Motivational Insight: The Guaranteed Investment for Personal Growth, Happiness & Fulfillment

We have all done it.

We have all spent and lost more money than we would like to admit.

And so, with all of us being so willing to bet on all of these things, I ask you this question: How many times have you bet on yourself?

Yes, my friend, I am talking about betting on you.

And that is exactly what we're talking about inside of today's 371st episode of Grit, Grace, and Inspiration.

Today, we're turning the tables and we're putting money on you.

Hey, I'm your host, Kevin Malow, and you are listening to Grit Grace and Inspiration.

The fact is true, my friend.

The single greatest investment you can ever make is in yourself.

I'm talking about an investment in your own personal growth, an investment in your own dreams, your own desires, the things that you want to have happen in your life, that is where you should be putting your money.

So I don't care if it means that you have to hire a coach, if you sign up for a pottery class, if you go back to college, or if it's simply you picking up the newest self-help book.

If you are putting time, money, and resources into you, then my friend, it is an investment that will pay off.

I guarantee you.

And imagine that, my friend.

That's exactly why I created the free resource for you to download called 14 Nuggets of Wisdom for a Better Life.

There is a link at the top of today's show notes that will give you direct access to download that today to give you a little bit of a boost, a head start, a cheat code on getting started focusing on you to make this the best year ever.

Now, what got me fired up about today's topic was my interview with none other than James Bracken, who I introduced to you in our past episode, episode 370.

Now, if you didn't catch my interview with James, well, I'll fill you in by simply saying James is an awesome guy who at such a young age has more wisdom to share than one can imagine.

In terms of this idea of investing in ourselves, he started doing this back when he was still in high school.

Everything got kicked into gear for James back when the rest of us were thinking about final exams or the pretty girl we want to ask out.

Or maybe if we're really thinking big, thinking about college.

Instead, James Bracken, he was signing up for coaching.

He was becoming a coach himself.

He was investing in himself, otherwise known as he was betting on himself.

So let's answer the first question as we continue, because I want to give you lots of value inside of today's episode.

And I guess we should start by answering the simple question: what exactly do I mean when I say betting on yourself?

Well, it's more than a financial risk.

It's about your time, your energy, your dreams and desires all being put on the line.

It's you having a dream, an idea, a spark, something that you believe in so deeply, something that you know is part of you so much that it is designed for you that you're willing to put it all on the line.

You're willing to bet on yourself.

Because the fact is true is that sometimes, in order for us to make a dream come true, we have to be willing to be all in.

You know the saying?

You're either all in or you're not.

And so many times we spend our lives with one foot in and one foot out.

We try to remain comfortable.

We try to remain safe.

But sometimes, my friend, you just kind of throw your hands in the air and you got to go with it.

The honest truth is you have to be willing sometimes to put yourself out there all the way to the edge.

Where even though you may fail, that's okay.

Because you're willing to run that risk.

You're willing to take that risk, you're willing to take the chance of failure because you believe in it so much.

Now, I guess you would like to ask the question.

Now, how do I know though if I'm ready to bet on myself?

Well, if you're at a point in your life where you're not happy, you're feeling stagnant, you're feeling bored, you're feeling like you're meant to be doing more with your life.

You feel like there's more opportunity out there that you're just not harnessing.

Well, my friend, that's a perfect opportunity for you to start investing in you.

If we go back to the story of James Bracken for a moment, he came to a point in his life where he started asking those big questions.

Why am I here?

And what am I supposed to do with this life?

How can I leave a bigger impact on the world?

And so at 17 years old, he made a massive investment in a coaching program.

An investment bigger than the money he had in the bank.

And yet, he just knew it was so.

He knew that if he did this one thing, it was the key to unlock a door of opportunity.

He was willing to bet on himself.

And so, James, he went all in on a dream that could have very easily crashed and burned.

He could have left himself embarrassed, discouraged that things didn't work out the way he thought.

But he went for it anyway because he believed in a dream.

And I have to think that he believed in himself so much that he was willing to bet on himself.

And that he did.

And that's what I love about James' story is he may have not felt ready.

He may have felt like he was too young to become a life coach.

He could have felt like, uh, it's not worth the risk.

What are people gonna say about me?

What are people gonna think?

And therefore, he could have not done anything.

But in fact, the opposite is true is he did do something.

He did take the leap, he took the chance, he bet on himself.

In essence, you could say that James, he was willing to burn the boats.

He was ready to take the island, knowing that he would conquer it, that there were no boats to return to.

And my friend, the fact is true for you is once you make a commitment that big, whether emotionally, financially, or just a promise to yourself, then you're willing to fight like hell to be sure you make it come true.

That you be sure that you get every ounce of juice out of it because you know it is for you.

You put in the effort, you put in the money, you made the investment, you are putting in the time, you're doing the work.

So, therefore, you're gonna get out of it what you put into it.

So, my friend, if you want a definition or a meaning behind betting on yourself, that is it.

It's you believing in yourself so much that you're willing to make the investment, whether that's financially, whether that's time, energy, whatever it is, you're willing to make the investment in you because you believe in you for the greater good of the dream that you are chasing.

But now let's shift directions because let's look at it from the other side.

Let's look at it from the side that happens to most people.

Because what if you do what most people do and you decide to not go for it?

You decide to not bet on yourself.

Most people they play it safe.

They wait on somebody else to open the door for them.

Or even worse, they rather stay comfortable and they never even open the door.

They never even try to open the door to see what lies on the other side because they choose comfort, they choose ease, they choose peace of mind over this idea of there being something more for them.

And this brings me to the part where I want you to be sure that you're listening.

If you've tuned out, if you've kind of got busy washing dishes, doing something else, I want you to really listen in here.

Because what I'm about to say is the most important thing that I want you to get from this entire episode.

The regret of not doing something is far worse than even the worst bruise you get from failing.

If you never take the chance, if you never choose to dance, then you will never get to experience what lies on the other side.

My friend, do not live your life full of regret.

Because having regret, it will eat your life away.

You will spend restless nights, you will spend days not living up to your fullest potential because you are weighed down with the heaviness of regret.

Do not set yourself up for a life of regret.

If you have a dream, chase it.

If you have an idea, I want you to pursue it.

If you feel like you are made for more, then my friend, I want you to start betting on yourself.

Now, if you're wondering how to even get started, let's give you a head start.

I got three ideas to have you figuring out how you can begin to bet on yourself, to invest in yourself.

And it all starts with well, number one, I want you to begin to focus on your own personal growth and development.

I know that may sound cheesy, corny, kind of boring, but trust me, it's kind of easy.

It's simple.

And once I explain, you'll be like, ah, yeah, that's not such a big deal.

I want you to make it part of your daily routine to start focusing on you.

It's something you read, it's something you watch, it's something you listen to, or maybe it's even something you do.

It's a book, it's a video series, it's a podcast, it's a class you sign up for.

It's something that has you growing, that has you learning, that has you leaving each and every day feeling like, huh, I just learned something today.

Or feeling like, wow, I feel like I have a greater understanding of this aspect of life, of this aspect of the world.

Each day you're becoming a bigger, better version of you.

Now, number two is if you want to make some big moves in your life, then my friend, you got to be willing to put some skin in the game.

Whether it's a coach or a course, a class, whatever it is, when you pay, you pay attention.

When you invest time or money, you are going to show up.

Now, I'm not talking about the need to break the bank.

No.

Matter of fact, it doesn't even have to be money.

Maybe it's you just guaranteeing that you're showing up, you're devoting an hour every day to whatever it is.

You are making that commitment.

So whether it's financial or it's your time, your promise to yourself, to a friend, you have to show up.

You have to do it.

And until you're willing to put skin in the game, then it's gonna be too easy for you to back out.

For you to just say, ah, nah, I'm not gonna worry about it today.

No, that is not how you're gonna make any forward momentum.

So sometimes you got to be willing to make an investment in you by putting a little skin in the game.

My last little tip for you, number three, is your mindset deserves your attention.

You might like to think that your mindset isn't much of anything, but my friend, your mindset is everything.

So I encourage you to begin to work on your mindset.

This might be as simple as you to start journaling, whether that's actually writing things down or just doing a simple audio journal using the notes app on your iPhone.

Or maybe you want to take it to a whole nother level.

And maybe you want to sign up for therapy.

There's so many options for therapy now, whether it's online or in person.

I want you to start to focus on you.

Maybe start to take up a daily practice of yoga or meditation.

There's so many different ways that you can focus on your own mindset.

Because if your mind is cluttered with doubt, well, then my friend, we have to get clear of that doubt.

We have to get clear of the clutter in order to make room for all the good stuff, for all the beliefs that we have in what you're capable of.

You have to be willing to go all in physically and mentally.

Now that I completed those three little tactical tips for you, let me come back and speak to you just one-on-one.

Because I understand this idea of betting on yourself is scary.

It's easier said than done.

There's gonna be people in your life who are gonna doubt you, who may even try to put you down.

Well, my friend, I want you to realize that those people are there.

And I want you to be able to not let them stop you.

Matter of fact, I want you to use that as fuel to keep you pushing forward even harder.

And you may be scared because of this idea of failure.

What if it doesn't work?

Well, I turn the question around and say, what if you never even try?

If you want my opinion, I think that's a much bigger risk to take, is you never even trying.

If you are not willing to bet on yourself, then who is?

There is no perfect moment, there is no perfect time.

So why not make that right now, today?

Right now, before I even end this episode, I want you to declare to yourself that I am willing to bet on me, that I am worth it.

I am worthy, I am deserving of me putting down the money on me.

I'm going to end today's episode by offering you a challenge.

I want you to take one bold step forward, one action step towards you truly betting on yourself.

I'm talking about you enrolling in that class.

Maybe it's as simple as you purchasing that book.

Maybe it's you getting out your calendar and marking down time each day that you're gonna focus on your own personal growth and development goals.

Or maybe it's you getting out a jar and putting money in it that's gonna go towards the thing you know that you need to do.

Maybe it's hiring a coach, it's signing up for that one program online that you've been wanting to do, but you just haven't pulled the trigger.

If you take one of these actions that is designed for you, I'm gonna gift you a free coaching session.

A session where me and you can meet one-on-one, of course, virtually, so it doesn't matter where in the world you are.

We're gonna meet and we're gonna talk over your goals, your dreams, your ideas.

And I just want to be sure that you are starting off on the right foot.

All you have to do is send an email to podcast at gritgraceinspiration.com.

Again, just simply send an email to me, and that is the email address podcast at gritgraceinspiration.com, and let me know what action you took.

In turn, I will respond and we will get you scheduled for a free coaching session with me.

Again, it's just my way of wanting to be sure that today's episode means something to you, that it means something more than just maybe inspiring you, but it truly gets you moving forward in life.

We don't have but one chance at this life, my friend.

So we might as well be sure we're taking advantage of the one chance we got.

And hey, I'll end with this, my friend.

If our friend James Bracken can do it, then so can you.

So, my friend, get out there and crush it, enjoy it, love it, and I'll see you inside of our next episode.

Thank you for being here.

I'm Kevin Low.

And this, of course, was another episode of Grit Grace and Inspiration.