As I have become a more active investor in the stock market this year, I have come to realize that investing can really help you understand business better, with broad application across not only your personal investing activities but also your career. As an investor, you learn what drives the different businesses you are investing in and how they operate within the broader context of the economy. You also learn how these companies deal with both internal and external challenges, such as maintaining margins / profits, competitors, or the US-China trade war / tariffs. All companies have to deal with these issues in one way or another and so this helps bring focus to different strategies that you might even be able to use in your day to day work.