Why You Shouldn’t Be In It For the Money

The science behind why it affects the quality of your work.

I’ll admit that part of what inspired me to start publishing my writing is the opportunity to make money. As a college student, I’ll take any chance I can to earn a little bit on the side.

Before I wrote my first article, I read all I could on how to be successful. Write as often as you can, proofread, aim for curation- all of the advice. And one piece of advice especially stood out- the key to being successful is to not be in it for the money.

Intrinsic Motivation Is More Effective

Intrinsic motivation is associated with increased vitality, positive affect, self‐esteem, absorption, concentration, effort, and persistence. Instead, extrinsic motivation is related to reduced engagement, performance, focus, stability, and increased fatigue. -Brummelhuis, Hoeven, Bakker, Peper

The difference is intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation “is an energizing of behavior that comes from within an individual, out of will and interest for the activity at hand.” Writing because you enjoy it is intrinsic motivation.

On the other hand, writing to earn money is an example of extrinsic motivation or an external incentive to engage in a specific activity, especially motivation arising from the expectation of punishment or reward.

You have intrinsic motivation when you do something because you want to or you enjoy it, while extrinsic motivation stems from an outside effect- earning money, gaining attention, or avoiding getting fired.

Intrinsic motivation is stronger than extrinsic motivation. If you are intrinsically motivated, you have more persistence, concentration, and effort in performing a task. You will write better if you are writing because you want to, instead of for the money.

Intrinsic Motivation Can Help Limit Burnout

Intrinsic motivation helps in the long run. Intrinsically motivated persons are better prepared to combat burnout and are more likely to pull themselves out of burnout.

When faced with feelings of burnout, intrinsically motivated employees have more personal resources that they can use to overcome this disadvantageous situation. -Brummelhuis, Hoeven, Bakker, Peper

Intrinsically motivated people have a more active coping style, meaning they actively search for resources to handle stressful situations. In the case of writing, this may be researching editing tools, participating in Facebook groups, and getting someone else’s feedback for editing.

Extrinsically motivated people end up in a cycle of burnout because they aren’t as interested in the work.

By contrast, employees with an extrinsic motivation have less interest and persistence in performing their task, are more pessimistic about the outcomes and feel less competent. — Ryan, Deci

Extrinsically motivated people are more passive and less likely to seek out resources. Because of this, it may take more effort to start up a task and can increase the likelihood of burnout.

Not only are intrinsically motivated people better prepared to overcome burnout, but extrinsically motivated people are also more susceptible to encountering burnout initially because of increased negativity.

Synergy Between Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Can Be Beneficial

Here’s the good news: being in it for the money isn’t all bad. If you are intrinsically motivated in addition to intrinsically motivated, it may create a beneficial synergy.

Certain types of extrinsic motivation can combine synergistically with intrinsic motivation, particularly when initial levels of intrinsic motivation are high. Such synergistic motivational combinations should lead to high levels of employee satisfaction and performance. — Amabile

A desire to make money, when combined with an internal desire to write, just might be the perfect combo. In a study where artists’ work was blindly rated on creativity by other artists, there was a positive correlation with both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations.

Not all extrinsic motivators can benefit you. Synergistic extrinsic motivators can complement intrinsic motivation and include factors such as money, defined goals, and feedback. Extrinsic motivators that are not synergistic include win-lose competition and expecting a negative response to your ideas (this can be exemplified as writing what you think people want to read, instead of what you actually want to write).

While you might not be able to eliminate all extrinsic motivators, it’s best to avoid factors that detract from intrinsic motivation, while maintaining others that support it.

The Takeaway

Writing only for the money will hurt your work because of a lack of passion. Extrinsic motivations negatively affect your effectiveness, as well as make you more susceptible to burnout. Meanwhile, the determination and efficiency associated with intrinsic motivation improve performance and increase your capability to deal with burnout. However, combining a desire for money and enjoyment of writing can increase your creativity.

Don’t be in it for the money- unless you’re in it for the writing, too.