MONDAY’s MOTIVATION – What’s the ROI on Showing Up?

#200

“Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”- Albert Einstein

Good morning, and welcome to my 200th Monday’s Motivation. I appreciate your support over the past four years. I'm deeply grateful for the opportunity to share my thoughts each week, reflect on my experiences, and learn from your feedback. The responses, comments, and conversations this platform has sparked continue to humble me—and energize me for the weeks ahead.

Let’s talk about ROI—Return on Investment. In business, it's a fundamental metric. If you invest $100,000 into a project and sell it for $450,000, you've netted $350,000—an outstanding 350% ROI. Simple. Straightforward. Quantifiable.

But not everything in life—or business—is that cut and dry.

What’s the ROI of going to college? Or committing to getting in great physical shape? Statistics show that college graduates earn more, and those who maintain a healthy lifestyle tend to live longer. But there are no guarantees, just as there are no guarantees in business investments. Yet we still pursue these goals, often instinctively knowing they'll yield a positive return, even if we can't immediately measure it.

Now, let’s go deeper. What’s the ROI of attending a two-day conference? Or flying across the country to meet a potential client for a one-hour meeting, only to face delays, cancellations, and fatigue? I've been there. I've asked myself if it was worth it. At times, I've felt like I wasted time and money.

But with time and experience, I’ve learned to stop obsessing over life’s ROI in the short term.

That’s not to say we shouldn’t be wise with our time, we should. But ROI isn't always immediate, and it isn't always obvious. Sometimes, the smallest interactions, the most seemingly unproductive events spark a connection, shift a mindset, or lay the groundwork for something meaningful down the road.

I’ve sat through full-day seminars, bored stiff, only to have one insight in the final hour completely reframe my thinking and unlock a new opportunity. I’ve had meetings with prospects that felt like dead ends, only to have that same contact resurface a year later at a new company and hire us on the spot.

I'm not suggesting you say yes to everything, that’s not realistic. But I am encouraging you to stay open and recognize that ROI often takes time to reveal itself. Some investments may not deliver a return today, this quarter, or even this year, but that doesn't mean they were worthless.

The real ROI in life is sometimes hidden in the long game.

Keep showing up. Keep learning. Keep building. The return may come later than expected, but when it does, it’s often worth more than you imagined.

Here’s to the next 200.

Monday’s Motivation is a registered trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Reg. No. 7,198,928