Mr Harry is thinking of how he can break out of being a tenant to having his own apartment. Investing in several businesses is utmost in his mind. He had resigned from his job to start up his own business. “Putting all your eggs in one basket isn’t a wise idea in this 21st century,” he would always say.
He checks new openings and different opportunities on how he can invest in oil and gas, real estate, and landed property. He remembers his passion for education and his vision for setting up a school that would bring in dividends. As he gets involved in critical thinking, planning, strategizing, and he is ready to launch out. After moving from one board meeting to another; he gets a huge loan to start up his business.
In the process of planning, confusion sets in. He lacks the courage to move ahead. His mind is filled with doubts.
“What if I fail?”
“What if the recession catches up with me?”
The “what ifs” begin to grow, expand and multiply in his mind. It appears that he’s on his way to the bank to return the enormous loan!
The Investment of the Mind
Mr Harry has neglected the greatest of all investments – the investment of the mind.
He has little or no knowledge about the things he is trying to invest in. Doubts and fears have replaced faith and power that a knowledge of the businesses and experiences of others would have given him to courageously take the needed risk. He had sacrificed the power of knowledge on the altar of speed to invest in different businesses.
Investment in different businesses is very essential. In fact, one of the ways to break away from lack and live a life of financial freedom is to become an investor. But one key to being financially free is filling the brain with quality and relevant information.
Knowledge — A Key Investment in Business
As Fred Anegbe has rightly said, “Fill your brain with knowledge so your brain can fill your pocket.”
Bill Gates has this to say:
“I really had a lot of dreams when I was a kid, and I think a great deal of that grew out of the fact that I had a chance to read a lot.”
The relevance of reading and investing the mind with knowledge cannot be overemphasized.
Recurring mistakes and failures are as a result of poverty of the mind and thoughts. But the quality and prudent decisions we make in life are a function of the quality of information we open our minds to receive and work on.
Invest in In-depth Reading
“86% of wealthy people love reading…”
— Sam Yang, Quora.
Business Insider turned to a recent Quora thread that asked users for the most valuable skill a person could have in his/her entire life. After sorting through the responses, 13 skills were selected. ‘Reading’ (reading quickly) was one of them.
Billionaires and wealthy entrepreneurs spend most of their day reading. Sam Yang, a quora user, affirmed that, “Warren Buffet and Charlie Munger spend 80% of their day reading.” He added that, “86% of wealthy people love reading…”
Having a surface knowledge of the things we want to invest in is not enough. We must dig, go in-depth and explore, to know all there is to know about what we want to invest in. That’s how confidence comes. I am reminded of Confucius’ quote that says, “Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.”
The Greatest of All Investments
In a nutshell, we can observe from here that confidence, hope, faith and peace of mind have a connection with the knowledge we have acquired. I strongly believe that the greatest of all investments that one can make before launching out into a business is to fill the mind with relevant information.
To cut down the potential of advancement and adequate knowledge before launching out into a business is to maximize the poverty level of the business.
“There`s no wealth like knowledge, no poverty like ignorance.” — Anonymous.
Question: What book(s) are you currently reading in this month of October? Feel free to share with us in the comment section below.
