Tag: energy

Your daily thought, point to ponder and soulful reflection.

Daily thought: There are times when we work ourselves to an extreme. We push and push until we forget what it is that we are trying to accomplish, yet know we need to keep going.

Point to ponder: There are times we need to step away, even when we know we need to keep going. Why do we find it so hard to stop? Why are we so reluctant to step away, forcing ourselves to drive things forward even when our health and well-being is at stake?

Soulful reflection: I was reminded of this today because I am working tirelessly in an effort to bring to life some important projects outside of my full-time work. I’m passionate, excited yet also frustrated because things don’t always happen as quickly as I would like them to. That and being on a computer 18 hours most days is daunting. We do what we have to do.

But there is a time to step away. Usually when we give our minds and bodies a break, temporarily shifting our priorities, we come back refreshed and replenished. When we take that break, we allow room for creativity to flow. New ideas have room to percolate. Problems can be ironed out as various solutions are revealed.

When we don’t do this, we aren’t nearly as productive and can actually be slowing down our progress. In the wise words of a former colleague, ‘sometimes we need to slow down, to speed up.’

Tonight, I’m slowing down, taking a breath and spending quality time with my pooch.

Be sure to discipline yourself because often it is not our time we need to manage, but our energy.

Managing your energy when dealing with others.

We have to interact with others. It’s a fact of life. Whether it’s work, school, family or the community at large, we have to do it – even when we don’t like it.

There are people who fuel you, giving you energy and instilling a feeling of euphoria that finds you motivated and inspired.

There are others who drain you, depleting your energy reserves and leaving you exhausted, running on empty.

Then there are those who are steady and calm, no highs or lows. No inspiration or depletion. They just are who they are.

So how can we effectively manage our day when having to deal with a variety of personality types and moods?

Organizing your day can be like creating a recipe to make the ideal meal. A touch of this, a dash of that. Heavy on one ingredient, light on another. When all is cooked, it’s just right.

How does that analogy work in life?

When orchestrating your schedule, people are the ingredients in any day. Aim to manage your energy by knowing which personalities fuel you, and which deplete you – then balance accordingly, sandwiching the energy zappers in between the motivators with a mix of the steady and calm ones in between.

We can’t run away from these people, so we need to take charge of our day and learn how to manage our energy accordingly.

This won’t always be possible. We have no control over the strangers we will encounter during a day, however, we can take as much action as possible to ensure our reactions are rational and reasonable.

Not an easy feat.

Whether it’s people or activities, pay attention to what gives you energy, and what takes it away. Once you recognize this and start to make changes to the things within your control, you will be on your way to creating a more fulfilling life – and experiencing less stressful days.