Come out of your shell to expand your nest egg

With the end of the tax year just around the corner, weíre being bombarded with messages from the media urging us to invest in our future. ìTop up your pensionî, ìDonít miss out on your ISA allowanceî, ìconsider your nest eggî. But Nik and Eva Speakman, celebrity life coaches and stars of UKTVís A Life Coach Less Ordinary are urging the British public to invest a little in themselves first if they want to maximise their earning potential.

Nik Speakman commented: ìAt this time of year, there is such a blaze of publicity for investing in the future with advice on how to commence or continue to grow your nest egg. While this is a fantastic message and certainly one we should heed, itís not necessarily going to guarantee the ëbig winí. Now is the ideal time to look at the bigger picture and make an investment that will give you the biggest return in the future ñ the investment in yourself.î

Eva Speakman added: ìWe are all our own best asset. If we really want more out of our lives, we need to grow and expand. Undoubtedly one of the best ways to do this is to acquire more knowledge within your current job to improve your promotion prospects or to take the plunge and train for a better paid career. Forget your 5% returns ñ the rewards for training or retraining could be phenomenal.î

Ade Ogunjobi agrees. Despite having always been ambitious, Ade who graduated with a BSc in economics was working as a call centre manager but felt he was treading water and had gone as far as he could go. He said: ì I had a good job, with a good salary, and it would have been easy for me to keep plodding along, but itís a long time to retirement, and a long time to be unhappy in a job.î

It was in fact Adeís sister who suggested that he should stop moping and retrain for a better career while he was still working. ìIíd always been interested in figures and a bookkeeping course appealed. Having done my research, I contacted my local Pitman Training centre where I studied for their Accounting Technician Diploma.

Ade finally took the plunge and returned to studying, 10 years after first graduating. ìIt was hard at first and at times I worried Iíd never make the grade but itís been worth it. My career looks like itís set to take off.î

Despite being aware that he will take a pay-cut when he gets his first accounting job, Ade is happy and certain that this initial set-back will benefit him in the long run, having finally found the career he feels will see him through to retirement, and beyond.

Nik Speakman concluded: ìIf you do what you have always done, you will get what you have always got. Donít let April 2006 pass you by. Easter signifies a time for new beginnings so think about your future and where you want to go, and invest in the training necessary to achieve your long term goals. Never lose sight that life is not about what you are, it is all about what you can become!î