Decisions, decisions, decisions!
It seems that life is always full of having to make decisions about whether or not to do or buy something.
Those of us who are on the path of increasing our skills and our effectiveness in business and in other areas of our lives are always being offered new opportunities to consider.
Is this wonderful new program, this stunning digital tool, or this exciting business opportunity really right for us; or is it just another shiny object that is distracting us from our optimal path?
As someone who has often suffered from the entrepreneurial disease known as SOS (Shiny Object Syndrome), I thought it might be helpful to you as well as to me to write a series on the various questions we can ask ourselves whenever one of these opportunities presents itself to us.
Often the first decision that comes to mind is whether or not something is worth the price being charged for it.
For that particular decision, there are three questions that I have found useful to ask myself:
- Is this expense a cost or an investment? In other words, is this purchase the equivalent of buying a latte, or buying a first edition?
- Is it in my best long term interest to make this purchase? (My dear sister Marsha is the person who taught me to apply the long term best interest test to any decision.)
- Am I using the cost of a program as an excuse not to push myself outside of my comfort zone into a direction that I know I really need to go?
Interestingly enough, I usually find the first two questions fairly easy to answer. However, the third question requires a level of honest self-assessment that is sometimes (all right, often!) a challenge to undertake.
I invite you to consider asking yourself these questions the next time you are considering investing in a tool, a course, or a private coaching program.
If the decision is about something that is really right for you, I hope that you will give yourself the gift of investing in yourself. You are worth it!
Marjorie, that last question (excuse not to push myself outside of my comfort zone ) — great question!
Glad you like it! I think it could be the most important question to ask oneself when one is hesitating to invest in something leading to one’s personal growth.