Investing in yourself is very important. When you invest in yourself, you bring balance to your life and value to the marketplace. Last week, I wrote about how to bring balance to your life. Investing in yourself was one of those ways. Today I want to share with you specific ACTIONS for investing in yourself. These actions will increase your self-worth and also your worth in the market place.
Learning: Reading something positive or inspirational for 30 minutes every day. This could be a blog, a newspaper, a magazine, or a book.
- Find a blogger or author whose vision you really connect with or someone who knows a lot about something you don’t. The internet is full of free, great content from bloggers or businesses. Whatever you learn, it will add value to your life.
- Read 2 books a week. This will increase your value by educating your heart and your mind. I know what you are thinking. How do I find the time to read 2 books a week? I understand the busyness of life. Find an audiobook or podcast. Maybe two books a week is difficult, but could you listen to a program a week? The point is to learn something new each week to increase your value.
Listening: Finding someone who will coach, teach, train and mentor you. Then, listen to them.
- If you see a person you admire, or whose life you envy, offer to take them out for coffee so you can hear about how they got where they are. To listen effectively, you must be prepare yourself. Be prepared by setting aside your bias or judgements. Be ready to take notes, establish eye contact and take responsibility for learning.
- Come prepared with a list of questions to get the most out of your time together. Ask them what they attribute their success to and how they got to where they are. You can even ask them if they would be willing to mentor you.
Looking: Success leaves clues. Through looking and allowing yourself to be taught, you can learn to model successful people.
- Ask yourself what kind of success you want. Is it success in your business or success in your family life? Maybe it is success in your workout routine or marriage? Whatever type of success you are looking for, find a mentor who you can watch and learn from them. Robert Baden Powell was the founder of the Boy Scouts. The Boy Scouts are known for mentor programs. He says, “If you make listening and observation your occupation you will gain much more than you can by talk.”
- I wanted to be successful in real estate, and one of my very first mentors in real estate was very successful. He had owned rental property for 40 years. He knew something about what he was doing. I had to learn to humble myself and to observe and imitate him. Once I was able to watch him, I learned a great deal about real estate and brought value to my life.
Jim Rohn, a famous entrepreneur, says this investing in yourself: “An investment in your personal development is the best investment you can make.” What steps can you take to invest in yourself today?
