The Best Investment I Ever Made!

The Best Investment I Ever Made!

I’ve been in the financial and investment business for quite some time now.  As a firm, we manage approximately 3.5 billion dollars, and I’ve had the pleasure of investing in every one of our portfolios.  I’ve held stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, and the gambit.  I’ve been fortunate enough to see some real compounding growth in my portfolios and naturally been exposed to some real dogs along with some serious home runs.

All this got me thinking about what the single best investment I’ve ever made was.  Take a second to guess.  Was it Apple or Nvidia?  What about crypto, no, I hate crypto, can’t be that.  What about that shore property I snagged right before Covid?  Gosh, there has certainly been some real luck, I mean smart, investing through the years.  That said, none of the aforementioned come remotely close to my “best” investment.

Here are a few more hints.  Everyone has access to it, and although it has by far been my best investment, it has simultaneously been the most difficult and most rewarding.  Getting closer?

Jig Is Up

My best investment has been investing in myself and my business, no questions asked.  I tell you this not to grandstand, rather I share this because I think far too many people ignore this belief.  I am the father of 3 children ages 8–14 and I can see a world where they fall into the trap of not believing they are good enough or following someone else’s path.  I want them to recognize that there is truly no bigger return on investment than investing in oneself.

I don’t tell this story often, but it feels right here.  In 2010, I joined Diversified.  What most people don’t know is that I was at a real crossroads.  Being in the finance and insurance business during 2007–2009 as a twenty-something was terrifying.  The Great Recession didn’t just shake the markets; it shook my confidence.  I would have taken literally any job at that point.  Then, after I’d already accepted the position at Diversified, I got a call from my first choice offering me the job.  The “safe” play.  The one that looked better on paper and came with a substantially higher paycheck.

I called my dad.  He was an entrepreneur himself, a guy who had left the casino business down the Jersey Shore to buy a business and bet on himself.  His advice was simple: believe in yourself and invest in yourself.  So I did.  I stayed with Diversified, and it has been the single best decision and investment of my life, outside of marrying my wife and having three amazing children.

Looking back, the irony isn’t lost on me.  My dad’s advice wasn’t some sophisticated financial strategy.  It was a man who had lived it telling his son to trust himself.  And that’s the thing about investing in yourself — it doesn’t come with a prospectus or a guaranteed return.  It comes with fear, effort, and an unwavering belief that you are worth the bet.

My clients and friends who have amassed the most wealth have subscribed to this same maxim.  They earned advanced degrees or left comfortable, cushy jobs to start businesses.  These individuals I truly admire because they took the path less traveled and believed in themselves when it would have been easier not to.

Now, unlike Nvidia, you can’t just throw a few dollars at this investment and watch your wealth expand.  Investing in yourself takes moxie.  It requires time, sacrifice, and the willingness to be uncomfortable.  I have struggled with every one of those thing,s and yet still I have no regrets.

I also hope you share this with someone who needs to hear it.  Maybe they are down on their luck or going through tough times.  Perhaps they need a nudge to take a leap they’ve been overthinking.  Or maybe you, reading this right now, are stuck in a rut and need to hear that if you want the most rewarding investment of your life, take a page from my old man’s playbook — invest in yourself.

Stay wealthy, healthy, and happy.