2. I can't imagine being independently wealthy & keeping my day job but I suppose it's conceivable!
2. For example, all employees at the VP and up level at Google, Facebook, etc., make more than a million dollars are year. It doesn't take long at this level of compensation to have more wealth than any reasonable person could spend. Yet they still work, normally not to satisfy an unmet financial need.
Financial independence to me is not needing to work ever again, even if I'm living quite frugally.
I've run the numbers on what I'd need to not work and the total amount required would clearly put me in the 'wealthy' camp.
I would say yes. Well, maybe not dependent but not independent.
Some people with large incomes are still up to their eyeballs in debt, or at least not living within their means.
IMO financial independence requires living within your means until the point where you never need to work again to continue that lifestyle for the rest of your life.
Money may not motivate me in small numbers, but this goal of financial independence (what they call fuck you money) is definitely a motivator.
http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/
And this nifty calculator: https://networthify.com/calculator/earlyretirement
It's mostly about the savings rate.
The interesting thing though is that you wouldn't really want to entice me that way, because I'd guess you'd get a worse product out of me. So there are different types of motivation that are important. The motivation to make a choice, versus the motivation to work hard on a choice.