony Robbins.

The money you make = how many people you are doing something for that they like and use and need, etc. Add value to lots of people’s lives and you will make lots of money. For example: Jobs with the I-products, Zuckerberg with Facebook. Of course you need a business model for it as well. An idea by itself is nothing, it’s the execution that’s key. Actually delivering the goodies, actually improving people’s lives in some way. 

Like I get about 20 dollars if I teach a student one hour of Dutch. That’s peanuts, but it’s a direct reflection of the amount of value I’m creating in that person’s life.

You could say: but what if you’re extremely nice to that student, isn’t that extra value? Yes, and I don’t get paid for that. It’s just who I am, I very agreeable by nature, unless a situation or a person really violates my value system.

But perhaps that student will talk about me, and I’ll have more clients, which means more value, more money. Of course, if I can create a website where people go to learn Dutch, and 2,000 people go there every month, and I ask 5 dollar per user per month to use the website. Then I have created so much more value in other people’s life, that I get 10,000 dollars per month, and that’s a good reflection of the amount of value I’m creating.

So if you want to raise your income, find a way to deliver something of value to a large number of people. An other possibility is to offer a rare service to a very rich person. If you could be the personal assistent to a very rich person, you could say, ok, now you get a lot of money and you create value in only one person’s life. No, because that rich person is probably creating lots of value, otherwise he’s not rich, so by being his assistant you still help to create a lot of value, so your paycheck will be high. This does not mean however that value and money are always morally good. You can sell weapons to a terrorist organisation, so you deliver a lot of value to that organisation, but your action is not morally good. There are different kinds of value, but almost always the value you create will get you an ‘equal’ amount of value. The value you create is not intrinsically good. The tabacco industry makes tons of money, because lots of people erroneously believe that cigarettes add value to their life. There are other exceptions as well. For example: someone can have a cushy job at an embassy or other institution and in no ways create enough value to really deserve that money. There are exceptions.

Bottom line is: the amount of money you make is directly related to the ‘value’ (good or bad, as we’ve seen above) you create in other people’s lives.

Some value cannot be measured and cannot be monetized of course, but I do believe that kindness, GENUINE kindness, is also value, and will be rewarded somehow, in less obvious ways. Apart from kindness being its own reward, I do believe in the long run it will also positively affect your income.

Of course, I hope that after reading this you will ask yourself every day: How can I create as much positive value as i can in other people’s lives?

I’m entirely betraying my communist formation now, when I say: I believe that we will be saved by well meaning entrepreneurs, just like Evan Carmichael always says.