I read an blog post recently, The Things You Should Invest In During Your Thirties that inspired me to reflect on what I think are important investments for this decade. Your twenties are for discovery and learning how to be an adult. And while you still do that in your thirties, you realize that you don’t have an intifinte about of time to make your goals and dreams to happen. To me, your thirties should be about defining your goals and actualizing them. So here are the things I think you should invest in in your thirties.

Your Relationships

Your friends, your family, your love relationship are all relationships that deserve your love, time and attention at any age. This is an area that many people including myself can grow in. Tending your relationships will look different depending on your lifestyle, family obligations, work obligations, etc. But many of us can relate to wanting to be a person that our loved ones can rely on, enjoy being around and build memories with for years to come.

Investment Pieces for Your Style

By your thirties, it’s time to pare down your closet and let go of the pieces that no longer fit your style or items that literally no longer fit you. Invest in items that are important to you. For me, I love shoes and outerwear, for others it may mean bags and jewelry. Define your main wardrobe mainstays (or capsule wardrobe for lack of a better term), to make getting ready on a daily basis with items that make you feel like the best version of yourself as easily as possible. There’s no need to be a minimalist if your style doesn’t skew that way, but it is good to pare down and organize your belongings so you can easily access and enjoy them.

Your Future

You may still have lingering student loan debt or you may have finished paying for your education in full by your thirties (no shame if you do!). You may be a homeowner, or you may live in a high cost area where home ownership is still out of reach. You may want (to start or continue having) children or you may only want to be child-free dog parent. Regardless of those factors, consider saving your emergencies and for the longer term (i.e. retirement, other investments). Be clear on your current values and how you want your future life to look and invest/make decisions accordingly.

Your Home

Whether your home is owned or rented, it’s your respite from the world and you should try to treat it as such. Investing in your home doesn’t mean spending a lot of money, it just means taking the time. You can ask your parents for items that you love if they are making upgrades. You can thrift, DIY, or save for more expensive pieces. Just make sure you love whatever you bring into your home. Artwork is a great way to invest in your surroundings.

Your Health

Maintaining good health is not a given, it’s a gift. Doing what you can to maintain good health is ideal at every age and your thirties is a great time to start if you haven’t yet. Investing in your health may mean different things for different people. At minimum it may mean getting your annual check-ups at your doctor and going to the dentist. For others it may mean going to therapy, setting boundaries in your relationships, getting acupuncture, taking herbs, prepping your food each week, smoking weed + taking CBD, having your weekly brunch with friends, going to yoga, and much more. But whatever it takes, start investing in your health in ways that are meaningful to you sooner rather than later.

Your Professional Development

I don’t think investing in your education and development should end when your formal education. In today’s competitive job environment, investing in your professional development is key for making sure you are prepared for the ups and downs you’ll inevitably face during this decade that is crucial to your career and exceeding your earning potential. For me investing in professional development in this decade means networking, reading books + articles, taking courses, attending conferences, watching You Tube tutorials, and hopefully in the near future starting a side business).

Your Signatures

It’s fun to take the guess work out of your favorites, so by this age you may (or may not) have signatures like a drink, scent, dish you make, etc. Having signatures can also reduce the amount of decisions you have to make on a regular basis when many of us can use a break from that. If you always know what you’ll bring to dinner parties or that you’ll always buy books as gifts for the children in your family or friend group, you can make space for the other decisions you need to make in your life.

A Hobbies or Activity That Brings You Joy

It’s so easy to get caught up in daily life that you can forget about doing things simply because they bring you joy. A hobby does not need to be something you commit to forever, but something you enjoy at that time. For me at the moment, my hobby is picking up various crafts to try. Work can be demanding. Family life is not always easy, for many taking the time to enjoy hobbies or activities is an at of self-care.

Travel

If you are privileged enough to have income beyond meeting your basic needs and also saving for your future, I believe you should consider investing in experiences like travel. You don’t have to go to some far flung location to enjoy travel experiences, but it does help to expand your horizons and global perspectives.