Whether we reinvent ourselves after 40 depends on individual’s happiness level. For somebody who is perfectly happy with what they do every day and would be as excited to continue do that for the next 5 or 10 years, you may not need to reinvent yourself. But even if you don’t need to reinvent yourself, it is still important to invest in yourself. I’d like to think of it as a constant need as a way to be fulfilled in order to not feel empty as a human being on earth. Invest in yourself and you can invest in others.
If you haven’t checked out the part 1 of this Ultimate Guide To Investing In Yourself (2020): Personal Development, please start there first and then come back to the part 2 here. When talk about investing in yourself, we must look at all aspects of our lives because the key to living a fulfilled lives is when balance and harmony is reached. Not every aspects will be equally great, that’s not the point but at least maintaining some balance without neglecting some part of yourself.
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So with part 1 all about Personal Development, which I dedicated the whole post to that alone, the next parts include career, health (physical), mindset (mental), wealth and relationship. Career being the focus of this specific post for now. Below are some ideas we can implement to help expand our future possibilities.
Career
Having a meaningful career is critical in feeling a sense of purpose. Our professional life and personal life when equally satisfying will increase the level of our happiness. If you are on a job that you dread about going to do the work every morning, it’s time to reassess your why and figure out something that you like to do instead that will also pay the bills.
For people who has built a career they love now can still be looking at ways to either boost their current career or future career to stay ahead. Investing in yourself not only improve your career options but also increase your lifetime earning power.
1. Start a side job / freelance / business
Do you have a desire to switch career at some point? Perhaps to leave a 9 to 5 job. Or a desire to start a side job or freelance or business. Don’t let fear hold you back. Instead, make plans of how you are going to achieve it one day. A goal without plan is just wish but with proper planning, getting to do what you want to do and be what you want to be are all possible. Don’t ever think that you are too old for it or that you lack experience. You just have to really commit to overcoming every bump there is along the way. Stay persistent, you will eventually succeed.
2. Start a blog
Want to try making extra side income online? Think you have stories you want to tell? Starting a blog to share what you know can be a gift to yourself and a gift to people who find your content helpful. Like many new endeavors, you never know how they will turn out until you’ve actually tried them. If you enjoy writing, create a blog to start gathering your ideas and posts; if you keep at it, sooner or later, you may find yourself with the amount of materials that you can shape and publish your book. There is a power in slowly but consistently chipping away at a project.
3. Create passive income streams
To invest in yourself and build a career that last way beyond 40 is great, but if you want to pursue a hobby, it would be less stressful to have developed ways to generate passive income and not pressure yourself and the hobby into making income. That is one of the reasons to have passive income streams. Essentially, create passive income streams so that you can do what you want to do with your time more freely.
4. Volunteer
If you can carve out time, volunteering is a great way to enhance your career, current career or potentially future one too. Volunteering allows you to hone existing skills or learn new skills, build networks and relationships while serving your community for a good cause.
5. Find a mentor
You are lucky if you have a mentor in life. I know I feel blessed having mentors in life. Mentors can really help elevate your professional life by giving you not only advice but sometimes also opportunities. You can find mentors from your workplace, college, or organizations you are a member of. Somebody whom you have a great respect for in the field that you are in, and if you just reach out through professional network, you might be able to forge a mentor-mentee relationship.
6. Start an Etsy shop
Are you good at creating or making things? Have you considered selling arts or crafts or things that you make? If you have the skills, why not put your skills to work and start an Etsy shop where you can sell your items online. It doesn’t take much to start an etsy shop and if you can successfully build a business from it, you just created an extra income by doing what you love.
How do you invest in yourself now that will secure your future? What side gig or hustle are you currently working on?