Your next investment shouldn’t be restricted to buying stocks or looking for the next trendy Kickstarter project to back. At its core, to invest is to believe and hope you get a favorable return, regardless if you invested your time, money or both. Imagine what will happen if you invest in a cause worth your time and money?

YOU Inc.

There’s a major investment waiting for you if you haven’t had the chance to start yet, and that investment is you. Some companies put a premium on training their employees, while some do not. Your company may have a training program in place for all employees, but due to budget cuts, this may be rare.

If this is the case, you shouldn’t wait for your company to pay for your training. The same goes if you’re self-employed. You should go out and seek your own training opportunities if you really want to maximize your potential. If you’re not using your idle time to train, educate and enrich yourself, its valuable time wasted that you can never get back.

Here are a few good reasons why you should invest in You Inc.

·      It’s Long Term

Life is a marathon, not a sprint and if you think of self-improvement in the short term, you’re in trouble. Investing time and money in your own development always pays off in the end. You just need to find what you need to work on, and look for ways to improve on them. If you suck leadership and time management for instance, look for short courses on it. Never stop learning – it always pays off.

·      It Goes Where You Go

No one can take away your knowledge and skill set. Even if you land a new job halfway around the world, you will take what you’ve learned with you. You may leave the company stapler and your potted plant behind, but you’ll be armed with better tools to deal with anything that crosses your new desk.

When Lebron James infamously declared he was taking his talents to South Beach in “The Decision”, he worded it perfectly. Even if the Cavs spent millions on Lebron’s training, coaching and development, it was all his to take and there was nothing the Cavs could do to get it back. Once you get training, it is yours, and you can take it wherever you go.

·      Your Career will Flourish

Getting the necessary skills training can help boost your career. For example, you can get HP’s unified functional testing training if you are in the software testing industry for a better shot at either getting a promotion or landing a more lucrative contract. Even learning a second language can be a huge level up and improve your job prospects immensely.

·      You, Version 2.0

When you invest in your personal development, you become a better version of yourself because you’re essentially working on the skills that you lack or you’re adding to an already well rounded skill set. It’s not all for work either. There are trainings and seminars on positivity or making good habits that stick. Find what you need, and become a better person.

·      You’ll Be More Helpful

Once you find the right training courses and seminars, you are on your way to attracting more wealth, opportunities and lasting relationships. Life is all about learning and experiencing new things for ourselves. It even gets better if you get to share it with other people and add value to their lives without asking for anything in return.

After all, when you help someone solve a problem, you’re not only helping that person. You are also helping yourself because you’re gaining additional knowledge on how to deal with that specific situation. In addition, if you know how to solve a particular problem, you cannot help but not lend a hand.

Investing in your personal development is one of the best investments you can make, because the results are instant and will last for as long as you live.