Quora Answer: Do You Evaluate Success Based on How Much Money a Person Makes?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “In the business world, do you evaluate how successful a person is based on how much money he makes?”  

Being good at making money for yourself does not mean being good at business.  A drug dealer makes good money.  Rock stars make good money.  Sports personalities make good money.  None of them would be necessarily good at running and growing a business. 

When we evaluate whether someone is good at business, we look at two things: the fundamentals of the company or companies these people manage, and the strength of their team.  It is all about the track record.  There are a lot of businesses out there where the owners make money but the company is bleeding.  A well-managed business has mitigated risk through best practices and insurance, growing revenue over an extended period, and market leadership in a specific area.  A well-managed business is more than a person – it is a team, and that team must be motivated, trained, and capable.  If a company makes money, and the owner makes money, but the people do not, then it is fundamentally unstable.  A good business benefits all stakeholders.