For most of my life, I believed I was supposed to be able to do it all on my own. Well, maybe me and Jesus, but nobody else for sure.
Can you guess how that worked out?
It was okay to read books or listen to teachings, but it wasn’t okay to need real people to help and no paid help. I’m not sure if that’s because it was a different category or because of my money mindset. The idea of investing in ourselves seems to be a real struggle. I know it was for me.
The biggest changes have come in my life when I invested in me.
The first time wasn’t investing money. It was investing time and my heart. It was an invitation to be vulnerable and real. I chose to step out even though it terrified me. I was sure it would end really badly. However, I was desperate and I knew I needed help.
When I invested my heart and my time in that 12 week Bible Study, I had a group of women come around me and love me in my mess that I was brave enough to share. It taught me to hear God’s voice and ask helpful questions to begin to receive healing for wounds and remove lies that I believed about myself and about God.
The next major shift for me was when I invested in a life coach. I learned so much about leading myself. I learned about how I thought and how I framed things. It was so empowering to have somebody from the outside challenge how I saw myself and challenge how I was setting up these situations in my mind.
I invested in training as a life coach instead of just figuring it out on my own. I invested in Childhood Emotional Neglect (CEN) recovery training. I invested in further coaching training and how to run a business.
I did all of that scared.
I did a lot of that without the money to pay for it. I don’t necessarily advise that. For me, it was a big step of saying that I’m worth investing in even if I don’t see how we’re going to pay for this. God has come through.
What’s the potential of investing in emotional health versus the cost of continuing to go alone?
I can’t put a dollar amount on it. Going alone meant I scarred my kids. I stayed stuck. I made such little progress. I wounded myself more. More condemnation. I didn’t know where to get help. I didn’t know how to ask for help. I wasn’t willing to pay for help or didn’t think I could.
Can I put a dollar amount on what a difference it would make for you to invest financially in yourself? No. I can say look at the cost of having to get counseling somewhere down the road, having health issues because you didn’t deal with the stress and the anxiety of not being enough and not knowing how to deal with your wounds.
The cost of continuing to go alone and not say, “Hey, I need help,” is really high.
Maybe God wants to stretch our money mindset. He paved with gold. He’s not worried about it. If it’s something He has for us, He has a way to provide for it. I’ve seen this through this last year of investing in coaching. When I chose to invest we had no income and were going into debt. God has come through. So far that money hasn’t come from me or my efforts. And yet we have continually and significantly climbed out of debt this year while I’ve been investing money in me.
Look at how are you investing in your growth. Are you investing time? Relationally? Financially?
