Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Return on your Relationship Investment

We’re all looking for that great vehicle to invest our dollars.  We want little or no risk  but with large returns.  

Where should I invest?  How much?  Who do I trust with my money?  Is my money safe?  Do I have any control over my monies?  Are there any guarantees I won’t get burned? 

We scramble trying to find the best investment for us at year end.  Don’t want to pay more taxes than one has to!  After all, must think of my future and my security.

We put a lot of energy into our finances; and so we should.

How you’ve been investing in yourself, taking night courses to stay on top of your game, reading relevant books and articles to stay current.  Know your strengths and weaknesses; and then make the necessary improvements.  We join social media like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter to stay in touch with our friends and peers.  Personally, I find it takes a lot of time; so why do we do it?   If we don’t, we feel like we are left behind.  

We don’t take our jobs for granted.  We could get fired.  We toe the line, speak with respect with our co-workers and supervisors and put in a good days work.  Or do we?

The workplace also has Labour/Employee Relations in Human Resources.  Why?  The cost of discord in the workplace is worth the annual salary of this person(s).  Litigation is very expensive.  Negative employee relationships such as arguing, back-biting, gossip, harassment, abuse, to name a few, tears down office morale and decreases productivity.  So does sick leave caused by stress at home. Money is being saved if we nip problems in the bud.

So why don’t we put the same energy into our intimate relationships?  Even if there are problems, deep down don’t you still love them?  Don’t you wish it could be like it was in the beginning?  Have we not chosen this person to spend the rest of our life with, for better or worse?  Is this relationship not more important than anything else?  It affects the quality of our life.

Yet, we hesitate to invest in our intimate relationships.  Somehow spending on the price of a good meal is easier than spending on relationship counselling. Don’t forget how costly a divorce can be.

You will never be disappointed when you improve your relationship.  You become a better all-round person.  Just focus on understanding yourself and on the interactions of your relationship. Perhaps you are aware of certain negative behaviors you just cannot overcome.  Don’t worry, that’s where I come in.   I’ve heard it all over the past thirty years.  You are an investment you can trust.  When you do the work, positive results will come.  No risk.   You have full control of the outcome. 
Is your intimate relationship worth investing in?  Are you willing to leave your ‘money’ in this vehicle for 5, 10, 15 years or more? That’s a lot of trust.  Returns don’t happen over night.  Financial advisors will show us the chart of how investing is a series of peaks and valleys. It’s just the natural flow of investing, as in relationships.

Fortunately, you will see results a lot sooner.  There will be ups and downs, but the return on your investment, your relationship growth, will continue.


Are there risks?  Sure there are, but are you not worth it?