Why Purpose Wins Every Time (Even in a Multi-Million Pound Business)
By Lisa Johnson, Global Business Strategist, Sunday Times bestselling author, and host of the #1-ranked podcast Making Money OnlineI went from £35k in debt to generating over £20 million in revenue, and for a long time, I thought that was the goal. The higher the number, the more successful I felt. The next milestone. The next launch. The next level. It became a cycle of always striving for more.
But chasing money, just for the sake of it, will never make you truly happy. At the beginning, adrenaline is everything. That high when you hit your first 5k month or your first 6 figure year is unbeatable. But what happens after that? You make the next milestone the new "minimum". And before long, you're on a treadmill that never slows down.
Every time you reach the summit of the mountain you’ve been sacrificing everything else for to climb, there is another, higher mountain beyond it!
I know this because I lived it. I was chasing financial milestones because I thought each one would unlock a new level of happiness or fulfilment. But every time I hit one, the buzz faded quickly, so I’d set a new one. It became a habit, a belief that happiness, ease, and freedom were just one more leap away.
Until one day I looked around and realised something was off. I had built a multi-7-figure business, had a team, and had the lifestyle. But I didn’t feel what I expected. I felt flat, and when I actually admitted that, it was scary and enlightening at the same time.
Because if all of this wasn’t making me feel how I thought it would, then what would? I started to re assess what I was doing, and most importantly, why I started out in the first place. I needed to reconnect with my passion and my motives, and become more aligned with these in the way I showed up, the way I sold, the way I led, and the way I lived.
Money is not the goal. Impact is.
Let me just caveat this briefly. Being financially successful is not a bad thing. I created a business to provide for my family and myself. Money gives you choices. It gives you freedom. It changes lives. But it should be the byproduct, not the target. Because what really creates a sustainable, energising, fulfilling business is impact.
Profitability and integrity are not mutually exclusive.
Making a real difference in someone’s life. Seeing someone shift from self doubt to self belief. Watching a client launch their own version of success because of what you taught them. Those moments stick.
And for me, it wasn’t until I stepped away from chasing income for income’s sake that I started to feel a move back towards that sense of contentment. That grounded knowing that what I was doing mattered.
The time I felt the most burnt out, disconnected and unsure of what I was doing next wasn’t when I was struggling financially, it was when I was obsessed with hitting the next financial milestone. Not because I needed the money. But because I needed the validation. I wanted to prove I could do it again. To myself. To the industry. To the world.
Because the noise of the online space is never far away, telling you that more is better.
When you’re stuck in that place, you forget why you started. I didn’t build this business to hit a number. I built it to get out of debt. To give my twins a better life. To help other business owners and entrepreneurs realise they’re capable of so much more than they think. To change the online business world from the inside.
That’s what gets me up in the morning. That’s what keeps me creating, innovating, showing up, even when things feel hard.
So if you’re stuck chasing the next big number, take a moment to ask yourself what you are you really chasing? What do you actually want? What will matter to you five years from now?
Because it probably won’t be how fast you got to 7 figures. It’ll be the client who messages you to say you changed their life. It’ll be the flexibility to be there for your kids. It’ll be the pride of building something that feels aligned.
Let money be the reward, not the reason.
Let impact be what drives you.
Because impact isn’t fluffy. It’s not a distraction from growth. It is the path to growth. When your business genuinely helps people, they tell others. They return. They refer. They stay. And that builds a stronger business than any gimmick or quick win ever could.
If you want to make money and stay happy, focus on making a difference. On doing work that lights you up. On building something that matters. People first, always.
That’s how I have reconnected with the fundamental values that are non negotiable, and that is how you build a business you’ll want to stick with, not one you want to escape from.
