Work to Become, Not to Acquire

9 min read

Someone sold their company for millions of dollars at age 31 and wrote on Reddit: “I thought this was the dream and I’d be happy forever… until I wasn’t anymore.” He optimized his life for maximum comfort.

playing games whenever he wanted, waking up whenever he wanted, having no reason to get out of bed. The result: lonelier than ever and severely depressed.

This story is not an exception. It reflects a common contradiction that few people voice. We use almost all our energy to adds — more money, more customers, more assets — but rarely stop to ask what they are becoming become who in that process.

The Hedonic Treadmill — why “having more“ is never enough

Specifically, Philip Brickman and Donald Campbell named this phenomenon in 1971. They studied lottery winners. The result: just a few months later, their happiness levels returned to nearly the same level as before winning.

This mechanism explains a familiar phenomenon. Small business owners who achieve 5 billion/year in revenue feel excited for only a few weeks. Then they start thinking about the 10 billion milestone — not because 5 billion isn't enough to live on, but because their brain has “updated” its new normal.

The guy who sold MVMT realized this through what he called the hedonic treadmill. He said: “The only way to achieve the same level of excitement is to open a bigger company and make more money.” But that's extrinsic motivation.

External motivation has an important characteristic. It always requires increasing doses to maintain effectiveness. Like a drug the body has grown accustomed to.

Two ways to measure self-worth: competence or possessions

Elbert Hubbard once wrote: “Work to become, not to acquire.” This statement clearly distinguishes two ways of investing one's life energy.

The first approach measures value by what you có: how much money is in your account, what car you drive, where you live, what your title is. The second approach measures by what you là: your problem-solving ability, depth of thought, how you react to adversity, and the level of trust others place in you.

This distinction is not just abstract philosophy. In the practical operation of a small business, it determines how you spend your time each day. Those who follow the “acquire” path buy more software, hire more people, expand office space —

believing that larger scale will bring better control. Those who follow the “become” path invest in a deeper understanding of how their business operates. They learn to build systems to reduce their dependence on themselves. And they train their ability to make decisions under pressure.

One side accumulates resources, the other accumulates capabilities. When the market changes suddenly, resources can lose value overnight. But capabilities stay with you for life.

Intrinsic Motivation Creates More Sustainable Results Than Bonuses

Daniel Pink in his book Drive synthesized decades of research on motivation and identified three core elements of intrinsic motivation: autonomy (self-direction), mastery (proficiency), and purpose (meaning).

All three are tied to the process of “becoming” rather than “having”. Autonomy is the ability to control how you work — not how many people you control.

Mastery is a continuous journey of skill improvement — not collecting more certificates to hang on the wall. Purpose is knowing what you are contributing — not achieving more KPIs.

Furthermore, Edward Deci and Richard Ryan at the University of Rochester discovered something important. When monetary rewards are used as the primary motivator, creative performance significantly decreases. This may sound counter-intuitive, but the mechanism is very clear —

bonuses shift attention from the intrinsic nature of the work to the reward, turning a meaningful activity into a transaction. For small business owners, the implications are clear. If the only reason you work is to increase revenue, then any day revenue doesn't grow becomes a day of lost motivation.

But what if you work to become a better problem-solver? Even the toughest days have value — because challenges are the raw material for growth.

Four ways to shift from “owning“ to “becoming“ every day

Therefore, the shift from a mindset of owning to a mindset of becoming doesn't require a major revolution — it lies in small decisions repeated daily. Four specific changes can begin immediately.

Invest in skills instead of tools. Instead of buying new management software every quarter, spend that time to deeply understand where current operations are losing efficiency.

Someone proficient in basic Excel but with a clear understanding of cash flow will always make better decisions than someone who owns million-dollar ERP software but cannot read its reports.

Cultivate qualities instead of collecting achievements. Patience, empathy, and resilience after failure are not on a CV, but they determine how far you go. James Clear — author Atomic Habits —

distinguish between outcome-based goals and identity-based goals. “I want to earn 10 billion” is outcome-based. “I want to become someone who builds sustainable value-creating systems” is identity-based.

The second approach to goal setting profoundly changes daily behavior.

Build deep relationships instead of a wide network. Networking by collecting business cards or making LinkedIn connections has become saturated. True value lies in investing time in a few deep relationships —

where you can be honest about what you don't know, and receive similar honesty in return. These relationships cannot be “owned”; they only exist when both parties continue to “become” better versions of themselves.

Prioritize physical and mental health as an investment. It's not about buying more gym equipment or health tracking apps — but about building habits: getting enough sleep, walking daily, dedicating quiet time for reflection.

These habits don't cost money but form the foundation for all other capabilities. Someone who gets 7 hours of sleep makes better decisions than someone who sleeps 5 hours but owns every productivity tool on the market.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does “Working to become” mean?

“Working to become” is a philosophy that prioritizes the development of personal capabilities, mindset, and qualities, rather than chasing the accumulation of assets or titles.

Adherents of this philosophy set goals based on the person they want to become (identity-based goals), not on what they want to possess (outcome-based goals). The result is more sustainable motivation and less dependence on external circumstances.

What is the hedonic treadmill and how does it affect job satisfaction?

The hedonic treadmill is a psychological phenomenon where people quickly return to their baseline level of happiness after any positive change — a raise, a promotion, or achieving revenue targets.

In the workplace, this means each achievement only brings short-term excitement, and then you need a new, higher milestone. The way to escape this loop is to shift from chasing outcomes to investing in the process of self-development.

How to balance earning money and self-development?

No need to choose one over the other. Investing in capabilities often generates better long-term income — because individuals with deep skills and a good mindset will create higher value for the market.

Practical step: dedicate 20% of your work time each week to learning new skills or improving processes, instead of using 100% of your time just to “chase revenue”. This is an investment with compound interest.

Why is intrinsic motivation more effective than bonuses?

Research by Deci and Ryan shows that bonuses reduce creative performance by shifting attention from the nature of the work to external rewards. Intrinsic motivation — comprising autonomy, mastery, and purpose —

maintain more stable performance because it doesn't rely on ever-increasing rewards. This is especially important for business owners, as revenue will have its ups and downs.

References: Daniel Pink — Drive (2009) · James Clear — Atomic Habits (2018) · Brickman & Campbell — Hedonic Relativism and Planning the Good Society (1971) · Deci & Ryan — Self-Determination Theory (2000) · MVMT founder Reddit post (r/findapath)

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