Why You Must Have Ulterior Motives (Or Fail)

Ulterior motives is one of the most misinterpreted phrase.

A sound of those two words and people's nose start perceiving something fishy (even when there’s nothing), and become unnecessary cautious.

If you don't have ulterior motives for the things you do in, or for your life, you'd end up a failure.

To make meaning and draw useful insights from what you’re set learn in this piece, I’d love you to be reminded that language is arbitrary.

By arbitrary, we accept word meanings because everybody accepts it.

In essence, a ‘phone’ is accepted as a ‘phone’ because we all accept it so.

In Nigeria where I come from, among the guys we call ‘phones’ ‘offor.’ So if you weren’t on our slate, the word ‘offor’ would make no meaning to you.

Not convinced? Now ask yourself, what, or how did someone come to the conclusion that this device should be named ‘phone?’

Also, on what grounds is ‘ulterior motives’ being judged as an evil intention?

Is it because it starts with a ‘u’ or ends with a ‘r?’ What?

‘Ulterior motives’ is one phrase that has received undue negative and wrong definition.

People would immediately jump to the wrong conclusion of it being a bad phrase, used by an evil person with an evil intention.

This is because we’ve generally, consciously or unconsciously, agreed to tag it with a bad or evil intention.

As such, whoever says he/she has ‘ulterior motives’ is in most instances judged to be a bad person.

I must stress it that if you don’t have ulterior motives, you’d not succeed in life.

So what's the actual definition of ‘ulterior motives?’

According to Merriam-Websters dictionary, ‘ulterior’ is defined as follows...

"Further, future.”

While ‘ulterior motives’ is defined as…

“Going beyond what is openly said or shown and especially what is proper.”

If you combine both, this is how I’d define it…

“Going beyond what is openly said or shown and especially what is proper to further achieve a future goal.”

You’re welcome to define it in your own words…

In the sense of this definition (both mine and that from Merriam-Websters), how is ‘ulterior-motives’ a bad or evil word?

Is it bad to envision, or see ‘further’ beyond what your eyes can behold and plan for your ‘future?’

Or, is it evil to go beyond what is said or shown openly, especially when its proper?

The world is filled with people who say this and do another.

Even some of your so-called life coaches claiming to teach you to how become a ‘great’ person is primarily targeting your pocket.

He offers you one free eBook, then upsells, or cross-sells another to you.

In his case, his ‘ulterior motives’ is to dig into your pocket.

On the other hand, what you see is someone pretending to help you.

We live in a world where you’re responsible for yourself.

According to Goethe, “All great thoughts have been thought thousands of time in the past, to make meaning of our thoughts, you must re-think them until they take centrestage in your life.”

When you make plans to succeed, you’re practically putting in work for what you’d achieve in the ‘future.’

You’re seeing ‘further’ than the conditions you’re exposed to.

You’re exercising faith, you’re defining your ‘ulterior motives.’

You’re reserving an ‘ulterior motive’ that hopefully you’d become a great person someday.

And I’ve come to understand that only those who hold tightly to these motives succeed.

Nobody sets out to do anything without making plans for success.

If you fail to plan, you’re already planning to fail.

So that plan, which you’re supposed to keep to yourself…

What would you call it?

When would you get to experience it?

Now? ‘Further’ beyond the conditions you find yourself in? In the ‘future?’

Life is like a lever, you apply some effort at one end in order to overcome a much heavier load at the other end.

When you apply such small effort, what are you trying to do?

Do you tell the load that you’re going to overcome it, or keep your motives for doing so in your mind?

In essence, isn’t that an ‘ulterior motive?’

I’m a digital marketer, and must tell you something for sure…

When I create free offers (in the form of lead magnets) to attract prospects, the ultimate goal is to acquire customers.

Each time another prospect downloads this free offer, I jubilate because that’s a sign that they’d need more, which means a sale could be imminent.

Nobody gives out free things.

Almost all the promotions you see are baits tied with serious ‘ulterior motives’ to get something from you.

So shouldn’t you have your own ‘ulterior motives?’

Why would you just navigate life without some plans for what you hope to achieve in the future for yourself?

Please have plans for yourself.

Please see ‘further’ beyond what your eyes can behold.

Please envision a probable ‘future’ for yourself.

If truly the saying, “empty drums makes the loudest noise,” is true, then one must talk very little.

Hence, you must keep the plans for your ‘future’ to yourself sometimes.

You MUST have some ‘ulterior motives.’

If you don’t, you’d fall under other people’s ‘ulterior motives.’

The choice is yours!