Happy Monday babes! Who woke up this morning feeling ready to take on the week? If you woke up dragging and wishing that the weekend was still here, then you are not alone. It’s crazy to think that a year ago I was in the same boat. Waking up every Monday – Thursday, living for the weekend and praying that all my hard work would come together. Today, I’m going to get pretty real with y’all. We’re going to tackle what it means to really invest in yourself daily.

I look at investing in yourself in two different ways:

• Financial investment
• Personal investment

So how do you define and benefit from these two very different types of investments? Well I like to keep the two areas in completely different buckets. Financial investments in yourself, are to help you hone in on a skill that could ultimately help you achieve your 2019 goal. Personal investments are done daily through personal development and daily goal setting.

Personal Financial Investment: purchasing online courses, classes and mentoring sessions to help you further your personal goals.

Now, you are probably wondering why you should purchase an online course when there are so many for free. Speaking from personal experience, it was not until I took a financial leap that I finally saw growth in my business. Now, I’m not saying you should ignore your rent that’s due next month or go hungry because of an online coaching service.

What I am saying, is that you will not see any growth personally or professionally unless you are investing in yourself and your vision.

Let’s rewind to 2 years ago, when I decided that I wanted to stop working in corporate America. I had a plan, I would grow my blog and create an online course that allowed me to leave my job. Preferably living on the beach somewhere working from my laptop. Well, none of that happened.  

I started off trying to grow my Instagram and blog on my own. I spent HOURS of my time after work, building my blog’s code. Making sure that everything was working correctly and even wrote an e-book that I self published on Amazon. But I was doing it all wrong. I was spending time creating resources that were not valuable to my audience. See, everyone at the time was following my blog for the fashion tips. No one really cared about social media marketing tips or how to start a blog. After running around in a circle for what felt like years, I decided to invest in my future. I paid $150 to have a social media & brand identification phone call with someone who had been in the business for awhile. I left that phone call feeling like I had a main purpose for my blog. That I knew how to create that story on my Instagram channel and ultimately, I walked away knowing I did NOT want to be a fashion blogger.

I’m currently sitting 2 years out from that phone call, I have not worked for a corporation for the last 1.5 years, and I have the flexibility I’ve always dreamed of. The only thing missing is the beach, but I’m working on that!

I was able to create a life that I truly love. One that gets me up in the morning feeling excited for another day. I actually have had to set boundaries for myself, so I’m not working 7 days a week. And it all started with a small personal financial investment.

The second part of living a fulfilling life, and investing in yourself is done through daily personal development.

Daily Personal Development: this can be done through reading, podcasts, and goal setting. Regardless of your preferred way, this is a habit that sets the mood for the day.

I’m still kind of new to the personal development game. But I have noticed a HUGE difference in my mindset over the past year, and it all stems from personal development.

Here’s how I structure my personal development each day:

• Start the morning listing 3 things I am grateful for.
• Listen to a podcast that centers around mindset. I’m currently loving, The School of Greatness.
• Outline my, 5 Must Happen tasks for the day
• Set 3 affirmations for the day

Simple. But that is what personal development is, a simple daily practice that helps you focus on the right things.

Here are some of the personal development products I love!

Making the leap to invest in myself two years ago was hands down the best decision I could have ever made. I really hope this post has gotten you excited to start living each day with intention!

XOXO

Emily