You are on the plane sitting next to the ones you love and the flight attendant, in their safety speech, lets you know it is important in the event of oxygen loss in the cabin to put your mask on before helping others.  For most of us our initial next thought is “no way, I’m going help my baby first.”  It is a natural instinct for most of us to care for others before and even instead of ourselves.  However, there is rational wisdom in taking care of you first and that is what I want us to talk for the next few paragraphs.

I have been to the Steve Harvey, Act Like a Success conference for 2 years and I have graduated from his business college and one point that rings in my ears is to be successful in your business you must work faithfully and consistently at your business; no work no success. Well the same can be said with you; for you to be a personal success you must invest in you.  I’m talking about the personal you. Not the entrepreneur you, the husband or wife you, the mommy or daddy you, the servant of God you… I am talking about you personally. It is not only alright,  it is vital that you invest in you, spend time on you, pamper you, and encourage you.

This is something I constantly have to remind myself.  You see I will stop on a dime and make time for family, friends, business, and ministry; but my appointment for myself is always “later”, “after I…” or my favorite, “tomorrow”.  You know tomorrow it is that place where everything goes and little gets accomplished. I seriously have to remind myself that it’s ok to look out for, take care of, treat and spoil me, and I know I am not alone.

Why do we do that to ourselves?  I believe there are 4 reasons that contribute to lack of self-investment.

1. We see investing time in ourselves as selfish, after all there are so many other things that need to be done and that line of thinking leads to guilt. When the truth is spending that time taking care of you will make you so much better for the others in your life. Think back to the last time you did something for you… (if it takes you that long I’m going to run an intervention). Didn’t that time leave you refreshed and rejuvenated? Exactly. Do you know what is really selfish? Selfish is refusing to offer others the best that is within you because you are too tired, emotionally, physically, and spiritually to give your best.
2. We do not see the value of investing in ourselves. I go back again to how much better you are after the investment into yourself. You are valuable beyond your own ability to comprehend; you my friend are the best investment in town!
3. You never learned to invest in you. When you grow up around others who give give give and never do anything for them you learn that’s the way it should be. When you hear others speaking negatively about someone who does invest in themselves you are sealing what you learned. Break the mold! Invest in yourself, pamper yourself, turn off everything else and make you important sometimes… say… NO! to others so you can say YES! to you occasionally.
4. Tomorrow… tomorrow… tomorrow. I’m going to, I’m planning to… and yet never doing. I’m telling you “tomorrow” is filled with riches galore! No sense in adding the gift of who you are to the mountains of wealth already there.

So here is your home work…. Take out your phone. Open your calendar. Mark you in and do it on a regular. It doesn’t have to be expensive and it doesn’t have to be logistical nightmare: a trip to the park with ice cream or a trip to New York, a pedicure with the phone in the car (yes I said it) or a day at the spa, what every works for you. Just do something… It’s OK to focus on you!

Alright, now that I am finished writing I need to go back, read and, apply this to my life… I told you it wasn’t easy. See you in 2 weeks.

UP NEXT DAYCARE: It’s a Surprise.