My goal wasn't to make a ton of money. It was to build good computers. — Steve Jobs

My goal wasn't to make a ton of money. It was to build good computers.

Author: Steve Jobs

Insight: There's something almost rebellious about this statement, especially coming from someone who ended up making a ton of money anyway. Jobs wasn't being falsely modest—he genuinely believed that if you obsess over the craft itself, the financial success follows naturally. It's the reverse of what most people assume they need to do. The tension here matters because we're constantly told to chase money or status directly. But watch what actually happens: people who fixate on climbing the ladder often plateau or burn out, while people who get absorbed in doing something well—whether it's building computers, writing, teaching, or running a restaurant—tend to create value that others want to pay for. It's not that money doesn't matter; it's that it works better as a byproduct than a target. The tricky part is that this philosophy requires real faith. You can't halfway commit to it. You can't build good computers while constantly checking if you're getting rich fast enough. That divided attention shows in the work. But if you genuinely care about the thing itself—about solving a real problem or making something people love—you're freed up to do your best thinking. That's usually when good things, including good money, actually happen.

Source: Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs, p. 572, 2011