One great question to ask if you're interested in self-improvement is "Am I investing in myself?" – particularly when you're feeling stuck, or when your progress towards your goals hasn't been so fast as you'd like.

    So what does "investing in yourself" mean? This depends on what your goals are, but these are three big areas you might want to invest some time, money and thought in:

    Your appearance

    Your skills

    Your health

    All of these are important for success in many walks of life. Here's why, and some ideas how you can invest in each.

    Investing In Your Appearance

    This might seem a very shallow thing to put at the top. Unfortunately, like it or not, we all tend to judge on appearances. In some jobs or roles, looking the part can make a real difference to how others perceive and treat you.

    Just as importantly, your appearance can have huge effects on your self confidence. Have you ever been at an event where you misjudged the formality and ended up very under-dressed or over-dressed? I'll bet you felt awkward and out of place. Conversely, you might well have taken extra care over your grooming before a big presentation, and felt more confident as a result.

    Investing in your appearance might mean:

    Saving up for a good suit

    Getting up ten minutes earlier to have time to look your best for work

    Asking a fashionable friend for advice on your usual "look"

    Losing some weight （also important for health reasons）

    Taking some time to revamp your wardrobe, ensuring you have clothes that mix and match well

    If you feel that your appearance is the big area you need to invest in, Trent from The Simple Dollar has some strong advice （particularly if you're in a fairly traditional job） in his article on The Value of Personal Appearance.

    Investing in Your Skills

    All of us have a certain skill set, often based on our jobs （current and past）, our hobbies and our day-to-day experiences. Employers tend to be interested primarily in skills – what you can do. Some of these will be very specific to particular jobs （technical skills, such as being able to program a computer） and other skills are "transferable skills" that you can use in many careers as well as in day-to-day life （such as public speaking or presentational skills）.

    Clear five or ten uninterrupted minutes when you can sit down and list your skills. Put down little things as well as big ones – being able to bake the perfect cake is a skill!

    What skills could you develop, with the investment of a little time or money? Could any of these form the basis of a new career, a side business, a fulfilling hobby, or something you could offer to your community?

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    Some ways to invest in your skills are:

    Read a book that teaches you something new in a particular area

    Attend a local course

    Take part in an online course

    Ask someone to mentor you

    Schedule regular time to practise

    Investing in Your Health

    Too many of us are storing up health problems for later life – one that could cause financial problems or give us a huge reduction in quality of life. It's much cheaper to focus on staying healthy than to take preventative action once something's gone wrong. If you're in good health, you'll perform better at work, you'll have more energy to work towards your goals, and you'll generally feel happier!

    Don't just think about your physical health, either; mental health is just as important （and, indeed, your mental and physical health can't be considered in complete isolation）. By investing some time and money now, you could save yourself a huge amount of both in the future. Here are some ideas to get you started:

    If you're over or under weight, start taking action

    Get some exercise each day – great for your body and mind

    Take good care of your teeth （dental hygiene, and regular visits to your dentist） – tooth pain can be crippling

    If you work at a computer, learn about RSI and how to prevent it.

    Eat a healthy, balanced diet, focusing on fruits, veggies, wholegrains and lean proteins.

     Don't smoke, take drugs, or drink excessive amounts of alcohol.

    What areas could you invest in? Is it worth spending some money or some time now in order to improve your position in the future?

    如果你對自我改善感興趣，你通常會問（一個極好的問題）:"我應該對我自己進行投資嗎？"-尤其當你感覺停滯不前的時候，或者當你為實現目標所取得的進步并不像你期望得那樣快的時候。

    那么自我投資意味著什么？這取決于你的目標是什么，但也許你想投資一些時間、金錢和思想到下面三個領域：

    你的外表

    你的技能

    你的健康

    這三項對各行業人的成功至關重要。下面將講一下這是為什么以及你應怎樣對這些投資的建議。

    投資你的外表

    投資外表看似很膚淺，放于首位似乎不妥。遺憾的是，不管喜不喜歡，我們都傾向于通過外表來評價一個人。在一些工作和角色中，看起來適合這項工作對觀察和接待你的人來說絕對意味著不同的結果。

    你的外表對你的自信有巨大的影響，正如它是如此重要一樣。你有沒有經歷過這樣的事情：你判斷錯了場合，結果穿的過于隨便或過于正式？我敢打賭你一定感覺很尷尬，感覺與場合格格不入。相反，在出席一個大的儀式以前，你應該格外注意你的打扮，這樣你會感覺更自信。

    投資你的外表意味著：

    為一件考究的西裝存錢

    提前十分鐘起床，在工作前將自己調整到最佳狀態。

    詢問時髦的朋友對你平時的外表有何建議

    減掉幾公斤（也是為了健康）

    花一些時間整理衣櫥，保證你有搭配得很好的衣服

    如果你感覺外表是你非常需要投資的地方，來自Simple Dollar的Trent在他的文章個人外表的價值中有一些建議（尤其當你從事一種相當傳統的工作時）.

    投資你的技能

    我們都有自己擅長的技能，通常這些技能是基于我們的工作（現在的和過去的）,愛好及每天的經歷。雇主們傾向于對技能感興趣--你能干什么。對特定工作來說，一些技能需要非常專業（專業技能例如編程）,其他技能是"可轉換技能",這些你可用于許多職業以及日常生活中（如在公共場合說話或展示自己的技能）.

    清出五到十分鐘，在不受打擾的時候，坐下來，列出你的技能。小的技能也要記下來-能烤出完美的蛋糕也是一種技能。

    投入少量的時間和金錢，可以發展什么技能呢？這些技能能不能成為一種新工作、一種副業、一種令人滿足的愛好的基礎或者一些你對社區的貢獻呢？

    投資技能的一些方式：

    讀一本能讓你在一個專業領域學到新知識的書

    參加當地的培訓

    參加網上課程學習

    找一個導師指導你

    安排固定時間練習

    投資你的健康

    我們中有太多人在晚年出現多年積累的健康問題-一個可以引起經濟問題或影響生活質量的問題。保持健康比出現問題后進行預防劃算得多。如果你很健康，你會在工作時表現得更好，你會有更多的能量朝目標努力，你也會感到更快樂。

    不要只考慮你的生理健康，心理健康同樣重要（事實上，生理健康和心理健康并不能完全分開來考慮）.現在投資一些時間和金錢，你可以為你的將來節省一些生理和心理上的健康。從現在開始這里有一些建議：

    如果你體重過輕或過重，現在就采取行動

    每天做一些鍛煉-對身心都有好處

    保護好你的牙齒（注意口腔衛生，定期做檢查）-牙痛往往難以忍受。

    如果你用電腦工作，了解并預防輻射

    健康合理的飲食，多吃水果、蔬菜、谷類食物和精益蛋白質。

    不要吸煙，不吸食毒品，不過量飲酒。

    你能投資到什么領域呢？現在花一些時間和金錢提高你將來的地位是不是很值得？