I recently got home from a trip to California where I was immersed in personal development, conferences, learning, growth and connections for 10 days. It was nothing short of incredible and the things I have gained are invaluable.
But if I said it wasn’t a financial strain to travel to another country for 10 days, I’d be lying.
If I made decisions based out of emotions, based out of fear, or based on nothing more than the short term benefit/loss analysis - then I may not have invested in going on this trip.
But I know better. I know better for myself and for my business. I know what I GAIN by investing in myself, my team and my business. I see the potential future gains, even when in the short term, it might put me in a tight spot once in awhile.
But more importantly, I know what I LOSE by not making those decisions.
In my latest podcast episode, I dive deep into the real cost associated with making decisions in our lives. And I walk you through the process that I go through when I’m making decisions for myself. Listen now → http://bit.ly/CHANGEbyCHOICEpodcast
There is a cost associated with the decisions that you’re making...and the decisions that you aren’t making.
So, let’s talk about cost because it’s something we don’t often explore. For example, perhaps you are debating whether or not you should invest money into a workshop, a coach, a conference or training. And you hesitate; you wonder if that’s where you should be spending your money right now and maybe you can’t see the potential future gain.
I am all about making smart, strategic decisions for yourself, and never would I advocate spending well out of your means. But the key here is to ensure that you are making those decisions strategically; not out of fear, doubt or emotions. It’s about being able to look at all of the pros and cons and being able to ask yourself and analyze in the long term, what the potential gains may be.
Ask yourself not only what does this cost in this very moment?
But perhaps more importantly, ask yourself this question:
“What will it cost me by NOT moving forward with it?” We don’t often look at the other side.
This goes way beyond investing money into just training and personal development. It can be applied to anything - how you are making decisions to set yourself up for success, to establishing those habits and discipline in your life, to giving yourself a solid morning routine, to delegating and outsourcing certain aspects of your life or business.
How much time and energy is that costing you by not making those decisions?
Look at the decisions you are making and really analyze; are they short term, fear or avoidance based decisions? Or are you really looking at how you are setting yourself up for success in the long term?
Personally, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to make decisions like this in my life and my business. Whether it was outsourcing or delegating tasks, investing my own training and development or investing in my team, if I always had just looked at the numbers and the finances, then it probably wasn’t always the right time for those choices.
But I’ve learned something time and time again from so many of my mentors - and that is don’t wait until you have to; start to set yourself up proactively.
Because for all the time that you spend by NOT outsourcing, by NOT delegating, by NOT having that solid morning routine in place, by NOT establishing those habits and disciplines - it’s costing you something else, somewhere else in your life.
Here’s how I walk through the process in my own life when I’m faced with these decisions.
I always ask myself first - what is it going to cost me to NOT make that investment?
Second - I use two criteria when making decision that are going to give myself more time. W/ith that time I am gaining, it must be used strategically. I must use that time to either work on building my business or spend time with my children. Those are the two factors that I always look at it.
Whenever I’ve delegated, outsourced, brought someone in to clean my house, investment in my own coaching or development - I really always trust the process of it.
And every time I’ve used this method it’s always worked out. I’ve created more time and more bandwidth for myself. Which in turn, has had a positive impact on my stress, my level of success in my business, my happiness, my mental capacity and my health.
Take a moment and analyze everything in your life; is there an area where you can outsource or delegate to free up some bandwidth?
A lot of people hesitate on spending money on personal development because it’s an element in which you don’t see the financial return right away. But here’s the bottom line. If you are well, and you keep yourself a priority - if you are constantly putting yourself in a place of development where you are focused on your growth, where you’re always looking at your life and how you can level yourself up - then you will always see the impact on your business and your relationships. That’s where you need to trust the process.
The two most important commodities we have are ourselves and time. Invest in both.
So, think of some examples in your life where you hesitate in making decisions and hesitate in investing in certain aspects of your life. Don't just look at the dollar figure in front of you. Sit back and ask yourself what it’s really going to cost you. Because you know what you’ve been like up until now.
The world is filled with good intentions but not everybody takes action. You may be well intended, you may think you don't need that support and you can do it all, but bottom line is that there’s a cost associated with it. And that cost shows up in many places - it strips away our health, eats up our time and stresses us out so we don’t show up well in our relationships, we aren’t happy and we aren’t enjoying the process of life.
Grab those journals and start to acknowledge some of the things that are coming up for you, things that are holding you back or things that you can do without any help. Give yourself the gift of investing in yourself. You are not stuck. It is possible. You can make it happen. You just have to make smart decisions. But don’t be so safe that you keep yourself in the same spot. You’re going to have to take some risks sometimes.
Allow yourself to be guided by what you know to be true for you. That is what’s going to get you to the next level of success in your life. Nobody else can do that work but you. What possibly could happen if you made a different decision, or got some help, got some development or training or outsourced something?
You would be able to reach another level in your life and your business. That’s pretty powerful.
If you want more, listen to other Podcast episodes on Change by Choice here and you can head to my Facebook Page, Charlotte Ferreux - Change by Choice for more to help guide you on your journey to success.
Another resource is my free members lounge, full of content, free tools and downloads to help you on your process of levelling up your life. Join here → https://charlotte-ferreux.mykajabi.com/store/GCgCFewi