Typically, I brew my coffee at home, with an Aeropress.
But every once in a while, if I’m near a café where they are proud of their work, I’ll drop in for an espresso.
I’ll pay for the coffee, and in that 15 minute period, I’ll get a specific, relatively “known” outcome. This is a “purchase.” It’s a short time frame, and the value exchange is pretty clear – there’s a lot of certainty around the experience I’ll have.
An investment though, is something different.
An investment will take a lot longer, and this requires patience.
With a lot of new “journeys” that we can undertake in life, we are really making an investment – we are creating a different outcome for our future self.
There may be no return or even measurable change for a year or more, and, when we are used to “purchases,” this can freak us out.
When you join a gym, start a business, work on your brand, change your diet or lifestyle factors, there’s likely no immediate return, and, due to the chaotic nature of life, no guaranteed return.
These shifts aren’t purchases, they are long game investments.
Now, purchases are great, but if you try to look for an immediate ROI on some of these investments, you’ve got the wrong approach.
