Need and want tangle easily, nowhere more than in work. Innocent’s way of untangling them is a thought experiment: “Whenever I am not sure of whether I am working because I need money or because I want to, I just put money out of the equation. I ask myself if I would continue to work if I didn’t get money for it.”

The answer shows him which is really in charge — the money or the work. It’s how he identifies passion, and how he keeps decisions honest about both his needs and his happiness.

He’s not pretending money doesn’t matter; we need it. But he’d rather find the balance where getting what you need and doing what you want overlap — because less happiness comes from working out of need alone.