INVEST IN YOU.
Investing in yourself, what does that mean?
What does that phrase really mean to you?
Everyone's perspective is different. It may be very similar or very different from others.
To me investing in myself means that I am investing in my future. I am putting the time, effort, and energy to gain knowledge and acquire skills that I need and that are important to help me succeed in life. Whether it's financially, physically, spiritually, or my personal development, the list goes on.
Investing in material things are cool but that will always come and go. When you invest in yourself you are improving any and/or all aspect in your life. Investing in yourself is a very powerful thing, you can believe it or not... But it is. It shows your family, friends, the world and even you that investing in you is important because you show that the time, energy, space and effort you make room for to do what is important to you.
YOU HAVE POTENTIAL. Everyone has potential. This world has potential. We all have the potential to do what we always wanted to do with our life.
So what's your excuse?
You work a 9 to 5 job for a company you feel that doesn't care for you nor for any of the other employees. You're not getting paid enough for what you do or for what they ask you to do. The hours, the pay, and everything else about the company is just not what you wanted. It was never your ideal job. Now what? You're miserable and exhausted for working for this company. Then you clock out from work just to rush home to do what? To sit on the couch for the rest of the day watching Netflix or Hulu. Or you just scroll through social media looking at complete nonsense.
My question is, why are people working miserably for a company they don't even like? To pass time? To pay bills? We can pass time and pay our bills by investing in ourselves.
You may ask, "how?"
When you invest in yourself you are making yourself valuable to the WORLD. What you have people will want, and those people will be willing to pay you for what you can offer them.
Now you might be saying, "I don't have any money to take classes or hire a coach/teacher." EXCUSES! STOP MAKING EXCUSES!
We live in a generation that offers endless resources. You can literally find anything on the internet. Sure there may be resources that ask you to pay a fee, if you can't do it move on to the next one and find something that you can afford or that's free. You have other resources such as YouTube. You can really learn anything you want from YouTube. Go to your local library, use their computer, read some books or magazines, rent out an audio book if you don't like to read. Networking is also a resource, use it. You can learn a lot or at least a few new things when you network with other people. Your resources are endless!
Growing up we all had a dream of what we always wanted to be or do when we got older, but some never fulfilled those dreams. Why? Common answers is because "life got in the way" or "I had a family" or "I just don't have time."
If you want to do something different, YOU CAN DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT. But it starts with you. It starts with investing in yourself.
We have a limited amount of time here on Earth. Don't waste time going to clubs and bars every weekend or watching the new Netflix series every day. Don't live in fear. Do what you've always dreamed of doing. Use the resources you have around you to get you started. Surround yourself with like minded people or people who motivate you, push you, excite you and talk about what the future hold. Get away from people who are always talking about the past, there is nothing you can do about what happen in the past. What happened already happen and we can't do anything about it to change it or anything. Make ZERO excuses.
If you want to invest in stocks, learn it and do it. If you want to make your own blog or podcast, learn how to get started and do it. Do you want to do music, whether if it's with playing an instrument or you're a recording artist, you can do it! Whatever you want, whatever you want to be, YOU CAN! You have to make time to invest in yourself. That's the biggest investment you could ever do. What you learn and know, no one, NO ONE will ever be able to take that away from you.
Start investing in yourself NOW. Don't you dare wait a year or 2 from now. There is no perfect timing for anything. It's not YOLO... Where you only live once. We live everyday but only die once. Don't live in fear or worry about what other people think when you start getting your dream. Stop making excuses. Use the resources you have. Surround yourself with positive people. Smile. Start investing in yourself today!
10 Ways To Invest In Yourself
1. Read
Read educational books, magazines, articles etc. If you don't like to read, use audio books. Reading gives you the power to learn new things and build your knowledge. As Dr. Seuss said,
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."
2. Take Care of Your Health
Eat right and exercise daily. Taking care of your health is extremely important. Make sure to eat right every day, Give your body the nutrients it needs. When you make healthier choices of eating the right foods you will start to feel a difference with your health. You will feel and have more energy. There's nothing wrong with eating cookies and cake or a burger and fries, but when you eat these certain types of food you want to be sure to burn it off by exercising. Exercising daily will keep your body in good shape and also give you energy, it gives you the confidence to feel good about yourself.. Do something fun that you enjoy to keep you up and moving around. (Yoga, walking your dog, going to the gym, bicycling, the list is endless.
3. Set Some Goals
Set some goals for yourself, big or small. You can set some personal goals or set some business goals, you choose. Set some goals for your entire week, write them down and set a time frame to when you want to get them done. Once you're done with a goal, check it off on your list and then at the end of the week or the time frame you set, you will be able to see what all you got accomplished. This will give you the sense of feeling good about yourself and have an impact on your life later down the road.
4. Learn a New Skill
If you don't have the funds to pay for a class, seminar, or workshop to learn a new skill don't worry. There are many resources out there that are free to use. Find a free seminar, class, or workshop and learn some new skills and expand your knowledge. This will give you the opportunity to be around like-minded people and also help you in your personal life and career life.
5. Build Your Confidence
Love yourself and know your value. Having confidence in yourself can prove a lot. When you invest in yourself by developing and knowing the value that you possess you can feel it. People that know their value and what they can offer, when they speak or have something to say, people will listen to them. Speak your truth and own it. The more self-love, self-confidence, and the more you know and own your value that you can offer to others the more confident and brave you become with sharing it with others.
6. Be Organized
Be organized everywhere... That includes at home too. Research shows that clutter actually has an impact on people. Clutter makes people unable to focus, it puts more stress on a person (as if they're not already stressed out enough,) and can even lead to depression. When you are more organized and you see your house, desk, or office is nice and tidy you may feel a relief and are able to focus more on your day. When everything is organized you feel more likely to breathe and feel more focused.
7. Start a Creative Hobby
Have you ever noticed as you got older your creative and imagination seemed to vanish? It doesn't have to be like that. Invest time in your creativity, find a hobby that will help you express your creative side. It helps you feel good, it gets you to be inspired or re-inspired, you're enjoying yourself and having fun doing what you love and it definitely lets you see the beauty of this world and make you appreciate it.
8. Be Happy
You have a choice. We all have choices in this world. Happiness is a choice. Being sad or angry is choice. Learn to focus on the positives of life, rather than the negatives. Don't let your situation or circumstance in life dictate your attitude. Be grateful for all that you do have. Feel and be happy. Invest in those positive attributes.
9. Meditate
There are a variety of meditations. It could be mindfulness mediation, yoga, breathing exercises, zen and the list goes on. Which ever meditation you choose is your choice but invest in one they are all great. Meditation can help with lowering your stress level. It can also help improve memory and reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression.
10. Explore
Explore different types of cultures, not just your own. Travel all around the world. Listen to different types of music. Try new foods that you would have never thought once about eating. Meet people who have a different background as you, get to know them and what their culture is about. Exploring, traveling, trying new foods, learning new dances and languages, seeking out what the world has to offer will give you new insight to everything around you. It's a simple way to help, grow, and maintain your mental health/ability.
Investing in yourself isn't always about money. It's about improving yourself and becoming a better you. What can you do to invest in yourself that will help you succeed in your life and future?