The most important investment you can make is not one where which the ultimate goal is to be driving your Lambo at high-speed back to your penthouse apartment overlooking an idyllic beach front, but more for self-preservation, survival of one’s self and those you love.
Money, of course, plays a significant part in this, however money alone will not save you from the limitless variables the World, the Universe (and maybe the Metaverse in the not too distant future) has to throw at you.
The common belief of what ‘wealth’ is and the meaning of being rich is so often misunderstood. It has nothing to do with money, it has nothing to do with big houses, fast cars and luxurious items. These are all replaceable desires bought with replaceable money which have nothing to do with being wealthy.
Wealth begins in the mind and heart. It is a state of being. Unless you can find this state of being, you can never truly be wealthy, regardless of the things you buy and the lifestyle you lead.
So, this brings me to (I’m sure you’ve already worked it out) the best investment you could, and will ever make. An investment which will lay the foundation of everything else you achieve in life. Of course, the greatest investment is the one you make in yourself.
The best bit is, it doesn’t need to require money, just your valuable time. But a little of your valuable time spent on yourself will free up more of your time than you could ever imagine.
Set your goals
Without clearly laid out goals, it is often very easy to feel overwhelmed or even lost altogether. Get a piece of paper and write down the goals you would like to achieve both in the short term and in the long term. This will give you clarity, focus, and a sense of purpose. These goals can be anything from the mundane, such as cleaning out your under stairs ‘cupboard of doom’ to starting your own business.
These goals can be and should be added too frequently. When one is completed, knock it off the list. But write it down on paper – not on your mobile phone, not in your memory, on a piece of paper with a pen or pencil. The scientific research is clear on this, if we write it down, we process and encode the meaning of what we are writing far better than if we tap away on a keyboard or mobile device the same words.
As well as focus and clarity, writing down your goals will both motivate you to complete your goals, and give you a sense of achievement and thus dopamine hit when your goals are completed.
Structure your work time
The world we live in can often feel chaotic, disorganised and random. With the many demands that society now seems to throw at us on a daily basis, it is more important than ever to structure your work time. Now this doesn’t mean the structure has to be fixed to exact time, outside forces so often put bed any attempts to this. But if you have a structure to your day in regards to achieving your pre-defined goals, make this structure a routine, then you will work far more efficiently.
If you are like me and have very different tasks to do from one day to the next, it doesn’t matter. I still try to have a general structure to the order of events, they may get spread out across the day as other unexpected requirements of my time get in the way, but before the day is out I would hope to have still completed the daily tasks I have in the same order.
It is always best to set a time limit to each task, particularly things like checking emails, social media messages, market watch…. ect. ect. If we don’t set these time limits and follow them it doesn’t take long for one area of our work to become overwhelmed, and being overwhelmed is a very inefficient mindspace to be in.
Healthy input, Healthy Output
We know just how important it is to consume healthy nutritional foods in order to be healthy. But it never ceases to amaze me how so many people fail to see the importance of what information they consume. The information you feed your brain will determine exactly what it is capable of outputting.It is sad to say it but, poor people feed off poor information, whereas rich people feed off rich information.
We live in an age where information is everywhere, it is literally tapping away at you in your pocket demanding acknowledgement, every minute of every day. It is all around us, everywhere we go and for the most part, it is junk. It offers absolutely no mental nutrition whatsoever.
Get rid of that angry noisy box that sits on a throne in the living room. Remove it from your space. Limit your time on social media, ideally just use it as a tool for your work and purposeful communication. But you must cut out that incessant mindless scrolling through feeds.
Read books, listen to books whilst you are commuting, cleaning or cooking. Expand your vocabulary, expand your mind.
Being successful is a state of mind
If you think being successful has anything to do with being rich, you have really missed the point. Being successful has absolutely nothing to do with monetary riches.
Being successful is about being truly content with who you are, achieving the goals you set and living in a way that aligns with your beliefs. Exactly what your goals, beliefs and personal values are does not matter, it is alignment with these things that defines ones level of success.
Now of course, for many, this will result in monetary riches, but having a big house, fast car and lots of money in the bank on its own does not make an individual successful, or wealthy for that matter.
So, what I’m trying to say is that we must be content with ourselves, who we are, our values, our purpose. Unless we believe in ourselves and what we are capable of, there is little point in trying. We are incredible creatures living in an incredible reality, but ultimately it is up to each of us to decide how we want to play this game.
Every game has rules, learn them
Everything happens for a reason. Nothing is random. In fact, the very concept of random does not exist in the physical world, it is merely a concept. Our reality is made up of a finite number of variables, the state of each of these variables is defined by the current status of all the other variables around it. What we know as physics, is the human understanding of these coded routines, the code of life (and death).
Now, what we know as society is just a small, somewhat primitive subroutine built by humans (which are effectively sub-routines in themselves made up of a finite number of variables and further sub-routines). So anything that we know to be possible within this society, can be repeated – particularly something as simple as being wealthy. You just need to know the rules.
While these rules change a little from time to time as those pesky (human) sub-routines mess around with external variables, the basis of the game and the rules that apply have changed very little.
The rules of the game really are quite simple. You’re reading them now.
Though there will be specific things unique to the end goal you are trying to achieve, so based on this idea that everything is determined by a set of variables (which it is), it is merely a case of backward engineering other peoples successfully completed goals that are similar to your own. Once you’ve worked out the specific rules required to reach the goal, follow them closely.
Success if infectious
Successful people are typically surrounded by other successful people. And again, don’t misunderstand the meaning of ‘successful’. If you find yourself surrounded by people who constantly express negativity, you yourself will absorb some of this negativity. Likewise, being surrounded by content and positive people will infect you with positivity and contentment.
Not that we should deny a friend in need, but if their life is nothing but doom and gloom, you probably don’t want to be hanging out with them on a regular basis socially. It probably isn’t good for them as much as it isn’t for you.
Surrounding yourself with bright, happy and open minds will not only be far more fun at a social level, it will help you at a productive level.
If this all sounds a little selfish, you misunderstand me. I’m not saying you should ditch your friend who has turned to drinking too much following a nasty divorce. It is your duty to help these people, but surrounding yourself in these people and these people alone will, in time, break you.
Be the person you want to be
This means more than it may first seem. You have a plan, you’ve laid out your goals and you are working towards them. But you must believe in achieving your goals to an extent that in your mind, you are already there – you made it, it has been written and therefore it is!
Just because you have yet to build your life up to where you want it to be, does not mean you should not be that person now, success begins the minute you realise you can and will reach your goals.
Planning to build a successful business that will benefit humanity? Well, be the person who’s already done it. Don’t think in maybes, hopefully’s and possibilities. These are all thoughts which have an element of doubt, there is no room for doubt. Doubt indicates a chance of failure, and failure should, and cannot be an option in one’s mind when trying to achieve their goals.
Regardless of my financial situation, I am successful and wealthy. I’ve made a lot of money, and equally I’ve lost a lot of money, everything in fact – many times over. But, neither events have anything to do with my success. I am successful regardless. I am content, happy and wealthy regardless. It is this continual mind-set that keeps you going; it is this mind-set that will continually invite new opportunities and an abundance of wealth into your life.
This is a simplified list of points to ensure success, but to be honest, success is simple, on paper at least. The hard part is having the discipline to follow the rules of the game. Doing it tomorrow just won’t cut it. Lying in bed for an extra couple hours because it’s cold and miserable outside will not get you where you need to be.
You have your goals, you know who you are – Now, do what needs doing!
