Right from the get-go, you should know that this is not a blog on how to survive in this difficult economic environment–or advice on how to build up your retirement portfolio.
Several years ago, I found myself loving a particular Movado watch. When I went to any department store, I would find myself cruising by the jewelry department and check to see if they carried the watch I loved. Maybe it would be cheaper here. (It never was.)
I would notice anyone wearing that particular watch and would oooh and ahh. If only I could find it on sale. I’d buy it for myself–for sure. That never happened. For some reason, I couldn’t get beyond the asking price of $500.
This literally went on for a few years. I looked at other cheaper watches, but it was this particular watch that called my name. It never DID go on sale. This seemed to be an unmistakable luxury.
Eventually, as I was buying my daughter a college graduation gift and I bought her some diamond earrings, it came to me. Why is it that I would always find the funds to purchase for my daughter, but not something that I wanted? I bought the watch–and yes, at full price.
While this was an example of a somewhat trivial item, I see similar struggles extending to investing in ourselves–with going back to school or pursuing a career we want.
Although we think nothing of paying for whatever our kids would need for their education, but when it comes to us–whoa. Slow down. Where’s the payback? Can we afford it? Where’s the guarantee? Are we not worth it? Kind of makes you think, doesn’t it?
Sure, there are a lot of risks in life–but when we know we’d regret not “going for it” — we need to give it our all and invest in our own future happiness.
