Well, I like doing things my way, but I’d rather not have to boss people around or rely on them at all. If I have to, then I’m OK with it. It’s a means to an end, though, not an end. I’d much rather deal with people who work for themselves, but are very competent in what they do. I use quite a few subcontractors, and some are great while others need a lot of hand holding. I give the latter type honest feedback about what my expectations are, and if they don’t improve then they only last as long as it takes for me to find an alternative. Unfortunately, finding an alternative is often easier said than done, so I can’t get rid of all the bad subs as quickly as I’d like to.
At a young age, I set a goal for myself to be financially independent at a much earlier age than “retirement age”. It worked out, and now I do what I do because I like it, not because it generates a lot of wealth-- that part is already done.
I want power in the sense of need needing to answer to others. It drives me nuts when I have to follow whatever stupid thing my clients say today. I’d be president since I enjoy being in charge and making things fit my vision but I have not urge to collect more power then what I need to control my life.
On the other hand, I love money. Money gives the power to control your life and to really do what I’d like to do I’d need a couple of billion. Unless I hit the loto I’ll never get there but I have intentionally made several choices in my life to increase my earning potential and I very much enjoyed my all too brief stint in the top 1%. I really enjoy my current job and it would take a 50% pay increase to get me to leave it but I spend a portion of every day looking for the pay increase, which is achievable, and making sure that I’ve positioned myself to grab those opportunities as they come along. Right now my goal is to get my individual income back into the top 10% of households.
Power, no. Wealth, a little. Not enough to keep me from wasting money, but enough to keep me pursuing it, but even then only so I can waste it. So far I’ve managed to have just enough left over.
I’ve run groups of 16 people, and run groups of 3 people, and I much preferred the 3. Much less paperwork. I did like getting people to implement my ideas, and having technical direction, but I especially liked that people took my direction out of respect not out of authority.
My last few years I didn’t officially manage anyone, but did have a group I was leader of. That was good, plenty of time to code. An ambitious member of the team wanted to call meetings and do the minutes, and that was fine with me. I still had decision making authority.
I filled in as a second level manager for a month or so, and I hated it. All the junk, none of the fun.
And I have no trouble being managed, so long as the manager is aware that his purpose is to clear the decks so that things can get done. I tried to do that also as a manager.
As for money, I’m happy that I have enough so that my all projections I’ll have some to leave to my kids when I die at 100. Doubling that would not make my life any better. We have cheap tastes.
I have never been interested in “power” at all and I think most people that crave it don’t deserve it. I like respect and autonomy a whole lot more. Money is good and I have a decent amount but I have no desire to be a billionaire. That would be a huge hassle on its own.
Fame has no appeal and I actively avoid excess attention. I have friends and family members including a parent that chase fame and it looks exhausting even if you get it.
No thanks, I just want to retire early in a semi-secluded paradise with a rotating stable of models to hang out with when my family isn’t around. I like being a very competent individual contributor at work but I am fundamentally lazy and have turned down promotions just because I knew it would screw up my lifestyle. I am happy to let someone else handle all the paperwork.
I think there’s a part of me that digs having prestige. I don’t like the invisibility that comes with being low man on the totem pole. I like getting invited to meetings with upper management and having an opportunity to shape policy. I like being able to get away with stuff because I’m viewed as not-as-disposable as someone else. So if I had to be 100% honest, I would say I’m driven to do well partially due to a need to garner respect and a little power.
But I am not power-hungry enough to want to go into management. I’m fine with always being “middle man on the totem pole”.
I’m good at being a boss. I found that out in the Army. Ok not right away after I was first promoted but I grew into it. I don’t consider being the boss having real power. Not at the levels I’ve worked on. I certainly have no desire to have political power. Head of a team working towards a common goal? Sure. Power over people’s lives that I don’t even know? Nah.
But now if I could have the money to do what I want without being a leader or a follower that would be ideal.
As far as work goes, I’m motivated by money and time off. I have no desire for “power”…in my company, power comes with a whole added layer of BS that I don’t want anything to do with.
More money would always be nice, and I’m sure I could find a way to be richer if I really wanted it. But I’ve got enough and to spare, and I don’t want more badly enough to alter my life. Besides, I’ve got a really good life right now, and that hasn’t always been the case. Now that it is, though, I damn sure don’t want to fuck it up, especially not by chasing after stuff I don’t even really want all that badly!
(Similarly for power, except that unlike with money, where incrementally more money is always useful, incrementally more power isn’t. Make me dictator of the U.S. for a year, and I could do stuff with that. But what would I do as, say, dictator of my small exurb? Not worth the hassle. Ditto for moving one rank up the supervisory ladder at work.)
I don’t want power because I need to tell others what to do. In fact, I hate the times in my life when I have to do that. I want power so that what I say goes. Other people don’t even have to be present or involved. I prefer to call the shots because if success or failure results, I have no one to blame but myself, and that’s the way I like it.
I only want money so that I can have power. Namely, the power to do what I want, like sleep in or buy steak or go sailing. Money serves no other purpose.
Theoretically I like the idea that with responsibility comes freedom. However, that rarely plays out in the real world; my boss for example, has a lot more responsibility than I do, and seems even less free than I am. He’s routinely having to stay later, get called in the middle of the night, etc… and doesn’t get any real freedom in terms of the things I’d like- he’s still held to the same bullshit core hours in the office, he can’t telecommute either, etc… and he’s bound by the unwritten managerial dress code of wearing slacks, while us rank and file folks wear jeans and tennis shoes. Essentially he gets somewhat more pay, a LOT more annoying responsibility, and little more freedom. I’d bet that if you worked it out, I actually make MORE per hour than he does, because he works quite a bit more than I do.
If someone were to pay me more and not require more time out of me, I’d be all for that, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. I can’t see being paid more than I do and still managing to get away working actual 40 hour weeks, as being something that is actually going to happen.
As far as actually wanting power in the sense of some kind of ability to have actual legitimate authority or such strong influence that I could regulate aspects of others’ lives and jobs, no thanks. I don’t have that kind of insecurity or need to dominate others that I’d want that kind of power for its own sake. If it came as part of something else I was very committed to doing, then sure I’d do it, but the power itself wouldn’t be a goal of mine.
The few times in my working career that I actually had any authority over other staff. I generally found it easier to do things myself, than to assign other workers to do it.
I have had fantasies of having power and wealth, but that is because of what I can do with it.
If I were powerful and wealthy, I’d use that to push agendas I believe in (neuroscience research, fighting global poverty, etc). I fantasize what I could do with many billions of dollars or if I were the leader of a powerful country (like the leader of Russia or China).
But other than that, no I don’t fantasize about it. Having enough money to not have to work would be nice, but I wouldn’t need a ton of money for that. A couple million would probably be enough.
Every management class I ever took said that this is one of the biggest problems with new managers. It’s true - the manager can do the job better than the staff, which is why he or she got made manager. But in doing this the new manager has to neglect the new responsibilities, and that causes trouble. The workers get the job yanked away instead of being coached on how to do it better, which the new manager is quite capable of doing.
It was easier when I got a group I knew well but had never worked in. Then I had to trust the staff and concentrate on managing. It worked much better.
I want power and money to the extent that it gives me autonomy, and the ability to make my own choices.
How that works in real life is that I don’t like being in charge, I am allergic to leading others. But I don’t like being “managed” either, although I do like having a leader (there is a difference) - I like being independent.
My ideal position is influence without responsibility - maybe the priest/counselor character standing next to the king, Spock in Star Trek? So, whatever power is in that.
As for wealth, it’s the same - enough that I can make my own choices. I don’t like feeling I don’t have enough, I like feeling like I have more than enough. But real wealth, OK, sure, if it’s available, but it’s not a motivation. But I’m naturally frugal and a saver, and I’ve been lucky enough to have jobs that paid well, so that generally works out for me.
Being completely powerless and completely moneyless both suck, but IIUC the OP isn’t asking about that. Beyond a certain point, having more power and/or wealth just makes life more complicated—especially if you want to avoid their reputed ill effects (“power corrupts” and “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle…”).
Steve Jobs died an obscenely wealthy man ($10B), but it’s fair to argue that the wealth he accumulated wasn’t the thing (or at least not the only thing) that made him get up in the morning. I recall this quote from him in 1983, when he was trying to recruit the then-president of Pepsi:
Sculley did indeed leave Pepsi to join Apple, so it would seem that he too was motivated by something more than just wealth.
Interestingly, there’s no indication that Jobs engaged in any significant philanthropy, certainly nothing on the scale of Bill Gates.
I’m good at leading a team. I have a vision much broader than anything I could accomplish on my own. Those 2 things taken together mean I am happiest being a manager as opposed to an individual contributor. By another happy coincidence, generally a manager gets more money. That works well for me!
Money is not the main driver for me, though. I could be making much more than I am now had I prioritized money more highly. Instead I prioritized family and work/life balance more highly. Having a positive impact on as many people and processes as possible is what really motivates me.