I recently invested in a great program to help me build and grow my business. I kind of freaked out since I’m spending so much money on it….so I did what I always do when I freak out… I turned to friends for reassurance. It went kind of like this:
Me: “Oh my gosh! Can you believe that I spent so much money on this thing?!?!?”
Friend: “That’s great! Do you think it will help you grow your business?”
Me: “Absolutely! But it’s so much money! I can’t believe I did that!”
Friend: “It’ll be worth it! Plus it’s tax deductible. Good job for doing that!”
Everyone that I spoke to thought it was a great idea and that the program would end up being an amazing investment. Nobody that I talked to thought I was being ridiculous or absurd or taking an unreasonable chance on this program. I was honestly surprised how supportive everyone was. It seemed to be clear to them that investing in my business is a smart move and something I should totally do even if it required sacrifice.
That got me thinking….it makes a lot of sense to invest in my business. But what if I told my friends (or myself) that I was spending that kind of money investing in ME? Would the conversation have gone differently? I know that in my own head it would be a very different conversation for sure. Instead of congratulating myself on putting money and work toward self-improvement I’d be thinking of all the other things I should be spending the money on. So that got me wondering why is it okay and even smart to invest in my business but not to invest in myself?
There are things I do each day that are an investment in me. Meditation, prayer, eating breakfast, reading and listening to audiobooks to name a few. But here’s what I notice. When I start to slack off in my routines the first thing to go is my self care. If I don’t have time for all the things that need to get done I’m likely to choose to forgo doing my meal prep. If it’s a choice between working late to get notes done or going home to spend time with my kids I’ll probably work late. I do have systems in place to take care of me but they always seem to be the last thing on my list of priorities. If I really and truly believed that investing in me is important I think those things would get much higher on my list of priorities.
Investing in yourself is the best investment you’ll ever make. It will not only improve your life, it will improve the life of those around you.
Robin Sharma
I don’t know about you but by the time January is over I’ve often forgotten the resolutions or goals that I’ve set. Or they’ve taken a back seat to what seems like “more important” things that I need to do. I am committing to continuing to make myself and my goals a priority throughout the entire year. I’m going to start by reminding myself that I am important. That the things I need to grow and evolve matter. That at the end of the day taking time and energy for me is the best thing that I can do. That when it comes down to it I myself am the most important…
