Do you need support to define you?

Riding home on a Sunday evening, I was listening to the radio. The music artist speaking on the radio was a South African DJ, talking about the lack of support in the music industry for locals.

I quote "I have been downloaded 100 000 times for my newest song, would I sell 100 000 songs if I had been added to iTunes?" the answer naturally, was no.

I want to ask my readers, everything you have done and hoped to achieve, did you seek support from others? If so how?

For example, The Cape Trek expedition and cycle projects aim to raise money for Operation Smile and Miles for Smile. The nature of the non profit trip requires quite a bit of backing from my sponsors in order to fund the trip. When I say fund I mean, food and other traveling expenses.  When I get home from trips, my work really starts. I try put together documentaries and write about my experiences and just recently that hard work made it possible for me to publish my first book: Two Wheels and a Chain. 

Now having said that, it must be incredible to become financially successful from this hard work but is that the goal? The reason I would be upset if my book hadn't sold as many copies as it had done so far would not be because I would not have made money but rather that I wouldn't have been able to touch people through the tales from my experiences on the road. I just feel that we need to chase passion and not the money, what do you guys think?