Life is meaningless if you don’t add value to it. A life without value is like living in a cold, dark room. Sunlight in this case is like the “value” needed to light-up such a life and bring warmth to it (yeah, yeah, I can be inspirational when I want to be). Today we’ll be looking at how to invest in yourself in the best possible way to improve your life.
When the word “value” is mentioned, it doesn’t necessarily mean money. Although people attach value to money, there are many other things that are of value; money is just one of them.
Anything that makes life desirable and worthwhile is valuable. People can pay a lot and sacrifice so much to acquire such value. This money they pay and the sacrifices they make in order to acquire value is known as investment.
As a valuable person, people will definitely seek you at all cost; they will be willing to pay you whatever it takes. But mind you, they only seek you because of the value you can offer. In other words, they only seek your value. Hence, such value that you possess will attract wealth, fame and success to you.
The question now is; how can you become valuable enough to be of high demand? The simple answer is By Investing In Yourself.
How To Invest In Yourself
Most people desire to be valuable. In fact, everybody wants to be sought after. The problem is that many don’t know how to go about it. But they’re unaware that it all begins with the commonest, simplest things which they can actually do.
On a broad scale, the two categories of people that exist in life are (A) People who live for the moment and (B) People who live for the future.
In most cases, the difference between these two categories of people is that the first are only concerned about the present, with no plans or key decisions to improve themselves and ensure a better tomorrow. While the others are focused on investing heavily in themselves to change their lives for good and make their future desirable. On this note, it is not wrong to argue that the difference between people who enjoy better lives and those who are struggling is decision making.
Want to know more? Read further to get 11 tips on how to invest in yourself and change your life!
1. Develop a mindset that only seeks for value
Because everything you do starts from your mind, the best way to invest in yourself is to develop a mindset that only craves for value.
Before you do anything, think first about what it can add to your life. If it adds nothing, then it’s not for you. If it doesn’t improve something about you, then it’s a NO for you.
Once you develop this mindset, you have simply invested in your thoughts, making them rich. Now, your rich thoughts will yield positive outcomes which will in turn become a good investment for your individuality. Every other thing will follow suit.
2. Be open to continuous learning
You learn everyday by gathering more and more information and knowledge. Sometimes, you learn because you want to, but other times, you learn even without being aware of it.
However, if you really want to add value to yourself through self-investment, then you have to make conscious efforts to avail yourself to new ideas. Doing this will help you add to your wealth of knowledge and information.
Always seek to know more and don’t ever assume you know enough already. Endeavor to learn from everything you do at any given time because no knowledge can ever be a waste.
There’s a mantra which says that “Knowledge is power”. And another quote has it that “Information is the key to success”. I totally agree with both quotes. Knowledge and information are like different sides of one coin as they work hand-in-hand. The more information you accumulate, the more knowledge you obtain.
In fact, any useful knowledge or information has the capacity to change your life positively.
3. Acquire a skill
Skill acquisition is arguably the most prominent self-development strategy you can think of. Especially in the 21st century. Like I implied earlier, people seek you only when you have value. Today, as it stands, one of the greatest values people can boast of is the skills they have.
We live in an age where human’s wants/needs are unlimited and life is all about the amount of human needs/wants you as an individual can satisfy. You are only valuable to the extent of the problems you can solve. It is therefore important to invest in yourself by acquiring a skill.
4. Improve your skills
So you have acquired a skill, that’s great. But another question to ask is; even with that skill, how skillful are you?
You can only think about improving your skills and taking it seriously if you understand the fact that you are not the only person with such skills. There are many people who offer the same skills as you.
You have to find a way to improve your value by standing out uniquely. Invest in yourself by going for professional courses related to your field, attend seminars and listen to higher professionals. By doing this, you are simply getting better and as a result, you’ll continue to master your art.
5. Read worthy books
It’s one thing to read, but it’s another thing to read something worthwhile. For the purpose of this post, something worthwhile is that which is valuable. You can say that value is subjective, because you can choose to attach value to anything you wish. But one thing is certain; what you decide to “value” can only either be positive or negative.
Therefore, if you must read books, read positive ones. Read books that will impact your life meaningfully.
It is disappointing though, that the digitization of our contemporary world now makes it harder for people to have an interest in reading. Many, if not most, simply value watching TV shows more than reading books. I am not saying that you can’t acquire knowledge from TV shows but the truth is that most times, such shows are strictly for entertainment.
However, a lot of hidden information that can change your life for good is not found in the entertainment industries but is contained in books. And only those who are geared towards reading quality books can have such information. Remember, readers they say, are leaders.
6. Use social media to your own advantage
The world has been reduced to a global village through the invention of social media. People across the globe easily connect with each other. This makes social media a place where you can associate with people as well as build relationships and bonds. Social Media is also a world of entertainment and fun.
However, lately, platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram have gradually transformed into hubs of unrefined information and knowledge. In addition, your skills and businesses can easily be advertised on these platforms.
Therefore, for you to use social media to your advantage, it shouldn’t be for the purpose of creating bonds and relationships only. It should also be for the purpose of boosting your skills through exposure to useful information and advertising your business for greater visibility and outreach. What investment can be greater than that?
7. Stay out of debt
Staying out of debt is a very big investment. For most low and moderate income earners, it’s quite difficult to be debt-free. This is because many of us live from paycheck to paycheck. By the time we get our salary, we would have accumulated enough debt that leaves us with nothing after paying up. Instead, we end up owing.
If you are indebted to someone, you can’t fully assert that you are in charge of your life. Also, you can’t save, you can’t invest and you can’t guarantee a better life in the near future.
The best way to emancipate yourself from the shackles of indebtedness is to budget and spend according to your earnings. It might be difficult though, but very possible.
8. Save up and invest
By the time you have conquered the problem of indebtedness, your next focus should be on how to make meaningful savings and how to invest in yourself via your savings.
In order to save, simple economics will encourage you to budget and spend below your earnings. When you have gathered enough savings, don’t hesitate to invest. Remember, the greatest investment is the one you invest in yourself.
As a career person, you can use part of your savings to go for professional courses and certifications to improve your skills and marketability. Also, invest in a business; create a side hustle to enable you earn from multiple sources.
Yes, doing all this might not be all that easy, but by giving it a try and taking these measures, your life will definitely undergo a significant change.
9. Don’t procrastinate
One of the worst things that have robbed a lot of people of the opportunity to make it big in life is procrastination. As a matter of fact, most people that struggle today definitely had a time they could have invested in themselves, but for some reason, they opted not to. They saw reasons to procrastinate…
If you must learn how to invest in yourself, then you must do away with whatever wastes your time. And, actually, nothing wastes your time more than procrastination.
Discipline yourself and avoid distractions. Learn to be tactical and swift in making decisions. One good standard you should maintain when deciding on anything is to consider if the decision will add value to your individuality or not. Once you decide it will be incremental to your quality, then don’t hesitate. Go for it!
10. Make your health a priority
I’m sure you’re familiar with the 2-word mantra: “Health First”. Basically, it means that health comes before any other thing. You have to be healthy before you can take further steps to invest in yourself. Besides, there is no better way to invest in yourself than to stay healthy. That is undoubtedly the greatest self-investment one can embark on.
Taking care of yourself doesn’t stop at consuming medicine when you are sick. It starts from the proactive measures you take to avoid falling sick. It involves adopting a healthy lifestyle, such as: exercising frequently, observing good domestic and personal hygiene, eating a healthy balanced diet, going for regular medical checkups, avoiding self-medication, taking a break at intervals to avoid accumulated stress… and so many other things.
Remember, it’s only when you are healthy today that you can live to invest for tomorrow.
11. Surround yourself with people of value and substance
Do you know that the people you surround yourself with can go a long way in determining your fate in life?
There are people whose presence in your life can only yield positive outcomes. People who are like your partners in ideology and business, not just friends for the sake of it. They are the kinds of friends whose intelligence is infectious. Being around them alone sharpens your brain.
Such friends give priceless advice, and they motivate you to become a better version of yourself. They are empathetic enough to grieve with you and be merry with you when the situation calls for it. They are people who are always there during both sunny and rainy days.
Do what it takes to maintain such relationships. Invest in such friendships as much as you can because it’s just as important as investing in yourself.
Final thoughts
Having digested the tips above, I’m sure you now realize how important it is to invest in yourself. It is a prerequisite to change your life for good.
Now, ask yourself this question: If people can invest in businesses and obtain profits, if governments can invest in the economy/infrastructure and obtain high economic and infrastructural development, then, why can’t you invest in yourself?
Learning how to invest in yourself has a lot to do with decision making. Now, your first decision after reading this article should be to implement the tips discussed above. That, my friend, is a wise decision.
You might also want to read about:
- 12 Signs You Are On The Wrong Path In Life And Should Change Direction
- How To Boost Self-Confidence: 15 Tips To Start Implementing Today
- Journal Prompts For Self Discovery: 35 Questions To Ask Yourself
- 30 Easy Ways To Improve Yourself Little By Little Every Day
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