xo,
Sunni
I am sure you are all familiar with the business and financial acronym ROI, which stands for return on investment. The traditional world view of this is that for something to be considered worth it, you must get out more money than what you put in. It is a principal based entirely on tangibles and is intended to help you recognize and analyze where you are putting your resources, and what you are getting in return.
This is a fantastic tool for its intended uses, however, I view it somewhat differently than most.
As a person who takes a very holistic approach to life, I personally do not honor the physical and material more than the non-physical, energetic or spiritual aspects of life, nor do I honor the non-physical more than the physical. I honor both. And as such, I see that ROI comes back in MANY forms besides the obvious.
If you live in a mindset where ONLY the physical and material is being counted as valuable and as gains, then that is what you will experience: simple monetary gains or losses, sometimes coming in ahead, sometimes below. And you will likely feel rewarded and/or punished by life, in a never ending rollercoaster ride.
But if you live in a mindset where BOTH the physical and material AND non-physical and immaterial are acknowledged and counted as valuable and as gains, then THAT is what you will experience: constant gains and growth, literally ALWAYS coming out ahead.
This is a simple mindset shift, it is one of choosing to see the gifts that are offered in everything, and this is how I choose to live, and it serves me well.
I have invested all kinds of resources in all kinds of things in my life, from money to time, to energy, to health, to love and relationships… I am literally making investments every single day. We all are. It is just a matter of what we are investing IN and what we are intending to get OUT.
The secret of truly successful investors, however, in every regard and every facet of life, is that they intend and expect to win.
They know that there may be temporary losses, failures, and fluctuations in their investments, they know that is just part of the game, but that in time they will always come out on top, just for deciding to play.
This applies as much to money as it does to relationships, or even your relationship TO money, or to yourself! Whatsoever you invest in, WILL grow. It is just a matter of when and how, which is the part we have little to no control over as humans, that is the part that requires faith and trust.
Even if you hedge all your bets and you make the smartest possible sure-thing investment, it could totally tank. But if you don’t pull out of the game, it will always come back to you tenfold. And what comes back will be so much more than just what you put in! So in order to live a more easy-going and joyful life, you have to be aware of what gains are actually happening, all the time.
Which means the secret to incredible Return On Investment can be boiled down to 5 steps:
1. Intend on what you want.
2. Expect to receive it.
3. Follow your intuition and your heart.
4. Stay the course/commit to the long game.
5. Count EVERY gain.
The returns that I have received in life do not always match the form of the investment I put in, at FIRST, but eventually, they do that too. For example, I might spend money on something that doesn’t immediately look like money coming back in, it might look like more peace of mind, or more confidence, or more ease coming back in, in exchange for the money.
However eventually (and usually not too long after) that peace of mind, confidence, or ease turns right back around into money again because of the space and energy that it created, which made a container for more money to come in.
That is why it is SO vital to count ALL of your gains so that you can see how those gains then transform into all manner of abundance (including money) that pay you dividends for the rest of your life.
That peace of mind, or emotional healing, or relationship nurturing, or ease, or fun, could be the very thing that sparks a new idea, which opens a new channel, through which more money flows. That is the way of nature, everything has a hand and a place in the cycle of life. Everything is connected. And it is no different with money.
So if you are someone who’s gifts are largely intangibles like service, healing, the arts, writing, teaching, etc. you may be massively discounting your value based on old ideas of ROI where the only thing that is counted is the money back.
That is a scarcity view where money is limited and so must be fearfully guarded and protected, and none of the other returns on investment are counted for the abundance they create, and that is a pretty painful way to live because the beauty and incredible intelligence of life and the human growth process is not being counted or honored.
That is the old way of judging ourselves by strictly material gains and losses. The new way is we honor BOTH the material AND the immaterial. Not one over the other.
A good example of an investment that doesn’t have an immediately recognizable ROI is a vacation or some time off. Some people might see that purely as an expense… I however see it as an absolute investment.
It is an investment in the renewal and regeneration of my body, mind, and soul. And when I do that, when I invest my money and time in that, it pays me back HUGE!! That time and spaciousness and healing leads to new ideas, new inspirations, and new energy to head back into my work with, which generates FAR more money than trying to push through and not honoring those massive wins and return on investments that look more like: fun, play, pleasure, quiet, peace, time with loved ones, etc.
I see every one of those things as money in the bank. Because that is LITERALLY what they turn into, with a little time. And that money then goes BACK out into the world to all the people, places, businesses, and things that I enjoy, depend on, appreciate and wish to support. And round and round it goes.
So the next time you invest in something:
1. Set your intention for what you want from that investment.
2. Expect that in time you will receive that (just let go of the how and when).
3. Follow your intuition and your heart (not what other people say).
4. Stay the course and commit to your intention for the long game (keep going, even when it appears there are temporary losses).
5. Count every single gain along the way (and see if you can connect how those gains eventually DO turn right back into money!)
And stop judging the gifts you share and charge-for based on old ideas of ROI too, because when you do, you discount the whole of life and the miracle of its interconnectedness, and you miss the extreme value of you, and what you do. Connect for yourself how the non-monetary gains of what you do eventually turn INTO monetary gains for others, no matter WHAT it is you do.
For example: if you are a designer, or photographer, or a healer, then you give people confidence and belief in themselves, which enables them to take their next bold steps they need to take, which in turn becomes more money and/or abundance of all kinds in their life and business, which pays them dividends for many, many years to come.
And as always, if you’d like to take all this to the next level, and live the life you truly came here to live in every way, I invite you to my Feast or Famine No More Course, where you’ll learn how to invite more money into your life, just by being more YOU »
