by Cody Hodge

Created on: February 07, 2009   Last Updated: January 21, 2010

In life we need to be motivated in order to achieve anything. We need a drive, some sort of force that gets us going, and allows us to accomplish goals. Without any motivation, why do something? In the world of business, the motivation to go out and work everyday is the opportunity to make a profit, or make money for yourself. Profits have been pointed at as the reason why society has crumbled, and why the entire economy is in turmoil. However, in its most basic form, a profit is something that is very valuable.

For the owner of a business, what is the point of working if they don't end up making any money? Not only is it a waste of time to not make money working every day, but it is also impractical. If you don't make any money from your business, how do you support yourself? Sure, it is one thing to provide a service out of the goodness of your heart, but you need some money out of it.

If your an investor in a company, why would you give money out if you don't make any back? Investing in itself is a business, and one of the lifelines of the economy is the lending of capital, and profiting from those loans. If someone asks you to take a risk and give you 100,000 dollars to invest in a company, shouldn't I be rewarded for my risk? That is the basis of capitalism, to take a risk in the market, and hope it makes you money.

The pursuit of profit is what allows workers to have jobs, and invest in other areas of the economy. If a business owner is allowed to only sell a good at the price that he bought it at, that limits the amount that can be bought and sold. This is because in order for a business to expand, it needs employees to work. Employees need to be paid, and the money needs to come from what you get from selling goods at a higher price than what you paid for them.

Profits should be a motivating factor for a company to be created. However, it should not be the only thing that drives a company. Offering a vital service, or helping out society should also be at play when a business is created. For example, health care should ideally be a non-profit service because it is something that every one needs.

If someone wants to offer health care for a profit, that is fine, but the profit should be the second factor in offering care, and providing a critical service should be first. Unfortunately, it seems to be the other way around these days, and is the biggest reason why so many in America are uninsured.

When a company creates a service or a product, that person should be compensated for it. People work to get paid, so that they can feed their families, and so they can live a better life. A profit is only immoral when it comes at the expense of a persons well being, or one person profits at the expense of others, such as in the health care sector. Otherwise, a person should be allowed to be compensated for a risk taken, or compensated for work put in, and be able to make a better life for themselves.

Learn more about this author, Cody Hodge.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.