Gen Y Gives Thanks: The most valuable investments

Any financial planner will tell you the likelihood of getting an ample dividend increases if you make the effort to find the best opportunity and invest a substantial amount.  Investing inherently involves a little risk, but when that fat dividend check comes around, it’s worth it.

Investments in life, not just finances, often follow the same formula.  This is something Doniree Walker of Boulder, Colo., knows. 

Walker, a 27-year-old freelance writer and social media consultant, is seeing big payoffs from the sound investments she made in her life, particularly the investments in important relationships. 

She moved from Minnesota to Colorado about a year ago only knowing a few people, but realizing she would eventually make friends along the way.  What she didn’t realize was she would find something more than just friendships. 

“I didn't expect to find another family - the kind of family you're not born into but that you choose and who chooses you - when I was seeking friends.”  

This unexpected turn of events has been cause for much gratitude in Walker’s life. 

“This Thanksgiving, I'm extremely grateful for a group of brilliant and strong women in my life who have become my sisters and for brilliant and strong men who have become my brothers.  From weekly traditions like Potluck Sunday, to any other impromptu gathering that almost always centers around food or wine - the time spent invested in these relationships has been one of my most valuable investments in my life.”

Walker’s investment of time and effort into these friendships has come back to her more than ten-fold.  Now as she faces another move next month, this time to Portland, Ore., she hopes her relationship investments are just as fruitful and she finds another family of friends there.

To learn more about Walker and her nomadic adventures, check out her blog, Nomadic Foodie, and to learn about Walker, the relationship investor, look at this blog or follow her on Twitter.   

Follow the 2nd Annual "Gen Y Gives Thanks" series during the entire month of November.  Each day a different Millennial will express what he/she is most grateful for this year.  Click here to read all "Gen Y Gives Thanks" entries, including the ones from last year.