Often when we talk about entrepreneurship, the number one yardstick for success is how much money you make. It’s like keeping score in a game, the most money you make, the more you are seen (at least by media and society) to be a success.

People measure success differently. When I talk to entrepreneurs about why they started their businesses, some mention a comfortable life, others refer to living their dreams, creating jobs, creating a legacy for future generations, but most entrepreneurs talk about being making and being rich as measure of their success.

“Make money or die trying” goes the mantra. I hardly talk about making money in my blogs and when giving talks because I believe making money is a direct result of doing work that you love and you are good at.

Perfect your art, the money will follow. I choose to focus on your work, your art, doing work that matters.

Making money is good in business, it keeps you in the game.

I believe making money is important, but being significant is more important. Doing work that matters is the best way to leave a lasting legacy.

I choose to build a business for a cause, not for applause.

Success is relatively easy to obtain when compared with significance. Building significance into life involves much more than becoming successful at what you do.

A successful person who feels the need to tell you just how successful she really is actually is telling you that her life lacks significance. You get the impression that if such people did not have all the invitations to speak, did not go to all the places they have been while doing all their important things, life would be meaningless for them. In fact, they have to tell you of all of these things so that you can be impressed with their success and your impression of their success is what gives them the little bit of significance their lives have.

When there is no more applause, no more people to tell all their exploits to, these people are going to lack meaning and purpose in their lives.

On the other hand, a person may be going to all these places, doing all these things but, if he or she has a real significance that is born out of a sense of giftedness, it is not necessary to try to impress you.

Significant people do not need an audience.

They are too involved doing what they are doing, doing it heartily.

You do work that matters because you are not looking for applause, you do it because it is the good thing to do, because it matters and because you can.

You can be successful without having a significant life, but you cannot have a significant life without being successful.

Success without significance is hollow. When we strive to be significant, success becomes part of the package.

Your work creations and ideas become significant when you make your ego insignificant.

The success of the world is not worth the significance of your soul. What is success, when you have lost your soul. Avoid being a public success but a private failure.