What does your investment portfolio look like? Maybe you’ll tell me you have stocks and shares or maybe even an apartment, but have you ever considered that your greatest asset — is yourself. Nothing drives higher returns than higher asset base and the only way to ensure that is to invest in your human capital. The most important investment you will ever make is the time you invest in yourself.
Investing in yourself may sound like some fluffy kind of thing that only those ‘spiritual junkies’ with lots of time on their hands do. But trust me when I say, it is an absolute necessity for each and every one of us in the times we are living, even if you believe you don’t have time.
That could mean pushing yourself to learn new things in your job, developing spiritually, becoming more creative, anything that cultivates your growth as an individual. Sooner or later, the payoffs on the inner growth will show up in the material world. 
Years ago I decided to invest in myself by committing to yoga and meditation, and now I invite you to do the same. Even if it’s just 20 minutes a day, where you don’t check your Instagram feed, you don’t add anything to your Snapchat story, you don’t know what your friends are doing and you don’t have your to do list controlling your day. 
I give myself at least 20 minutes a day where I can simply experience being who I am. I have a dedicated space in my house, I made it comfortable and calming. It’s a place where I look forward to sit, it’s somewhere I feel safe. At first when I used to sit there, nothing happened. It was hard to quieten down my over active mind. Then one day I got really clear and calm and focused.
I encourage you to make a sacred place in your room or home and use it often to mediate, practice yoga or simply to be still. I guarantee you something will eventually happen.
If you invest, let’s say, even 20 minutes a day in stillness or meditation your body will be more relaxed and your mind will be calm, your sleep quota will come down, so in the long run you actually save time. The practice will allow your body and mind to become more organised and in turn your performance and productivity increases. 
We tell ourselves we are busy and we don’t have time for these ‘extras’ but we are mostly just pre- occupied with unimportant things. Our minds are simply pre-occupied with wasteful things and too much entertainment. 24 hours is a lot if you are focused and organised; there is a lot you can achieve in 24 hours. 8 hours of sleep a day is a third of your life wasted.
Investing in yourself doesn’t stop with meditation, its every area of your life. When you have a choice, feed yourself the healthiest option, sleep when you need to sleep and make time to play doing things that you love doing. 
When we neglect ourselves, it takes a toll on the mind and body; then we start searching for a quick fix to help ourselves feel a little fuller on the inside. We need to be mindful of that voice that’s driving it is actually asking for something fulfilling and whole, and instead of investing in a short term solution, maybe take the time to invest in yourself. 
Here are some of the payoffs I have received since investing in myself:


1- I get to do something I love everyday.
2- I found a source of joy.
3- I have reassessed the fundamentals of my life.
4- I get to enhance my mood all by myself.


If you care about yourself and the people in your life, creating a joyful, loving atmosphere on a daily basis is extremely important. I guarantee that if you invest just 20 minutes a day, the quality of your life will improve significantly.


* The author is a consultant and coach. Instagram handle: @miss_shefa,  Website: missshefa.com
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