Protect Your Energy

Let me explain a few things first. This post is about your energy, which I guess means your demeanor, your mood, your ability to work on complicated things (or not). It's a bit woo woo. You can skip it, if that's not your thing. But for me, this changes everything.

This took me a long time to learn. One reason is that clinical depression mucks with my responses to things - when I should be happy, I'm still feeling down or low-energy. Another reason is that I had to understand some of my mental triggers that weren't as subtle as "dealing with my energy."

Energy - The Plus and the Minus

I've learned that my world operates a lot better when I manage my energy. When I say that, I mean that I like to keep myself focused in a positive direction, minimize any negative interactions, and operate from an optimistic perspective. What follows will only work if those are your intentions as well.

It's come to me that if I don't manage my inputs (people, news, media, etc), then I can't really trust my outputs to be as valuable as I would like.

Thus, if I surround myself with negative people, I "fill up" on negative energy. If I listen to negative music or watch "angry" TV and movies all the time, I have a harder time accessing all I will need to accomplish my goals.

Ten Ways to Manage Your Energy Better

Here are some ideas on energy management I jotted down for you:

1. Sleep is the Boss - If you sleep well, everything else gets easier. I set my bedtime to be around 9 or 9:30. I wake up at 5. This affords me hours of "free" time in the morning where other aren't often looking for me. It gives me a great foundation of energy from which to start my day. Sleep, where I'm a Viking!  
2. Play positive music with no lyrics or peppy lyrics (or other language) - While writing this for you, I listened to this piece. I often listen to Lofi Girl. I find it helps with keeping my mood upbeat. If you need something a little more peppier, by all means, experiment.
3.  Put your own plans in place before outside influence drives your direction - I wake up and journal, review my weekly and daily plans every day before I open my email, chat, text, or anything else that might affect my intentions. Once I know what I intend the day to look like, I'm willing to see what other people want from me and whether I want to adjust my plans.
4.  Gratitude helps - I write 10 things I'm grateful for every day. When I forget this practice, my energy trends negatively more easily than not. I had to get blood drawn today and I was grumpy that I could've had a whole other week to do it, if the doctor's office had sent me the information sooner. But when I got to the hospital lab, I was grateful to be able to walk well, to be healthy enough, to be loved. If you're ever feeling down, wander over to a hospital.
5.  "Pump up" lists help - This one is so nerdy. If you want to really get excited and feel better, you can review lists of affirmations and phrases that pump you up. It's another fun way to use Google Keep. Have a set "color" or tag or style so you can find these lists easily.
6.  Draw energy from other positive people - We all know those people in our lives who are very positive and vibrant and wonderful. If you don't tap the same one all the time, you can really get great energy from certain people. There's never been a day I haven't seen Debbie Saviano smile. She's positive enough for five people.
7.  Compliment others and/or do something nice - This one is such a fun cheat. In the hospital parking lot, I complimented a woman on her beautiful silver hair. I complimented another man on his nice cap. I told an absolute stranger how I should buy a jacket like theirs because it would make me feel better. Another fast easy one is to pay for someone else's food. I bought breakfast for two little old ladies recently because they looked so happy to be sitting with each other.
8.  The more prepared you can be, the more energy you save for what matters - Preparation is power. I never felt this way. But the more I prep, the more I have space for energy. Rob Hatch calls this "Put Success In Your Way." He has a whole course around it. I love being prepared.
9.  Use "plus" language - If you've heard me correct you around this stuff, I know it can be annoying. But holy cats, the difference it makes. People often have a habit of phrasing things in the negative. "I can't get my motivation in gear." Instead, push out a positive (plus) version of the phrase: "I'm working on powering up my motivation." It *shouldn't* be effective, but I can tell you that the more I hear people use negatively-phrased sentences, the more I can predict what kind of a day will happen around them. Almost as if by magic.
10.  No news. It's a product designed to hook your attention, not help you - news is the devil. "Oh, but I have to stay informed." Do you? Are YOU fixing the world's problems? Fix YOUR problems. Fix local problems. Get involved where you see fit afar, if you want. But remember at all times that the "news" media is built to sell ads, like every other media business. What sells ads? Fear. Negativity. Worry. The most important news will get to you. Don't worry about that.
11.  Cut ties with negative people wherever possible. Minimize the unavoidable ones - More than anything else, this is at once the most difficult and the most effective of the ways you can get your energy in check. Negative people drain your energy like no one's business. It's amazing how fast, too. If someone is negative quite often, expresses lots of complaints, always seems to have a drama or trauma surrounding them, you're just not going to get the escape velocity you need to fly to the stars. "Oh, but Chris. It's my _____." (Someone important like Mom or boss.) Great. Minimize your time with them when they're in negative mode. Love them all you want. But if you take on their negative energy, it's yours.

Your Mileage Will Vary

Everyone is different. There are many ways to improve your energy. I left a bunch off the list. I didn't mention "movement." I didn't talk about exposure to actual sunlight. I read recently that if you take caffeine into your body in the first 90 minutes after waking up, you block some kind of chemical (I forget what it was called) that will lead to your 1pm-2pm crash.

It's your list to tune. But I tell you: if you work on your energy, you'll have the juice in the tank to be prolific. You'll be more inclined to solve challenges. It will melt away at least a bit of your procrastination. It's all related.

Give it a try!

Chris...