What's really important

I am reading a book on SEO (Search Engine Optimization) right now. Basically that is what people trying to make money online are concerned about because it can help increase your site's rankings on search engines like google and that, plain and simply, is worth $ these days. The author, Aaron Wall, is from Oakland, CA (yeah Oakland!) and included this quote at the end of his opening "tips" section. I found it very topical though and I appreciated that he took the time to share this:

"I also want to share a quote with you from Weaving the Web by one my favorite web
personalities, and the man who created the Web, Tim Berners-Lee:

People have sometimes asked me whether I am upset that I have not
made a lot of money from the Web. In fact, I made some quite
conscious decisions about which way to take my life. These I would
not change - though I am making no comment on what I might do in
the future. What does distress me, though, is how important a
question it seems to be to some. This happens mostly in America,
not Europe. What is maddening is the terrible notion that a person’s
value depends on how important and financially successful they are,
and that that is measured in terms of money. That suggests
disrespect for the researchers across the globe developing ideas for
the next leaps in science and technology. Core in my upbringing was
a value system that put monetary gain well in its place, behind things
like doing what I really want to do. To use net worth as a criterion by
which to judge people is to set our children’s’ sights on cash rather
than on things that will actually make them happy."