The Best Investments In Myself
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Him and tagged education, health, investments
During these tough economic times, I have investments in something that has a high rate of return and little risk: ME. Fortunately, I started investing in myself before everything hit the fan; because of that I feel that I am in a good position to keep my job or even advance my career. Here's two investments that I made in myself that has tangible financial rewards:
Taking Classes
I did not take advantage of our company's tuition reimbursement benefit the first two years that I was employed. In hindsight, that was really dumb; I left $5,000 in educational expenses on the table.
Eventually I decided to start using some of that benefit and enrolled in a certificate program that will put me in great position compared to my peers. I am almost finished with that and have started taking classes that are more broad in scope and will make me more versatile.
The total out-of-pocket cost of my classes comes out to less than $200 per year, or the amount that the tuition of the classes exceeds $2,500.
These classes have had an immediate impact on my performance at my job. I have knowledge and skills that none of my peers have. I am able to work smarter and add value to my small company. I'm pretty sure that my 72.5% pay increase since I've started is due to my increased contributions to my workplace.
I just wish that they would reimburse me for the coffeehouse trips that I take when I study!
Getting and staying healthy
Since this blog began I've lost about 60 pounds. It all started when I had ACL knee reconstruction surgery. The events leading to that were directly related to me being overweight.
The cost of losing and maintaining this weight and lifestyle is a little high. First, I had a gym membership for a while, but I recently quit the gym in favor of more home-friendly workouts. I am pretty active, but need goals like running a half-marathon or playing soccer to keep me motivated. My diet is now much healthier, but now without an initial hit to our wallet as I was working out the kinks.
There have been numerous financial benefits to losing weight. First off, we didn't have to buy a new bed to hold our fat asses. Last year, my doctor took me off high blood pressure medications and told me to see him once a year instead of twice. We're currently in the process obtaining a life insurance policy and I'm sure that my new weight and lack of health problems will contribute to a more favorable rating, which will lead to a less expensive premium.
Being healthy will also prevent future healthcare costs. I'm at a lower risk for diabetes and heart disease. I will also miss less days of work that I because of health problems.
How are you investing in yourself? Are your investments going to benefit you financially?
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It is no wonder that your company values you so much.
Taking control of your position, finding ways to streamline your role, and spearheading new projects make you an invaluable team member and also give you greater job satisfaction.
If you feel completely stagnant in your current position, it's simply time to roll up your sleeves and revamp your job.
Pev | Jan 25, 2009
Those are good advices and especially if you currently don't work. I graduated from college last august and I basically spent the time traveling, learning new languages, and new computer skills - now I'm working and those skills are paying off. But now my only problem is that I have a lot of work and learning how to manage my time better so that I can have more free time to work out and stay in shape. Anyone have any recommendations?
Ishtar | Jan 27, 2009
I'm going to learn as much as possible. Enroll in classes and buy more non-fiction books. Oh, and I'll invest in transport this year, too.
Chiot's Run | Jan 23, 2009
I think investing in yourself is one of the keys to becoming successful. By investing in yourself you're taking responsibility for your life and your future and not leaving it up to fate. You see yourself as a person of value. I often note a huge difference in happiness between those that see themselves as valuable and those that see themselve at the mercy of the gods so to speak.
Mr Chiots and I are in a habit of investing in ourselves. Since we own our own business, it's very beneficial to our bottom line when we learn new skills so we can diversify our income streams.
We invest in ourselves by:
Reading educational books on hobbies that can make us money or improve our work performance.
Mainting health through excercise (usually walking & yoga) and eating healthfully.
Developing and maintaining relationships with other professionals in our areas of business for support and encouragement.
Learn new skills each year so we can make money in different areas of save money (plumbing & electrical classes, beekeeping skills, gardening, car maintenance, etc).
We refuse to waste hours of our time watching TV or playing games (at least a ton of time, we do occatinoally watch some TV, but usually it's an educational documentary or a movie) . We like to spend our free time learning new skills or improving the ones we have.
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