What Is the Actual Value of An Investment In Yourself?
What is the most powerful, timing saving, investment you can make in yourself?
The one that gives you the best chance to achieve more than you could alone.
Even if something seems expensive, what is its actual value? Would you invest $10,000 into a high yield savings account to make an additional $400 for doing nothing? In a private education and tutoring that lead to a full-ride $50,000 college education? To save $100,000 in medical bills 30 years later?
Would you invest $10,000 to improve who you are at the core of your person physically, mentally, and emotionally creating greater overall health, happiness, success, and longevity of athletic or professional career?
What is an investment in yourself actually worth?
The point is: it’s not about the money.
Individuals who recognize the value of self-investment are typically outliers. Naturally, through their lifestyle choices they separate themselves from others in a way that can draw negativity as a byproduct of jealousy and doubt.
“You’re going to burn yourself out.”
“You’re going to workout again?”
“That’s not a realistic goal, you should set your sights on something more achievable.”
Finding your people when your goals are uncommon becomes increasingly difficult and lonely. Yet, there are countless people who have done this at a high level and can brandish the unique title of being “self-made”.
DEFINING A SELF-MADE PERSON
Discipline is at the center of a self-made person, and shows up in the following ways:
Despite the ebbs and flows of motivation, they are willing to show up consistently and put in the work.
They seek out opportunities, and are willing to courageously ask for and accept help.
They seek out the competition of others because they know that by testing themselves against others around their level, they gain perspective of where they’re at.
They are never too good to listen to advice that they may have heard many times before or continue to refine a skill that they’ve practiced hundreds of times.
Because they are so hungry to learn and love the process of getting better, showing up daily doesn’t feel like a “have to” but a “get to” even on days where they “don’t feel like it”.
Being a self-made athlete does not literally mean you did it by yourself. There really is no possible way to become your best without the push of others.
Even if you are motivated beyond comparable measure, without the guidance of someone with knowledge and experience above your level, it will take you longer to get where you’re trying to go.
A coach or mentor is there to point you in the right direction and save you your most precious commodity - time - by optimizing your time training. There is tremendous value in this.
A LIVING EXAMPLE
There are many athletes who embody what it means to be self-made; however, there is one who I’ve had the great honor of actually watching grow into the person she is today.
I first met Brooklynn Haywood when she was 9 years old. At a young age she stood out because she loved basketball, and loved putting in the work to get better. Her parents were (are still) tough on her and to many people seemed too strict. “They’re going to burn her out,” was something people would often tell me in conversations talking about Brooklynn. My response was always a shrug or a simple, “Maybe.”
When you can’t relate to something, it’s easy to be skeptical. What most people never realized was that Brooklynn has always been on her own path and her and her family were only going to listen to people who understood the vision and possibility of making it a reality.
“It’s not just the kids having to make sacrifices parents have to too! How do you get your kids to believe in themselves and make sacrifices if you don’t show them you’re also making sacrifices because you believe in them!! ”
The Haywoods moved from Alaska to Washington to be close to one such mentor, Matt Conboy, as Brooklynn was entering high school because they knew that, unfortunately, the reality of trying to “make it big” in Alaska would be extremely hard. Possible, yes, but it’s kind of like planting a palm tree in the tundra expecting it to have the same opportunity to grow as it does in California. Alaska just doesn’t have the access to opportunity that living in the Lower 48 does.
Now, in her junior year at Union High School, Brooklynn’s drive, dedication and unapologetic commitment to her process is paying dividends as Division I scholarships are pouring in along with sponsor deals as a high school athlete.
Though she has had a handful of close coaches and mentors help her, and has attended at least a dozen camps across the country over the years, Brooklynn is a self-made basketball player. No coach or camp is worth anything if the athlete they are working with is not invested in themselves.
The investment the Haywood family has made into helping their daughter become the best version of herself has not only financially begun repaying itself, but more importantly, she now embodies priceless character traits that make her a stand up role model, daughter, friend, teammate, and catch for her future employer, spouse, and family.
The Haywood’s have made many sacrifices on this journey and I know it’s been very difficult in a variety of ways, but for them, the value of Brooklynn’s dreams and the early recognition of her potential to fulfill them had no price. Their story is really special, and something we can all learn from.
So… it’s your turn to answer. What is the actual value of an investment in yourself?