When presenting a potential
project, in terms of budgeting, it is important to include the return on the
investment (ROI). From a simplistic
point of view, that would mean showing the point in time where the cost of the
new project would meet the costs by making no changes and keeping things the
same. Or, better put, the time when I
would realize the breakeven point.
Afterwards, the dollar saving would be realized from that point forward. To provide a more inclusive analysis, you
would need to include the “softer” components, such as work time to complete
the related tasks (time savings), the speed at which results are seen /
reported on (shortening deliverable dates) and better utilization of systems
(efficiencies). This is part of the
world of Project Management. Do we ever
extend that thinking to our personal lives?
Do we evaluate the investment we put into something (time, effort,
sacrifices) versus the return on that investment (personal challenges, personal
development, sense of accomplishment)?
I remember when we were
shopping for colleges with Gab, one of the guys at one of the schools brought
this subject up. “Your son or daughter
will be going to school for four years,” he started, “by the time they have
completed the education and you have either spent the money or you have to pay
back the large loans, is the education worth it? If you spend $200K for school to have your
child earn $30K a year, did you get the value, or did you just spend too much.” Very good words, because at that time, we
were shell shocked by the cost of education, and education is something that we
value very highly.
We figure out our own personal
ROI for most things, even though we do not realize it. My golf game has MAJOR room for
improvement. Is it worth the time and
money to hire a pro to take lessons?
Since I played only a handful of times last year and will be lucky to
play once or twice this year – no. Last
year I picked up the banjo, should I take some lessons to improve my
playing? I am fairly good at picking up
the basics of instruments and there is a lot to learn from on YouTube –
no. Attending a seminar / on-line course
related to personal development or one’s career? Sometimes, even if we are on the right path,
re-enforcement is good and the opportunity to learn something useful has longer
benefits – yes.
Does this mean that I have
always thought in terms of this? That
would be a no. Like anyone else, there
are times where I got caught up in the moment, thought I was doing the right
thing, or threw caution into the wind. However,
in each case, there was always a
lesson learned. Unfortunately, we need
to stumble before we can straighten out and move forward. Through these lessons, we learn to better
evaluate what lies before us and make a better determination as to determining
our personal ROI.
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