Last week, I wished
you a week of consistently living your “just for today” list. The point was
that if you live each day without regret then in the tough times, you can
embrace the sorrow and move on. How did you do and how are you doing? Remember,
this is a process not just a onetime exercise.
What do you think Tony Robbins and Warren Buffet would say
was THE best investment they ever made? “Tony Robbins went from working as a
janitor to being a multi-millionaire who sells inspiration for a living. Warren
Buffet, one of the most successful investors of all time, is currently worth
almost $75 billion.
Both of these legendary businessmen say THE best investment
they ever made was not a stock or financial asset. It was a class.”
Did you guess this? Through a class taught by Jim Rohn; one
of the greatest motivators, speakers and authors of his time, taught Robbins
that the most important work he could do in his life was working on himself.”
Instead of focusing on all the things out of his control,
Rohn’s message was to focus on what WAS in his control. AND as Urban Meyer
talks about in his book Above the Line, taking responsibility for your
actions is what is in our control. The blaming, complaining, and defending our
actions is below the line and does not move us forward.
“I could improve myself; I could find a way to serve, a way
to do more, a way to become better, a way to add value,” writes Robbins in his
book Money: Master the Game. Notice that his learning helped him realize
that by himself learning and growing and becoming better; he could, in turn,
impact so many others. He was taking total control over what was in his
control. He didn’t spend a lot of time blaming his upbringing, or all his
struggles. He focused on learning new skills, learning what successful people
do and duplicating those actions rather than listening to the naysayers trying
to hold him back. He learned to surround himself with positive people.
“Buffet learned a similar lesson. He was terrified of public
speaking when he was young. To force himself to face his fears, at age 20,
Buffet signed up for a public speaking course with the Dale Carnegie Institute.”
He didn’t stop there. “After graduating from the course, Buffet went to the
University of Omaha and, to fully overcome his phobia, he asked to teach a
class.” You can find more information in Tim Ferriss’s book Tools of the
Titans which is about the habits and processes of successful people.
According to Buffet, “there’s no financial investment that’ll
ever match investing in yourself. If you develop more skills more abilities,
more insight, more capacity, that’s what’s going to really provide economic
freedom…It’s those skill sets that really make that happen.”
So what can we all
learn from these two giants who are yes, exceedingly wealthy in the financial
arena? First and foremost, their success did not happen overnight, it did not
happen in a couple weeks or a couple months. Their success DID come because of
hard work, learning, failing and learning more, focus, and consistently
persevering despite what others were saying. They did NOT stop learning and
growing despite their financial achievements.
In fact, they both continue to be
voracious readers and learners even today.
Buffet is now 86 and Robbins is 57. Wouldn’t’ it be easier to
kick back and enjoy life because “you’ve made it?” These
are men who have impacted the lives of so many others through their mentoring,
through their philanthropic focus, through their abilities to reach a wide
variety of people in their speaking engagements etc.
Both of these men have had an attitude of doing “whatever it
takes.” They saw advantages not obstacles. They didn’t use excuses when there
was failure, they used those failures to learn and adjust. They found mentors,
coaches, successful people as role models as they understood that what they
focused on was what expanded.
If the greatest investment, according to Warren Buffet and
Tony Robbins, is to invest in yourself, how much are YOU investing in YOURSELF?
Are you where you want to be financially? Are you where you want to be being
able to give to nonprofits or other organizations that are important to you?
Are you where you want to be in your relationships with your spouse/significant
other, your children, your parents, your colleagues etc?
Are you finding that
you use your age, your difficult situations, your struggles with relationships,
your lack of money etc. as excuses? Do you find yourself focusing on lack and
obstacles OR do you focus on pushing through those obstacle to move forward
without excuses?
What are you reading? Who are the people you’re surrounding
yourself with? What are you listening to? Are you dedicated to
listening to personal development CD’s etc. while you’re driving? Do you have
an educational fund which would allow you to take a class or attend a seminar?
If you believe that Buffet and Robbins are correct that the
greatest investment is investing in yourself then how do you rate yourself in
investing in yourself?
The first step is to decide whether investing in yourself is
important to you. If it is important then take the time to rate where you stand TODAY with a focus on investing in yourself. Be
honest. If you say it’s important, then your true focus will be to take action.
That action might be to
read or listen to a book from Tony Robbins, Jim Rohn, or others. It might be to
change what you’re listening to in the car, it might be to look for a class or
a seminar, etc.
Each week, as I write these blogs, I wonder how many people
are truly wanting to take action in making the most of each day and improving
themselves. It’s the 80/20 rule. 80% of the people reading these will possibly
make a slight change for a short time. 20% of the people will actually take
action and make that action a habit. Which one are you? 80% or 20%?
I wish you a week of deciding if investing in yourself is THE
best investment you can make in yourself and what action you are willing to
commit to on a consistent basis until it becomes a habit. I look forward to
hearing from you.
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