The best investment we've made is getting an RV and using it often. The RV lifestyle enables us to be closer, see the country, meet lots of wonderful people, and have lots of relaxation time.....just the ticket for retirees, or anyone.
The best investment I've ever made was to start my own freelance marketing biz. I was laid off and while I searched for jobs, I threw myself into my freelance business. I learned so much!! The experience and relationships I made while I was unemployed have begun to catapult me at my new job which has turned out to be a whirlwind of a first month! That just solidifies a "blessing in disguise."
The best investment I've ever made is loving and trusting my husband. Through our partnership, we've faced serious health issues, paid off a lot of consumer debt, bought a home, and had one healthy child with another on the way. Choosing him as my partner in this life has been the best investment I ever could have made.
The smartest investment I've ever made is the funds it has cost me to go to school and also the time spent in learning, studying, and discussing (with my classmates) my "Introduction to Business" classes. I know with the knowledge that I'm learning now, will be a big part of my success in my future.
The best, wisest, smartest, most profitable and beneficial investment I've evr made was the $300 I spent on my wife's wedding ring. The returns on that humble investment have been utterly immeasurable over the last thirty-four years: love, partnership, encouragement, understanding, support, advice, laughter, comfort, trust, beauty, intimacy, companionship, cooperation, children and grandchildren, fun, and more. Only eternity will reveal all the returns on that investment.
My smartest investment has been my kids. Nothing has brought my life more fulfillment, joy, and enrichment in helping them achieve their hopes and dreams.
My best investment was my car. I bought it a few years ago...nothing flashy like my peers bought either. I have a Pontiac Vibe and even though my friend's refer to it as a "mom car", I love it! I've never had any problems with it and the car gets me from point a to point b so I have no regrets.
I live in California, where the biggest natural disaster threat is an earthquake. I opted not to pay for the earthquake insurance since none of my belongings are so expensive that it'd be worth the extra money in premiums. But slowly but surely, I am working on an emergency fund!
Hey, are you talking to me... I just got power back after the hurricane and I was lucky enough to be in the bathroom during the earthquake. Yes, we were fairly well prepared but I do now realize that a generator might not be a bad idea.
Best $$ investment: $10 for a raffle ticket, which won the prize of free LASIK surgery (told that it was worth $3900). Even more wonderful than the ROI (what 401k can compare to that???) was my ecstasy at tossing the contact lenses and donating the old glasses. Every day I feel grateful to have 20/20 vision and am so glad my ex-husband reminded me to buy the ticket.
Best health investment: joining a yoga studio 4 years ago and buying a decent mat/towel. Practicing regularly, even at $10/session, improved my core muscle tone enough to stop needing back massages (at $90 an hour) to get rid of the shoulder tension arising from too many work hours in front of a computer. I also got shoulder muscles for the first time in my skinny life (this was really a thrill) & feel so much stronger & more capable of all kinds of everyday tasks. A few years of practice with an experienced instructor made me ready to practice on my own when I moved away from the studio. Now yoga is free because I practice in my backyard, on the same old worn yoga towel/mat, in exercise clothes that I've bought at Goodwill over the years instead of at the pricey yoga boutique. And my stamina, strength & flexibility are great compared to when I began. It's truly the perfect form of exercise for me - wish I'd found it 20 years ago.
Best psychological investment: exploring culture in its many forms through museums and traveling exhibits (years later, I still remember strolling thru the Treasures of the Russian Empire exhibit at the Queen Mary), community theater venues (where I have seen so any fantastic actors give great, passionate performances), botanical gardens (Fort Worth is particularly lovely, with blue herons stalking koi in the pond) and seeing local musicians (like the recent 90-minute performance by two mandolin virtuosi for an unbelievable price of $12!!). These memories were cheaply made, but have enriched my life tremendously.
Best immeasurable investment: $15, 2-hour business education workshops through my local nonprofit, the Inland Empire Women's Business Center (iewbc.org), which provides instruction on financial literacy (understanding your P&L statement), specialized software training (like Quickbooks), business formation (I decided to incorporate my small business based on this one), basic marketing, federal procurement (yes, I would like some tax dollars back, thank you very much), and even offbeat topics (such as creative fiction writing). These workshops are the foundation on which I am building my understanding of business administration. Without them, I doubt I would have launched my small business by now, which I intend to replace my fulltime income. I have bought myself a future with freedom to choose between options, with the gratification of introducing myself at networking events as the president of a corporation, with the luxury of taking a weekday off whenever I like to go camping with family when it's not crowded with weekenders, with the beauty of encouraging young women (friends & family) I know to believe they could also be in charge of their own destinies, and with the satisfaction of pulling myself up by the bootstraps to make something of value.
By carefully preserving & taking care of my health, intellectual development, and family relationships, I am so unbelievably rich, I hardly need cash. (ok, that's rhetorical!)
best investment would be my house..needs some fixing up. i know the market is bad, but hopefully one day i might make a profit. Well, if all is lost, i have to say that im thankful that i had a roof over my head all these years. it served me well. thanx HP and wisebread!
Things have gotten worse since I wrote this article, back in 2007, but I still stand by it.
Basically, I agree with your assessment of current conditions. Poverty and homelessness are worse and the middle class live a more precarious life than they did (except during the heyday of social safety net, from the late 1930s until 1990 or so). A lot of of people are only one severe illness or injury, one natural disaster, one divorce, one pink slip away from falling out of the middle class. But that was always true for people who lacked a backup—a union, a family, an alternative skill set.
However, I think you're arguing against something I never said. I didn't say that people were living better. What I said was that way a lot of people lived in the 1950s would be considered "living in poverty" today. I stand by that.
What's different is that, in those days, standards of living were rising. Today, living standards are falling. That's a big difference.
My laptop is the best investment I have made. It is also the first major purchase I made as an adult. I bought my laptop to go to college. It served me well at home, during class, and pretty much everywhere else. It has helped me learn and grow.
MBA in marketing and management - expensive but translates into so many disciplines and helped me in my career. Education always a good investment in my opinion.
My smartest investment was becoming a full-time volunteer helping others live better lives, coping with their problems and be model citizens. I've been able to do this along with my wife and thus spend more quality time with her! The best decision I've ever made. Nothing beats helping others!
My best investment has been an iPad! I get so much more use out of it on a day-to-day basis than I ever thought I would. It's my main computer, and I no longer feel the urge to spend $1000+ on a new computer since I end up using the iPad 90% of the time.
The smartest investment I ever made was a number of years ago, on my own, I purchased a handyman home. I spent a year renovating the home inside and out, all the electrical, the roof and even moving walls. All with help of some great friends and family. Everyone at first thought I was crazy, a single girl, buying this home that was falling apart. A little after a year, I had just finished the last touches and met my husband. We sold that home and moved into his house. I had more than doubled my money on the house and this enabled me to be a stay at home mom for a number of years when my kids were born. The investment in my kids having a full time parent was priceless to us.
Thanks so much.
I think the smartest investment I've ever made is when I decided to take all of my sons birthday, Christmas, and other money from cards and stick it all in his savings account from the time he was born. Now, at 19 years old, he has a pretty decent savings account.
I had two sons who, without any help, have mastered two trades: one began as a lowly construction site apprentice and is today is a licensed building contractor who does high-end remodeling in San Francisco, the other is a commercial photographer who lives in Montana but works out of San Francisco.
Neither is rich, and both are still struggling, but I couldn't be prouder of them.
The smartest investment I ever made was to invest time and money in a good education. It leads to great opportunities around really smart people and those relationships can open many doors for you.
My best investment has been my education. From my B.A. to my M.P.A. and then pursuing additional certifications - I've already seen the payoff. Nothing beats investing in yourself!
The smartest investment that I have made to date has been in professional memberships (totaling: $400) . It has led to an investment in myself and my future. Networking has been key to being able to further develop my fundraising and grant writing skills.
The best investment we've made is getting an RV and using it often. The RV lifestyle enables us to be closer, see the country, meet lots of wonderful people, and have lots of relaxation time.....just the ticket for retirees, or anyone.
The best investment I've ever made was to start my own freelance marketing biz. I was laid off and while I searched for jobs, I threw myself into my freelance business. I learned so much!! The experience and relationships I made while I was unemployed have begun to catapult me at my new job which has turned out to be a whirlwind of a first month! That just solidifies a "blessing in disguise."
The best investment I've ever made is loving and trusting my husband. Through our partnership, we've faced serious health issues, paid off a lot of consumer debt, bought a home, and had one healthy child with another on the way. Choosing him as my partner in this life has been the best investment I ever could have made.
The smartest investment I've ever made is the funds it has cost me to go to school and also the time spent in learning, studying, and discussing (with my classmates) my "Introduction to Business" classes. I know with the knowledge that I'm learning now, will be a big part of my success in my future.
The best, wisest, smartest, most profitable and beneficial investment I've evr made was the $300 I spent on my wife's wedding ring. The returns on that humble investment have been utterly immeasurable over the last thirty-four years: love, partnership, encouragement, understanding, support, advice, laughter, comfort, trust, beauty, intimacy, companionship, cooperation, children and grandchildren, fun, and more. Only eternity will reveal all the returns on that investment.
My smartest investment has been my kids. Nothing has brought my life more fulfillment, joy, and enrichment in helping them achieve their hopes and dreams.
My best investment was my car. I bought it a few years ago...nothing flashy like my peers bought either. I have a Pontiac Vibe and even though my friend's refer to it as a "mom car", I love it! I've never had any problems with it and the car gets me from point a to point b so I have no regrets.
I live in California, where the biggest natural disaster threat is an earthquake. I opted not to pay for the earthquake insurance since none of my belongings are so expensive that it'd be worth the extra money in premiums. But slowly but surely, I am working on an emergency fund!
The smartest investment I've ever made has been in myself. I paid for an education so I could support my life. Self-reliance is essential.
Getting student loans for my kids to go to college. They are the best investment in our future.. :)
Hey, are you talking to me... I just got power back after the hurricane and I was lucky enough to be in the bathroom during the earthquake. Yes, we were fairly well prepared but I do now realize that a generator might not be a bad idea.
Best $$ investment: $10 for a raffle ticket, which won the prize of free LASIK surgery (told that it was worth $3900). Even more wonderful than the ROI (what 401k can compare to that???) was my ecstasy at tossing the contact lenses and donating the old glasses. Every day I feel grateful to have 20/20 vision and am so glad my ex-husband reminded me to buy the ticket.
Best health investment: joining a yoga studio 4 years ago and buying a decent mat/towel. Practicing regularly, even at $10/session, improved my core muscle tone enough to stop needing back massages (at $90 an hour) to get rid of the shoulder tension arising from too many work hours in front of a computer. I also got shoulder muscles for the first time in my skinny life (this was really a thrill) & feel so much stronger & more capable of all kinds of everyday tasks. A few years of practice with an experienced instructor made me ready to practice on my own when I moved away from the studio. Now yoga is free because I practice in my backyard, on the same old worn yoga towel/mat, in exercise clothes that I've bought at Goodwill over the years instead of at the pricey yoga boutique. And my stamina, strength & flexibility are great compared to when I began. It's truly the perfect form of exercise for me - wish I'd found it 20 years ago.
Best psychological investment: exploring culture in its many forms through museums and traveling exhibits (years later, I still remember strolling thru the Treasures of the Russian Empire exhibit at the Queen Mary), community theater venues (where I have seen so any fantastic actors give great, passionate performances), botanical gardens (Fort Worth is particularly lovely, with blue herons stalking koi in the pond) and seeing local musicians (like the recent 90-minute performance by two mandolin virtuosi for an unbelievable price of $12!!). These memories were cheaply made, but have enriched my life tremendously.
Best immeasurable investment: $15, 2-hour business education workshops through my local nonprofit, the Inland Empire Women's Business Center (iewbc.org), which provides instruction on financial literacy (understanding your P&L statement), specialized software training (like Quickbooks), business formation (I decided to incorporate my small business based on this one), basic marketing, federal procurement (yes, I would like some tax dollars back, thank you very much), and even offbeat topics (such as creative fiction writing). These workshops are the foundation on which I am building my understanding of business administration. Without them, I doubt I would have launched my small business by now, which I intend to replace my fulltime income. I have bought myself a future with freedom to choose between options, with the gratification of introducing myself at networking events as the president of a corporation, with the luxury of taking a weekday off whenever I like to go camping with family when it's not crowded with weekenders, with the beauty of encouraging young women (friends & family) I know to believe they could also be in charge of their own destinies, and with the satisfaction of pulling myself up by the bootstraps to make something of value.
By carefully preserving & taking care of my health, intellectual development, and family relationships, I am so unbelievably rich, I hardly need cash. (ok, that's rhetorical!)
best investment would be my house..needs some fixing up. i know the market is bad, but hopefully one day i might make a profit. Well, if all is lost, i have to say that im thankful that i had a roof over my head all these years. it served me well. thanx HP and wisebread!
Things have gotten worse since I wrote this article, back in 2007, but I still stand by it.
Basically, I agree with your assessment of current conditions. Poverty and homelessness are worse and the middle class live a more precarious life than they did (except during the heyday of social safety net, from the late 1930s until 1990 or so). A lot of of people are only one severe illness or injury, one natural disaster, one divorce, one pink slip away from falling out of the middle class. But that was always true for people who lacked a backup—a union, a family, an alternative skill set.
However, I think you're arguing against something I never said. I didn't say that people were living better. What I said was that way a lot of people lived in the 1950s would be considered "living in poverty" today. I stand by that.
What's different is that, in those days, standards of living were rising. Today, living standards are falling. That's a big difference.
My laptop is the best investment I have made. It is also the first major purchase I made as an adult. I bought my laptop to go to college. It served me well at home, during class, and pretty much everywhere else. It has helped me learn and grow.
MBA in marketing and management - expensive but translates into so many disciplines and helped me in my career. Education always a good investment in my opinion.
My smartest investment was becoming a full-time volunteer helping others live better lives, coping with their problems and be model citizens. I've been able to do this along with my wife and thus spend more quality time with her! The best decision I've ever made. Nothing beats helping others!
Bought a house and rented it out in 2011. The money was languishing in an investmen account - now I get LOTS of money every month and a tax writeoff!
My best investment has been an iPad! I get so much more use out of it on a day-to-day basis than I ever thought I would. It's my main computer, and I no longer feel the urge to spend $1000+ on a new computer since I end up using the iPad 90% of the time.
The smartest investment I ever made was a number of years ago, on my own, I purchased a handyman home. I spent a year renovating the home inside and out, all the electrical, the roof and even moving walls. All with help of some great friends and family. Everyone at first thought I was crazy, a single girl, buying this home that was falling apart. A little after a year, I had just finished the last touches and met my husband. We sold that home and moved into his house. I had more than doubled my money on the house and this enabled me to be a stay at home mom for a number of years when my kids were born. The investment in my kids having a full time parent was priceless to us.
Thanks so much.
I think the smartest investment I've ever made is when I decided to take all of my sons birthday, Christmas, and other money from cards and stick it all in his savings account from the time he was born. Now, at 19 years old, he has a pretty decent savings account.
I had two sons who, without any help, have mastered two trades: one began as a lowly construction site apprentice and is today is a licensed building contractor who does high-end remodeling in San Francisco, the other is a commercial photographer who lives in Montana but works out of San Francisco.
Neither is rich, and both are still struggling, but I couldn't be prouder of them.
The smartest investment I ever made was to invest time and money in a good education. It leads to great opportunities around really smart people and those relationships can open many doors for you.
My best investment has been my education. From my B.A. to my M.P.A. and then pursuing additional certifications - I've already seen the payoff. Nothing beats investing in yourself!
The smartest investment that I have made to date has been in professional memberships (totaling: $400) . It has led to an investment in myself and my future. Networking has been key to being able to further develop my fundraising and grant writing skills.