Investing in yourself is one of the smartest decisions you can make because your lifetime earning potential is one of your greatest assets.
You will often hear Financial Advisers say to save, save, save and to invest, invest, invest, which has proven to help individuals and families reach their retirement or financial goals. However, there are other ways to make smart investments that are rarely discussed. Here are ten ways to invest in yourself.
Investing in yourself is one of the smartest decisions you can make because your lifetime earning potential is one of your greatest assets. Therefore, one of the best ways to reach you financial goals is to increase your income. There is no guaranteed method to achieve a higher income but the following steps should make it easier by putting you on the right path towards financial freedom.
- Read and read some more… This will help you keep updated with current events, expand your vocabulary, learn new cultures, experience new things, improve upon what you already know, and it could help you voice your opinion in a conversation. One of the most important reasons to read is that it stimulates your brain and although the brain is not technically a muscle you should still treat it like one and exercise it.
- Never stop learning…You should never stop learning and developing an understanding of how our world works in this ever-changing environment. Technology is evolving at a rapid pace so it is important to keep up or face being left out. The best example is how my grandparents only wanted to use email to communicate a few years ago and my cousins and I had to explain we do not use email to communicate informally between family members as sending a text is much quicker, easier, and more widely accepted.
- Create multiple income streams…There are many ways to do this and I would like to break it down into two categories: letting your money work for you and starting a business. You have been working and hopefully saving so you can one day have that money work for you by making investments into fixed income, income producing stocks, and real estate. The other way to create an income stream is to develop a business outside your current employment or even career path. This could include writing a blog, walking dogs for the neighborhood or even mowing lawns. The ideas for small business ventures are limited only by your imagination!
- Find a mentor… This will help you achieve your goals faster, inspire you, and help you avoid potentially costly mistakes. Try to find someone who is trustworthy and seems like they honestly want to help you. Whatever it is you are trying to achieve, there is generally more to know than you may have anticipated. For example, Tiger Woods still has a swing coach, yet he is considered one of the greatest golfers in the history of the game.
- Save, budget, set goals, and measure results…Most everyone knows the importance of saving for retirement and to have a rainy-day fund but if you really want to reach those goals you must first establish specific targets and then be willing to measure the results. Start simply with a monthly savings goal and if you missed your goal look at your expenses and see what can be cut. You might even need to reset your goals and be more realistic.
- Create order… Manage your time, develop a routine, and stop procrastinating. These are all easier said than done, but I find writing down my tasks or keeping them somewhere on my phone helps me stick to my schedule to try and achieve the most that I can out of every day. We all have those days where it seems impossible to get anything done but this is about consistency over the long-run.
- Respect your limits… Take a break from your hard work (even as much as 5 minutes per day) to rejuvenate your brain and enjoy life. Don’t underestimate the value of sleep and waking up early to get the most out of your time. Giving everything you have to something is great, but you must be able to sustain that work intensity and, make no mistake, exhausting yourself is an easy way to burn yourself out and to experience a setback.
- Experiences over stuff… learn new cultures, experience new food, and create memories that could last a lifetime. It is easy today to buy stuff that we really do not need and I believe the money could be better spent and invested in yourself by buying experiences to travel or going to nice dinners every now and then with friends and/or family.
- Step outside your comfort zone and challenge yourself… Most good things do not come easy in life and there is a sense of fulfillment when you challenge yourself and complete a goal you never thought possible. Even if you did not succeed in the way you wanted, at least you tried. This is an achievement in and of itself. My favorite quote is “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky
- Love yourself… Eat healthy, workout, be confident in yourself and your abilities. By loving yourself you will reduce stress and if you eat healthy and workout you will gain energy that you did not previously have. This will help you feel more confident in yourself to take on new challenges.
Fee-based advisory services offered through The Marshall Financial Group, LLC. a registered investment advisor.