This article explores why learning life skills is so important for both your wallet and your happiness, as initially shared in the September How To Money newsletter (sign-up here).

Dear How To Money Reader, 

Welcome to a brand new month (alright, you’re already a third of the way through – congrats)! Despite the challenges of an ongoing lockdown in Melbourne, spending this much time at home has forced me to confront the reality that I’m in fact an adult now and should be learning to look after myself better. 

It’s easy to distract yourself when you’re going into the city for work everyday and going to classes or events in the evenings, but when you spend week after week alone, you start to realise that you’re a pretty shoddy cook, aren’t looking after your health very well and are a bit of a mess when it comes to paperwork.

But, figuring out some of these basic life skills (I say basic, but cooking chicken properly is hard), is a great long-term money saver and gives you a sense of self-mastery. It’s a pretty rewarding feeling when you manage to cook a dish that you’d pay for at a restaurant (until you turn around and see all the dishes you have to clean later).

So what are some of these life skills, that have a great return on investment, for the time you spend learning them?

  • Learning basic cooking skills and mastering a few simple dishes.
  • Understanding basic nutrition and what your body needs to perform optimally (yes, you will probably have to eat some veggies).
  • Understanding the best way to wash your clothes, to avoid ruining them, extend their life and stop wasting energy (listen to this interesting investigation into laundry by Malcolm Gladwell).
  • Basic sewing skills (because things don’t have to be thrown out as soon as you find a small hole).
  • Developing a lifelong love of learning, will help you with everything from managing your finances to developing in your career.

I’d be interested in knowing what so-called renaissance skills have had the highest return on investment for you in the past few years?

Kate – HTM Founder & Editor