The BEST Investment I Ever Made (article)

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BEST INVESTMENT I EVER MADE
by Bo McCoy, MBA, Doctoral Candidate, Vice-President of Operations, ObesityHelp

It only took me 40 years to perfect my investment strategy. But now when I think about all the lost years of investing in things that didn’t matter I wish I could liquidate my past and start again. I suppose every investor has similar wishes. Before I tell you about the best investment I’ve ever made let me tell you about some near misses. 

Many years ago I was working with a company called Internet Today. iToday, as it was called by the employees, was a publishing and internet design company. It was lots of fun working there and the reason it is relative to my investment story was I working there the day eBay went IPO. I recall that day very vividly and thinking to myself, “why didn’t I invest?"

If I went back even further in time, I could recall a company that made software called DOS (disc operating system) manufactured by a company called Microsoft. I knew in the 80’s the company was ‘hot’ because I used the basic programming language produced by Microsoft. I could have invested back then. I didn’t.

The list goes on and on. Later other companies would join my list of misses….Yahoo, Google, Facebook, etc., etc. Any one of these hot companies could have given me high returns on my investment, had I invested. I didn’t. Instead, I floundered, dreamed, and waited for an opportunity to drop in my lap. I was always wishing for a break. I was always looking for the next big thing.   

I am not sure when I realized it but one day I woke up from the 40 year investment strategy (dreaming) which had yielded me exactly 0% return on investment, and I realized I had been looking for the wrong investments. I always thought “If I can just create or find the next big thing then I can ride the investment to the bank". That was my thought process. I realized those investment are rare and although they do happen they don’t just happen. You have to make them. 

That’s when I realized the most undervalued asset and the highest earning potential investment had been right in front of me all along. What was that investment? That investment was me.   I was undervalued, privately owned, and my equity had been building for 40 years, however, I never believed in the investment enough to take a chance.   It wasn’t until I began to believe in myself that I realized I am worth investing in. I am a stock, an asset; I am filled with return on investment potential. 

In 2005, I began filling my investment portfolio (myself) with knowledge and education.   I began with an Associates of Arts in Business. I continued with Bachelor of Science in Management / Marketing.   Later I extended that into a Masters of Business Administration. Today, I am continuing my investment with a Doctorate of Management in Organizational Leadership. I am investing. I am taking a chance and all the risks associated with the chance in hopes that my investment will yield high returns. 

How much I have invested is not as important as why and how I invested. (Why?) I invested in myself because I believe that I have IPO potential. I believe that I can impact the marketplace with my skillset and I believe in my product, me. (How?) I have invested in myself through education and time. I have taken the time to expand my mind and extend my belief in myself through the expansion of knowledge, with the capacity to learn and share that knowledge with others.    I measure my return on my investment not only in dollars and cents but in effect that belief and investment is having on my daily life. My stock is up. I am trading higher and higher each day. 

It only took me 40 years to learn that I am my best investment. Everything I do impacts the markets (people) around me and the higher my value the higher and more beneficial I am to those I come into contact with (my stakeholders).    Bull market, bear market, recession, none of that matters because I have invested in something that will have value to me regardless of the financial economy around me. Shares in my life are valuable and those that partake of my shares get their own returns. 

Why did it take me so long to realize how valuable I am? I don’t know. If you are reading this and you are 20, 30, 40, 50, or even 100 don’t wait another day to start believing in yourself.    Start investing. Invest heavily. Go all in. It’s your life. Believe in yourself. As you invest in yourself, the more valuable you’ll become. It is an investment that can never be taken away from you by the economy, gas prices, etc. Best return you’ll ever get on an investment is the one you place in yourself. It’s your life.