Investing in yourself is the key to building sustainable wealth because you are your most important source of wealth.

This article by Dr. Charity Ezenwa, was originally published on Alpha Gamma

3 reasons why investing in yourself is your best investment decision

Investing in yourself is one of the most important investments you can make.

What does wealth really mean?

We often think of wealth in terms of how much money we make or have in the bank accounts. Businesses, real estates, paper assets, golds, silver, and other commodities are also ways we measure our wealth.

Have you ever considered what happens when you lose all these assets? Think of what happens when you lose your job, your business, or other investment vehicles you may have.

How do you start again? Can you easily find your feet? What happens next?

You are your most important source of wealth. As you plan, create, or build wealth, these are important questions to ask yourself. If you struggle to find answers to these questions, it is time to start investing in your most important financial asset – YOURSELF.

True wealth is sustainable wealth. It is not enough to achieve wealth without having built the capacity to sustain it.

Building the capacity to sustain your wealth starts with investing in yourself.

1. Your knowledge and skills remain with you regardless of the economy

Investing in yourself, in acquiring knowledge or skills is the most important investment you can make for your financial future. This means investing in your education to increase your knowledge base and update your skills.

As you invest in paper assets (eg. Stocks and bonds), commodities, real estate, owning businesses; or as you invest your time at your workplace, the most important investment should be in “yourself”.

In today’s volatile world, you can lose your investments in these vehicles as the economy moves.

At the same time, you can lose your marketability, employability, or your competitive edge as your skills become outdated and obsolete.

Whatever your source of wealth is, you are at the center of it all.

[bctt tweet=”The key is to update and diversify your skills. Do not just learn or know one thing the same way, learn how to do things differently, and also learn how to do different things. ” username=”wealthygen”]

Employment

If you are more inclined to being an employee, your minimum pay is determined by the level and relevance of your knowledge and skills.

The more updated and relevant your knowledge and skills are the higher your earning potentials. Also, the more diversified your skills are, the more value you bring to your employer, and the more competitive you become.

Think of it this way, the more money you make, and if properly managed, the more money you have to save and invest for the future.

If you happen to lose your current job, your knowledge and skills remain with you. You don’t lose them. Because you are competitive, it becomes easier to get another job.

Invest in other assets

You may not be a typical employee kind of person but prefers to own your own business, real estate, and other asset categories.

[bctt tweet=”Whatever it is you do, investing in your knowledge and skills ensures that no matter what direction the economy moves, you will have the capacity to sustain your wealth.” username=”wealthygen”]

By this I mean diversification. Let us assume that you own a real estate business. How much do you know about real estate? And what else do you have an up-to-date skill and knowledge to do? What if the real estate industry crashes? Do you crash with it?

And what else do you have an up-to-date skill and knowledge to do? What if the real estate industry crashes? Do you crash with it?

[bctt tweet=”Smart wealth builders invest in diversifying their skills and knowledge so that when one opportunity crashes, they easily apply their skills and knowledge into other profitable businesses.” username=”wealthygen”]

They never crash with the economy and you shouldn’t too. That is the key!

To achieve a sustainable financial success, don’t make the mistake of investing only in diversifying your portfolio of other assets that you can possibly lose.

You are your most important source of wealth. Your knowledge, skills, and experience remain with you even when you have lost everything.

Investing in yourself,  in diversifying and updating the skills that you can pick up and use at any point in time, no matter what direction the economy moves.

2. Your personality and attitude can make or break you financially

Whether you are an employee, an investor, or own your own business, your personality and attitude are critically important for your success.

It is not enough to acquire all the skills and knowledge, but what do your personality and attitude say about you?

How are you able to work with your team members? How do you get along with your co-workers, business partners, your customers, or your clients?

How do you look when you go for business meetings and when you meet your customers and clients? How do you talk to them or negotiate with them?

These groups of people are your source of money. Your professionalism, confidence, and energy speak volumes about yourself and how you represent your employer or your business brand.

This can potentially make or break a business relationship, or cost you a job/promotion opportunities.

Your personality and attitude also reflect on your attitude towards risk and investment objectives. Of course, investment returns are positively correlated with risks.

This means that high return investments have high risks. So your attitude towards risk affects your investment objectives and your returns.

3. Your networking  ability can open or close financial doors

Your association and your ability to network are as important as your skills and knowledge.

You are who you associate with. I  am sure you must have heard this statement several times.

The importance of this statement comes when you consider the opportunities that get closed off when you remain stuck in your own little ideas or opportunities that get opened up when you share and receive ideas.

Association

You cannot succeed financially if you surround yourself only with those who see nothing good about what you do, or who discourage you from making any positive effort.

[bctt tweet=”The journey to financial freedom requires commitment and consistency. You are more likely to meet financial failure if those around you are only those who encourage you to spend all you earn on keeping up with the Joneses.” username=”wealthygen”]

However, surrounding yourself with those who hold you accountable, who give you meaningful ideas, and those who encourage your efforts gives you that confidence and the energy to stay consistent and committed to the wealth cause.

To succeed in building wealth, surround yourself with those who think wealth and who build wealth.

Weed out the negative energy around you, and you are on your way to achieving financial success.

Networking ability

This is a very important skill. Your ability to network gives you the opportunity to market your skills and knowledge, your products or services.

Networking opens up a lot of doors to financial success.

Whether you an entrepreneur or an employee, networking can connect you to potential employers, or potential markets that you never thought existed for your products or services.

[bctt tweet=”Go out there and meet people. Communicate, share ideas, and follow up on your contacts. Ideas and inspiration can come from anywhere. One idea from one person can open up several other ideas.” username=”wealthygen”]

When you lose your job, your business or other investments, a strong connection you made may be your key to jumping back on your feet.

If you are not leveraging the power of networking, now is the time. However, do not just go out there, be strategic and do it with purpose.

Do you think you are your most important source of wealth? Are you investing in yourself enough? Let me know what you think, I would love to hear your thoughts on this!

For more entrepreneurship tips, check out my other post on Alpha Gamma here