Socrates is known for saying “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates was a great Greek philosopher who believed the value of life was realized best or only when a person searched for better understanding or meaning and purpose in their own life. It is reasonable to say then that in order to realize the best return on investment of living life; a person should take time to examine it.
To examine a life is to question life’s priorities or to ask oneself, “What do I want from my life? What do I want from this investment?” Since the word invest can be defined as to commit or spend something in order to receive a future advantage or benefit and since every person spends time living life striving to receive some kind of future advantage or benefit, it is essential to try and understand exactly what kind of benefit they are investing for.
Most people may say I invest my time working in order to receive the return of money. However, the answer must be examined deeper. Surface skimming is not enough. Is it money they are really wanting? If they were to receive ten million dollars with the condition that none of the money would be spent, would they be satisfied? No. It is not money they are working for. It is how the money can be used or invested again that a person is wanting.
The answer to how does one want to spend a dollar, ten dollars, a thousand dollars, or ten million dollars is only one of the many questions which needs answered by each individual person. This one question is a mere example of how examining one’s life must be deeply considered. Mencius, a Chinese philosopher from around 300 BC said,
“To follow a path all one’s life without knowing where it leads, such is the behavior of the multitude.”
It is true life can continue without ever specifically answering the question of ‘What are my goals or Where am I going?’ But if a person takes time to examine one’s life then they will be on a path which will have a greater return on investment.
If a stranger came up to another and said, ‘give me one thousand dollars?’ what do you think they would say? Would they blindly give their money away? They should at least ask, ‘what do you want it for?’ But people without realizing it are blinding giving away something more valuable than money every minute of the day. They are giving away time without ever asking themselves, ‘What am I spending this for?’
Wisdom from the past is bountiful. It is there for each person to search, gather, and utilize. Questioning and discovering or deciding life’s priorities will give a person a life with the best return on investment. Socrates realized it thousands of years ago when he said, “the unexamined life is not worth living.” It would be a path to only a dead end.
Enjoy and invest well always