The job of a trader is to make good risk / reward decisions over and over.

To get better and better at doing this over time. 

The cash will follow. 

If you are only about the money your longevity, in my humble opinion is limited.

One danger about only focussing on the $$ is that you push it too hard in the quest. The risk is burning out or blowing up your account.  We’ve all seen or heard of traders who break down under the pressure that they’ve put themselves under to hit their monetary target or who have swung for the fences so hard that they have destroyed their account.  Occasionally these traders fly through the finish line in magnificent style.

On the other hand:

If you love the process that you take to define the good risk / reward trades and the execution of them then you are likely to be a success.

If you enjoy learning about yourself as well as what trading forces you to look at internally in your day to day market experience, I think you gain a great deal from trading that is of equal value to the money you can make. 

In internal martial art mecca, Wudang mountain, the tortoise is a vernarated animal. Its longevity and wisdom is held in high esteem by Taoists.  

I suggest that the trading journey is like the tortoise and the hare fable; slow and steady wins the race.  With trading, if you really squeeze the juice for all you are worth out of the process, not only will reach your financial goals, but vastly higher levels of emotional and internal development than you thought possible. 

In trading terms the tortoise is always going to cross the finish line.  The hare may sometimes but many times will not.  Like everything it is a trade off.  But even when the rarer hare crosses the line has he learnt as much as the tortoise?

I know the slow, steady tortoise approach is the way for me.  Take some time to stop and enjoy the journey and your development.  The destination isn’t all there is.