Desire for mastery is an important human motive distinct from the profit motive. In business, mastery involves a product or service, and validation occurs through comparison with other entrepreneurs' products. Consumers' choices validate entrepreneurs' performance. We term an entrepreneur's...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to argue that entrepreneurs are motivated not only by the desire to maximize profits but also by the desire for mastery. It then attempts to analyze the implications of mastery seeking for the economics and politics of government privileges and favors for...