A Cinderella Story

My love affair with shoes started just right after college graduation when I was trying to look professional for my job interviews. You see, I kept getting advice about how shoes – and in fact, your entire ensemble – are considered an investment because a polished corporate look increases your chances of getting hired.

 So, I “invested” … a lot. How much was “a lot”? Well, let’s just say that a couple of years ago, I found out that I owned so many pairs of shoes that I could go an entire two months without repeating one. Plus, five or so unopened boxes for that “right occasion”. 

After throwing out the worn-out ones and those that I couldn’t imagine myself wearing in the next three months, I was bothered when I realized that I just threw away thousands of pesos. 

So, how was that an investment at all?

The next year, I challenged myself not to buy a single pair of shoes for six months. Do you know what happened during that time? I was able to pay off all my credit card bills in full which, in the first place, accumulated because of all my shoe shopping. And more importantly, I was able to channel my shoe funds to a real investment: a Variable Unit-Linked life insurance policy.  Now, whenever I receive my policy’s updates, I’m glad I started to go on that “shoe diet” and put my money into real investments – the kind that can give me greater value in the future.

It’s been several years since and, at this point, you might be wondering how my investments are doing. Let’s just say that it’s grown enough to take me far beyond my shoe-shopping dreams and all the way to the shoe-shaped country -- Italy! Growing investments, developing the discipline of topping-up regularly, and understanding the value behind the sacrifice of not buying every shoe design that catches your eye can really change your life.