Some of my best investments

Disclaimer, this isn't finance related. I'll be talking about some of the investments that I've made in myself rather than anything stock related unfortunately. I'm a firm believer that most tasks, activities, or interests have a good ROI, and that there are only a few which don't.

Coding

This one's a no-brainer. Learning to code is what started my career, and taught me how to problem solve. Obviously coding is just a tool, but there's no denying that it opened the door to software engineering. It started off as a curiosity and turned into a career. Kudos to my dad for manipulating me down this career path.

Writing

Learning to write helped me clarify my thinking and improved communication. It's part of the reason I started this blog. Ever since then, I've been much better at formulating my thoughts. You can be as smart as you want but if no one understands you, then what's the point. Also on a side note, keeping your written notes is essentially a public record of your growth. It's always good to know how far you've come since you've started.

Hiking and Walking

Hiking and walking is great for mental health, and is also a "fun" exercise. When completely uninterrupted, you can reset your mind and be more productive overall. Some of your best ideas also can come to you while walking.

Gym

Not as fun as walking, but it definitely teaches you discipline. There's lots of days when you don't feel like showing up (leg day), but by forcing yourself to go anyway you learn to do hard things when you don't feel like doing them. That's a skill which is useful far beyond the gym.

Chess

I'm happy that I learnt chess as a kid. It taught me strategy, patience, and how to think ahead early on. More importantly, it taught me that losing isn't a bad thing. Every game contains mistakes, and the fastest way to improve is to analyse them rather than ignore them. It's probably the most valuable lesson chess gave me.

Watches

Watches are expensive and lose money. I know that sounds bad, but collecting watches taught me that saving up for something you genuinely want feels much better than buying lots of things impulsively. It also gave me an appreciation for engineering, craftsmanship, and history. Every watch has a story behind it, whether it's the brand, movement, or the people who wore it.

Teaching

Teaching is one of the best ways to figure out how much you actually know. Whenever I've had to explain a concept to someone else, I've almost always uncovered gaps in my own understanding. The ability to explain something simply is a skill in itself. If you can't explain it, there's a good chance you don't understand it as well as you think you do.

My take

One thing I've realised is that most of the best investments you make aren't tangible. Skills, experiences, opportunities, and friendships provide much better return than stocks anything you can buy.