To be honest, I really came up with this concept after battling marketing ideas with other teams recently, ultimately realizing that this concept also applies to life.

Everything you do from a marketing perspective (or a business perspective, for that matter) is about achieving a substantial ROI (Return On your Investment). Boiled down, what that basically means is you should expect to receive more in return from what you had initially put in. This also ties in to the idea of Opportunity Costs—something you could have done with those initial resources which you previously used (whether it be time, money, or energy) on something else.

I’ll give you an example. Let’s say you put $2,000 in on a marketing campaign (or $2 million dollars, if you’re looking at a business venture) and you receive $10 back once the campaign is over (or you net $10 after-tax at the fiscal year end). What could you have done better? How could you have achieved a higher return? Is there any certainty out there?

The two former questions aside (that’s a hindsight is 20-20 issue), the last question can easily be answered: no, there is no certainty out there. We can only make our ‘best guess’ with the given information that we have on hand at the time. Even then, nothing is guaranteed. It could be an off-year, people could suddenly think your brand sucks, or the timing and execution might just not have been correct.

This is a lot like life. You have to always look at everything you do in terms of a Return On your Investment (time, money, or energy). We are often far-too-late to the game when looking at things from our own first-person perspective; yet, far-too-quick to assess someone else’s standing.

Always bet on yourself first. That is probably the most important takeaway from this entire article. Life, what you choose to do on a daily basis, should always be seen as a bet; where the ROI you achieve is ultimately great enough to lead you towards your final goal—whatever that outcome might be.

Should I take this new job? Well, what’s the ROI?
Should I stay at home and study or go out and play? What does the ROI suggest?
Should I spend $20 on this new shirt, or $20 on this new book? Which one will net you a greater ROI over time?

The actions you take are your investments toward a greater return on a better standard of living. The key being: the actions you take. So, rather than quickly looking to invest other people’s time, money, or energy; start off by looking at your own. Over time, you’ll quickly come to realize that it’s not about them and their investments—it’s about you and yours.

-invest wisely.