Managing your Energy
Energy is omnipresent.
Sometimes, you feel good about something; other times, you can’t figure out what’s wrong.
Figuring out what feels good to you and what doesn’t can be a time-consuming endeavor.
But understanding where you spend your energy and how that makes you feel helps in the long run. It influences the choices you make. The habits you cultivate. And the quality of the work you do.
“It’s the small habits. How you spend your mornings. How you talk to yourself. What you read. What you watch. Who you share you energy with? Who has access to you? That will change your life.” — Micheal Tonge
It is easy not to acknowledge the vibe of the place, a thing, or a person. Asking questions like —
- Does this make uplift me?
- Does this add value to my life?
- Is this making me feel drained in any way?
- Is there some pattern around things that inspire you or drain you?
Finding the answer requires self-reflection, which demands additional time and energy.
However, it pays you back in dividends when you get to know yourself, your energy givers and drainers to maximize productivity and minimize exhaustion.
The Concept of Entropy
Before delving into specifics, let’s focus on another crucial aspect of this process: Entropy. Entropy is in the second law of thermodynamics. In a nutshell, things move towards disorder over time.
Investing energy in preserving order and structure becomes necessary because things naturally gravitate toward chaos as time progresses. It highlights the importance of channeling our energies into what we most want out of our lives.
1. Energy Auditing – figuring out your daily to day energy levels:
The most important thing, perhaps, is taking an inventory of activities that make you feel good and that exhaust you on — physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels.
This is where an understanding of various activities that act as energy gainers and energy drainers comes into perspective —
- Energy-gaining activities focus on things that make you feel alive and present.
- Energy-draining activities distract you and don’t get meaningful results towards the things that bring you joy.
2. Energy Gainers vs Energy Drainers:
- Energy gainers can be many things:
- sunlight
- drinking water
- sticking to a healthy routine
- mediation
- being present
- walking or physical movement
- music
- Food which you like or cooking
- deep conversations
- gratitude
2. Energy draining can happen through:
- no physical movement
- over-stressing/ overthinking/ over analyzing
- social site distractions
- people pleasing & comparisons
- negativity or resentments
3. Reconsidering your Energy Levels:
Recognizing what energies you have and what depletes you allows you to evaluate your return on energy (ROE). Prioritising activities that bring positivity and reducing those that drain your energy can enhance your overall well-being.
As the quote goes,
“Give energy to what’s working — people that love you, things that show potential, places that make you feel more alive — sometimes the quiet whisperers are the most accurate ones.” — Brianna Wiest
