If you don’t know anything about stocks, bonds, T-bills, or IRAs, don’t worry. You don’t have to be financially savvy to make great investments. While the investment ideas below may not get you an early retirement, I’m confident that they’ll make your life richer and more enjoyable right now. If you’re not already investing in these five areas, I’d suggest you start today.
Health
Our bodies are the vessel in which we travel during this lifetime. We can’t trade ourselves in or get a new model when we wear this body out. So instead of filling up on junk food, sitting away the days, or neglecting to maintain your good health, choose healthful, natural foods, enjoy plenty of physical activity, and regularly look after your physical needs. Investing in your body is the wise and delightful way to go.
Love
This investment is one that naturally replicates itself. When you give love, you get love (it’s not always returned by who you give it to, but it does come back to you). Love is also one way you can immediately enrich your life, because being loving makes you feel loveable. It is a game you can play alone and it’s also a game without losers—where love is, everyone wins.
“Love is a force more formidable than any other. It is invisible – it cannot be seen or measured, yet it is powerful enough to evolve you in a moment, and offer you more joy than any material possession could.â€
Barbara De Angelis
Gratitude
If you want to feel rich, be thankful for the blessings in your life. The gifts of your life are boundless and varied. When we take large gifts, like good health, for granted, small ones, like a warm smile from a stranger, don’t even penetrate our consciousness. Invest in gratitude by paying attention to the gifts you’re given, and you’ll start discovering treasures that you’d never noticed before.
Positive attitude
A proverb reminds us that if we fall down six times, we should get up seven times. This resilience is a key investment to make in life. We all get dealt cards that we sometimes want to give back, yet the only power we have is to choose how to be with the cards we have. When you invest in a positive attitude, you open yourself up to possibility and give “bad†cards the room to become “good†opportunities, and maybe even “great†gifts.
“If more people really pondered how much is enough in their lives, perhaps there would be a lot more truly satisfied folks in this world.â€
Linda S. Anderson
Forgiveness
This investment is one that many people hesitate to take, thinking it’s risky, foolish, or unwarranted. Somewhere we’ve gotten the notion that forgiveness is mainly about the other person, when it’s really about us. When we forgive another, we release ourselves from past hurt, anger, or fear, thus freeing ourselves to move on to other things in life. While it may take a bit of practice, once you get on the forgiveness track, you’ll want to make it a regular part of your personal investment strategy.
I wrote this for my client newsletter back in August of 2002 with the following introduction. “Here in the United States, for much of the summer, the talk in the news has centered on the lagging economy, corporate corruption, and falling stock prices.” I find this a potent reminder that by living like we’ve been living we’ve created more of the same stuff that doesn’t work. Are you ready to create something new and better?