Do you want to master personal energy management?
Managing your personal energy is often not discussed or considered when it comes to productivity. While time management is critical to your ability to manage work, life, and everything in between, energy management is just as important.
Managing your energy well can maximize your time management and make your work habits even more effective. Through trial and error serving as an operational school lead, I have learned the value of energy management. The techniques that I will share in this post are ones that I used to help me find and maintain work-life balance throughout my career.
This post is all about the 7 ways to master personal energy management.
Disclaimer
As an Amazon affiliate, this blog post may contain affiliate links. If you decide to use a link to purchase a product, I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you! All products and services that I suggest are ones that I love and truly recommend!
Why Personal Energy Management?
Energy management is the ability to identify, direct, and replenish your stamina to engage with the world around you. This post will help you with all three of these aspects of energy management. But first, let’s discuss why energy management is important and how it benefits productivity. Energy management is important because it will help you get the best out of yourself! When you decide to consider your energy as you make plans and develop a schedule, you are optimizing your ability to show up as your best self. For example, if your focus is best in the quiet morning, deciding to work on your most complex work in the afternoons doesn’t allow you to give your very best effort. In this case, it is best to schedule this work time at the start of your day. Energy management works in tandem with time management. By considering your energy levels as you manage your time you can supercharge your productivity.
1 – Know Your Peak Times
The first step to managing your energy well is understanding your energy, and the ebbs and flows that you experience throughout the day, week, and month. To gain insight into your energy trends consider the times you feel most energized and those when you feel least energized. Think about what gives you energy, think about what depletes your energy. You may also want to consider the emotions, physical sensations, and mental expansiveness you experience at your different energy levels.
Challenge: Keep a journal this week to jot down your experiences as it relates to your energy. To give you some more ideas complete the this or that chart below to help you learn more about your personal energy.
2 – The Intersection of Time and Energy
As you uncover your energy patterns, ebbs, and flows, begin to plan when you will engage in activities based on your energy level and availability. I recommend that you begin the practice of planning your week ahead of time. I have developed a detailed activity book that walks you through 7 essential activities to plan your week. By dedicating an hour of your time and completing the activities you will have come up with a week’s schedule for yourself. You can purchase the downloadable version of the Time Management Activity Book here.
As you plan your week think about when the best times are to get things done. For example, if you need to reset after work and you know that keeping in contact with loved ones is a priority it may be suited to schedule a phone call with a friend on your drive home. This way you have the time to talk and you can help shift your energy from work to social. Another example, consider what you need when you get home after a long day. Do you to prefer to unwind first or do you like to keep up the pace from the workday? Depending on where you land it may mean that you should decide to prepare dinner, finish up the work, and do chores. Whereas if you need to unwind, taking a shower, finding rest, or watching your favorite show may be the most appropriate choice.
3 – Routines to rest and replenish
Time and energy management is maximized by the strength of your routines. Develop routines that help you to rest and replenish throughout the day, week, and month. From the moment you awaken your resources are being drained with every action. Now, that you’ve taken time to analyze what fuels you and what depletes you, you can begin to build routines that keep you fueled. Here are a few things I do to reenergize:
4 – Revisit Your Why
Knowing your why is central to most things that we do. Purpose itself is energizing! So, when you feel lost, uninspired, and depleted, go back to your why. One of the most significant obstacles we face in our ability to maintain the stamina we approach life with is the lack of purpose. While forecasting the totality of life is unreasonable, approaching life with intentionality and understanding fosters encouragement and spiritual fortitude. Consider how the actions you take today are connected to your personal desires for your life, the betterment of society, and the betterment of those closest to you.
5 – Review Your Environment
Take a look at your environment to determine if it is conducive to you maintaining, replenishing, and resting. Does your environment drain you or does it fuel you? If your environment is cluttered and your belongings are scattered, this environment drains you. Conversely, if you are in a clean organized environment your mind also has a greater opportunity to relax. Take some time to think about the environments you spend your time in, does your environment allow you to refuel? If not, think of ways to bring motivation, organization, and usefulness to the various spaces you occupy.
6 – Set Boundaries
Boundaries! Easier said than done, right? Exactly! There is so much talk about setting boundaries at work, at home, and in relationships. Maintaining these boundaries can be challenging. However, having clear boundaries will help you to eliminate extra weight from your life. Think about ways that work, home, relationships, and even self have overextended your energy stores in the past. Is it that you are taking on extra work for a new coworker? Could it be that you are doing the lion’s share of chores at home? Do your friends call and talk for hours whenever they want? Have you binge-watched Netflix when you needed to be in bed? These are all examples that cause depletion because of a lack of boundaries. Setting boundaries helps you to be more strategic about how you distribute your energy.
7 – Practice Gratefulness
If you don’t have a 5-minute journal. I admonish you to purchase one today. This journal is the perfect way to set your intentions for the day, and practice gratefulness to fuel you. The 5-minute journal gives you a moment of introspection and an option to center yourself before dealing with the hustle and bustle of the day. After completing this journal you feel a sense of accomplishment and confidence to kickstart your day. While you can engage in the practices of gratefulness and intention setting without the 5-minute journal, this journal is the perfect guide to maximizing your time with the most potent prompts. I keep this journal at my bedside. This will give you the energy you need to set your day on the right course in just about 5 minutes.
The post is all about the 7 ways to master personal energy management.
