If you miss this investment, you’re missing out on the biggest return of your life!
So what is it?
YOU!
How much time and energy are you investing into yourself?
Answer the following 10 questions and for each question, draw a smiley or sad face on a piece of paper in response:
For example: Q1: If you spend time looking after yourself – draw a smiley face and if you don’t, draw a sad face.
- Do you spend your time and energy looking after other people, but forgetting to take any time to look after yourself?
- Do you feel good about yourself or do you avoid looking in the mirror?
- Are you full of confidence or are you suffering from low self-esteem?
- Do you feel that it’s too late to change your life, so now you feel stuck in a rut?
- Do you look after yourself and feel at your best or have you started to let yourself go?
- Do you spend too many hours at work, investing your valuable leisure time into the company you work for, instead of spending time doing the things you enjoy and spending time with your family and friends?
- Are you fit and healthy or are you neglecting your health?
- Are you stuck on the hamster’s wheel but you don’t know how to step off?
- Does life feel exciting or are you bored with the day to day sameness?
- ARE YOU LIVING THE LIFE YOU DREAM OF… or maybe not?
If you’ve got some sad faces, then maybe it’s time to start investing in yourself.
Investing in yourself is one of the keys, to unlock the door to the life of your dreams and trust me – it’s NEVER too late!!!
I know from personal experience how easy it is to fall into poor habits and to invest energy into everything and everybody else, whilst neglecting yourself and burying those inner dreams, deep within:
- I worked very long hours
- I ate unhealthily
- I didn’t exercise because I felt I didn’t have the time
- I missed out on spending quality time with my husband and family
- I felt increasing levels of stress and although I advised other people on how to manage their stress levels, I failed to invest time in myself. I didn’t practice what I preached!
- I’d forgotten what my dreams really were and definitely felt it was too late to achieve them anyway
However, in February 2016, my lack of investment into myself, resulted in my very personal stock market crash!
- My blood pressure was sky high
- I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes
- I was overweight and suffering from low self esteem
- My confidence had dipped
- I was completely unfit – even walking up a flight of stairs made me breathless
- My relationships with my husband, family and friends were suffering
- When I received the diagnosis of Diabetes, my Doctor also told me that I was at risk of having a stroke.
It sounds really gloomy doesn’t it?
My family and friends had been telling me for months that I was going to make myself ill and yet I’d disregarded their words, thinking that I knew best.
It took receiving the diabetes diagnosis to make me realise they’d been right.
I was devastated and I felt incredibly guilty. In fact, I felt so guilty, that I didn’t tell anyone about the diagnosis for several days and I toyed with the idea of keeping it to myself.
At this point, due to my blood pressure being extremely high, I’d been forced to take some time off work and I drove to the garden centre and as I walked through to the café, I passed a feature display of books – it was the 8 Week Blood Sugar Diet by Dr Michael Mosley. I purchased a copy and spent the next hour or so in the café, reading about the successful results that they were achieving to put Type 2 diabetes into remission by following a low carbohydrate diet.
Reading that book was my lightbulb moment and I realised it wasn’t too late to change. You may have read previously about my diabetic journey here: How to be Positive about a ‘Positive Diabetes Diagnosis!
The great news is that we can all make changes to improve our lives and making a decision to invest in yourself is the first step. It doesn’t have to cost a fortune and will give you the BIGGEST return on your investment.
Why wait for your personal stock market crash?
We can all learn lessons from others can’t we?
If you’ve got some sad faces on your answer sheet, then you can definitely learn a lesson from me and start to make some NEW investments into yourself!
Looking back, February 2016, was one of the most transformational moments in my life.
I’d been stupid to allow my health to deteriorate and I’d definitely got myself stuck on the hamster’s wheel. However, I feel very fortunate that I was given a serious wake up call, before it was too late and I was able to jump off that wheel forever!
I was given a chance to turn my life around for the better and at 56 (then), I realised that it’s never too late to make significant changes. Nothing is fixed in stone and it’s amazing how closing one door, allows another door to open.
I hope reading this, gives some of you hope and the inspiration to make the changes you can make to improve your life too and start to live the life you dream of.
In the last 18 months, I’ve invested time, energy and some money into myself and it’s definitely bringing me the BEST results. I’ve:
- Put my Type 2 Diabetes into remission
- Lost 2 stone in weight
- Started a great new exercise habit
- Given my husband the love he deserves
- Spent wonderful time with my family
- Re-established lost friendships and formed new ones
- Left my job and set up my new business
- Invested in training to build new skills
- Set up my blog and formed new connections with amazing people all round the World – you could say the ‘World is my oyster’….
I’ve moved from here (December 2015)
Feeling exhausted
Overweight
Having Diabetes (although I didn’t know it.. )
Feeling stressed at work
To here (2017):
Diabetes in remission
Lost 2 stone
Having fun
Feeling Fab at 50 ( add a 7)
I’m ready to embrace my life and dreams in 2018 and to build on the amazing foundations I’ve established in 2017, having invested time and energy into my health, my education and becoming my own boss!
I jumped off the hamster’s wheel and now I’m back in control and running along the path, toward MY goals and dreams.
Are you ready to invest in yourself and embrace your life in 2018?
In part 2 of the Self Investment series, I’ll give you some ideas about the things you can do to start making simple changes that can transform your life too!
Loving all your posts Wendy! They all are very inspiring and thought provoking. Keep up the great writing.
Author
Aww – thanks Cheryl, you’re really kind! xx
Excellant, full of energy and we are never tooooo old. Fabulously motivating , inspiring and uplifting.
Author
Oh thanks so much Bella – I really appreciate your lovely comment!! Thank you xx
I love you Wendy! Love and Light to you on your way. I’m so grateful to know you. I chose to love, and to reside in a consciousness of service starting with myself. Blessings to you and your adorable grand kids!!! Love Debbie
Author
Debbie – it’s amazing how we can feel each other’s love across the ocean! Thank you so much and I just love that you’re choosing to love yourself!
Much love, Wendy xx
LOVE this post Wendy. You’re proof that taking decisive action can have huge benefits in our life. I’m happy to say that there were no sad faces on my list, although a couple of them were a bit lop sided. Well, we all have our off days don’t we? Great wake up post. xo
Author
Fabulous – what a difference a year makes for us both Miriam. Yes – life is full of ups and downs but we’re definitely picking ourselves up more quickly than we did a year ago! xx
Absolutely! And isn’t it great? xo
Author
It most certainly is Miri! xx
Agree witj Miriam
Author
Thank you so much Bella!! xx
That was a really telling little exercise. I didn’t have TOO many sad faces but the fact that I had any has made me look again at what is causing this malaise I have been suffering from since my the second half of September. Action is needed and I will take it!
Author
I’m so glad this post has illuminated something for you to work on Osyth! Sometimes we slip off track without realising it at the time and we need our little wake up calls to spur us back into action. I’m sure you’ll be full of smiley faces very soon… xx
What it did was to finitely point to what is amiss in my head at the moment. I know the back-causes … I won’t bore you but I hadn’t really faced the results. So whilst I am surface super, I am edgy and irritable and not being at all creative which is a bad thing as I am more than mid-way through two books which I really DO need to put to bed. The fact that I haven’t committed to the habit changing challenge is pudding proof enough but this exercise actually pinpointed it and it happened to come at the right time(why be surprised … the Universe will always do that if we let it). So let the games commence, let the fun begin and let me climb back on my pony for the ride! xx
Author
Well Osyth, I’m personally delighted that this exercise has provided that lightbulb moment for you. I can’t wait to read those books!! Maybe Step 2 is to do the Wheel of Life – that’s a brilliant follow up exercise to this one and then use the Goal Setting workbook and action plan to set some milestones for finishing those brilliant books by transferring your brilliance to paper! I imagine you like Lady Godiva galloping freely to your destiny… Wonderful xx
Hehe! Don’t encourage me to be Lady Godiva 😉 I will do the Wheel of Life this weekend and from there it will be Goal Setting and Action Plan etc etc. I need to get my books out there. It’s been too long xx
Author
Oh I WILL encourage you to be Lady Godiva – so long as you give me notice to come to the streets of Grenoble to watch the parade!
Wheel of Life here you come and who knows where it will lead. I want to be one of the first to receive the signed copy! xxx
The faces of my upper echalons French voisins I would love to see …. it’s worth being a Godiva just to see it 😉 xxx And you will be. I promise. X
Author
Oh my goodness – I’m ‘on notice’ to get on the plane! Hillarious – laughing at the thought! Thankyou – I look forward to it.. x