In the world today, those who are considered among the wise are usually the persons who take the time to invest in themselves. Those persons who see themselves as a priority and are unapologetic about doing what is necessary to satisfy their needs and desires. They lead contented happy lives and are able to pursue life purposefully.

Investing in yourself is the practice of making yourself into a more experienced, well-rounded person through different tasks, goals and activities. This may include reading more, creating a schedule for yourself or taking a class. If you invest in yourself, you may see improvements in your productivity and happiness. The most priceless investment in your life is you. Many would say their retirement account or their children. Both are high on the list but without investing in yourself you are really not helping the other two for the better.

You are the most important when it comes to putting your health first and then toward what you love to do that yields money. However, for many they place themselves last on the list when it comes to investing time, money, and resources. When other people’s priorities come up or it’s time to sacrifice something, you might be the first to bend. I want to suggest that from today, you make a note and put this on your refrigerator… Let the note state BOLDLY: INVESTING IN YOUR SELF IS NOT SELFISH. In fact, by helping make your life better, you will by default make the lives better of everyone else around you. It is the best way to ensure that you are well-taken care in the future, too.

So why is investing in yourself so important? Think about it, besides being the person you have to spend the most time with, you are also the best example of seeing an immediate return on investment. When you put your wellness first, over time you have more energy to increase production at work, school, home, and other areas of your life.

Unlike other investments out there, investing in yourself is never a risk, because it always pays off. Even when you make bad investments it is not really a bad thing when you have learned something from it. Failure is part of success, as when you learn something from it and apply corrective action, the results you desired manifest it. You gain confidence to come out of your comfort zone often to see sustainable success.
Megan Tull, International Speaker, and Author suggested 10 ways in which you can effectively invest in yourself. Allow me to share these with you:

1. Set goals. Learn how to set personal and business goals for yourself. If you’re not taking the time to set goals it’s like driving in the dark with the headlights turned off. You will not know where you’re going, and you will waste precious time. Be sure to also set some time frames in which to meet them. Your goals should be SMART goals -Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely.

2. Honour your intuition. You can show yourself love by trusting your gut and honouring the message that it’s sending. Listening to your intuition will allow you to make better decisions. Valuing your intuition by not allowing the thought, feelings or statements of others to take away from what you know to be true is very empowering. By paying attention to how you feel, it will help you to make better, smarter and quicker decisions. I know for me personally, if I choose to ignore my gut or intuition when I feel a strong feeling about something, it almost always is a decision or action that I end up regretting. I have learned to always trust my intuition and that is what leads me in my life and business.

3. Invest time in your creativity. Our creativity doesn’t have to diminish as we get older. In fact, it is believed that the peak of creativity in most people is around 30-40 years old. (Lindaur, 1998, Marisiske &Willis, 1998) Creativity can be the catalyst in the manifestation of continual learning and lifelong activity. It allows us to be inspired, have fun and appreciate the beauty in the world.

4. Invest in building your confidence. People who know their value, have something to say and others will listen. You can invest in yourself by developing an understanding of the value that you possess and offer others. Learn to have the courage to speak your truth. The more you love yourself and own the value that you offer, the more confident you will become in sharing it with others.

5. Read educational books. Books or audio books are an awesome resource to build your knowledge and expertise in any area.

6. Attend seminars and workshops to expand your knowledge and skills in your business and/or personal life. This will also give you the opportunity to meet and interact with individuals who are like-minded.

7. Take care of your health. Eat right each day, fuelling your body with nutrients. When you focus on eating organic and healthier choices, you will feel better and have more energy. I know that the unhealthy burger or cupcake gives us instant gratification, but if you’re like me, you regret it later, because you feel lousy afterwards. Exercise daily. Do something every day to get moving and get your heart rate up, even if it’s just walking the dog. Exercise gives you the energy to take on the day with confidence because of how it makes you look and feel.

8. Choose to be happy. Happiness is a choice. Happy people choose to focus on the positive aspects of life, rather than the negative. They are not held hostage by their circumstances. They look at all the reasons to be grateful. “Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”- Abraham Lincoln

9. Work on your bucket list. If you don’t have a bucket list, then it’s time to start one. Your bucket list is meant to be a list of everything you want to achieve, do, see, feel and experience in your life. Your list may be ongoing, but you can start by writing 100 things down. Then each month or so, make sure you’re knocking out at least one of the items on your list.

10. Invest in a coach. A coach can assist you in putting all of these strategies into action. A coach is your partner in success. It is their job to assist you in creating and implementing your success plan so you can become the best that you can be.

As a life coach, I would attest to the effectiveness of Tull’s 10th suggestion. Having a coach aid in developing your accountability to yourself; to push towards being the best version of yourself and living the life you are authentically happy to live.
“An investment in self-development pays the highest dividends.”
– Debasish Mridha