ENERGY Matters!

 

ENERGY MATTERS!

 

March 9, 2022
 

Energy matters!

Jim Loehr's quote sets the theme for this Blog:  

           "Energy, not time is the fundamental currency of  high performance." 

Dr. Loehr is a world-renowned performance psychologist, CEO and co-founder of the Human Performance Institute.  The Human Performance Institute is a training company that has successfully utilized energy management technology to improve productivity and engagement levels of high performers' across the business, medicine, law enforcement and sports professions over the past 30 years. 

Our theme is Energy and high performance.

Our focus is -- YOUR Energy and practical tips to dramatically improve your Energy. 

In the Certified High Performance Coaching Program, we usually start with a question for you to answer. I kindly and humbly ask you to reflect on the following self-assessment question:

On a scale of 1-10, do you have the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual Energy  every day -- the habits, the stamina, the consistency, and joy -- to keep your energy tank full , to achieve your goals and live your life fully? 

A challenging question, right? This is an important question because all change starts with awareness and acceptance of where we are. 

What is your answer -- today? On a scale of 1-10, what is your self-assessment score? Please set aside judgment. The score, per se, does not matter. A score of 9 is not "good." There is always room for improvement. Raising your Energy from a 9.0 to a 9.3 has a geometric impact. Likewise a score of 6 is not "bad." This observation simply opens up a lot of opportunity for improvement.

When I answer this question, which I ask myself on a weekly basis -- the self-assessment varies. My scores typically range between a 7.5- 9. Right now, my answer is more like a 6. Truth. Perhaps, it is clear why I ask this question … kindly and humbly. 

I am fortunate to have a tool kit to draw on to help me re-energize. And I know that when I re-energize -- a lot of things start to fall into place and I get in the flow. 

What follows is an expanded, holistic exercise drawing on the lessons on Energy from the Certified High Performance Coaching Program. 

Please take 15 minutes and do this exercise along with me, setting your intentions. The objective is to reflect on an array of options and then select just 3 options which you will commit to do more consistently every day for the next week. The options can either be new habits which you believe are important to add to your daily routine or existing habits which you will take to the next level. [Note: I am going to add-in the terminology of the four Interior Empires from Robin Sharma to structure the exercise.]

  1. Healthset or Physical Energy: The options on my list are: restart working out with a personal trainer 3x a week; drinking 4 liters of water per day; stretching every hour on the hour. What options are on your list? 

  2. Heartset or Emotional Energy: The options on my list are: re-committing to the 7x-7x-7 breathing exercise, which means 7 deep diaphragmatic breaths, 7 times a day, 7 days a week; adding in an afternoon meditation to my routine of early morning and bed-time meditations; re-framing some recurring negative self-talk. What options are on your list? 

  3. Mindset or Mental Energy: The options on my list are: eliminating multi-tasking; blocking time for cleaning out more closets; blocking time for planning new travel adventures. What options are on your list?

  4.  Soulset or Spiritual Energy: The options on my list are: being even more aware of the joy in the present moment; bringing more music into my life, at least 3-4 times a week; reading a new book, by one of my favorite meditation teachers on Insight Timer, The 7 Energies of the Soul, by David Gandelman.  What options are on your list?  

Now – my challenge and yours – is to select just 3 activities which we will commit to add, every day, for the next 7 days. 

One week from reading this Blog, we we will re-assess our Energy score.  If it is higher – re-commit to your 3 actions. If it is not working for you, if you have been truly consistent and your Energy score is not higher, then consider changing your choices. Experiment.

Gosh -- I am thinking … I should be doing all of these things. Then I catch my self-talk, using the word "should". Should is negative self-talk, a judgmental word triggering "I am not good enough" thoughts. Our mindset is to motivate and challenge us to raise our Energy. Therefore, it important to focus -- to commit to CONSISTENTLY adding  just 3 things to my daily routine. The key is to keep it simple – KISS – Keep it Super Simple! Set yourself up for success.

Another key to this exercise is that it is forward-looking and challenged based. We do not get stuck in analyzing the reason why our energy may be low or stuck. We are not looking back at what we should'a, could'a, would'a done. We are directing our focus on next steps that make sense for us. Please know, I will be cheering you on! 

So, my 3 things are: 1) restart working out with a personal trainer; 2) eliminating -- yes, eliminating -- multi-tasking; and 3) thoroughly reading, rather than skimming, The 7 Energies of the Soul, by David Gandelman.   

Now, write your 3 things down -- in your journal, perhaps -- and date it. This action more deeply imprints your intention and commitment -- to yourself. 

In my coaching program, we have a lot of fun with Energy. We spend 1-hour together -- you create your program -- and then we regularly touch base on how it is working for you. We have barely scratched the surface of all the actions on the CHPC worksheet and ideas from other resources.

However, I believe the exercise works best when we start with a blank sheet of paper -- and let our intuition guide us in a direction that makes sense for us at the present time. Then, we can survey and get input from other people and resources. Then, we decide. It is our choice as to how to best manage our Energy. 

Energy is one of my favorite lessons because when we ramp up our energy -- our courage improves, our productivity increases and our persuasive conversations have more enthusiasm and more impact.  

Indeed, there is a line of thought, with research to back it up, that managing your Energy is more important than managing your Time.

A Harvard Business Review article from October 2007 by Tony Schwartz (CEO of The Energy Project) and Catherine McCarthy (Senior Vice President of The Energy Project) is a wonderful resource of the theory and practice on this point: Manage Your Energy, Not Your Time. As you read this article, discover what actions other busy -- and overwhelmed -- professionals have tried to dramatically ramp up their energy.  

I also call 3 previous Blogs to your attention for more input and ideas: 

This last reference to my October 24, 2018 Blog takes us more deeply into the practice of letting go -- releasing stress, releasing judgment and forgiving others and ourselves, and releasing attachment to outcomes. I refer to this as the deep end of the pool. 

Wherever you are on your journey, it important is to get started and take action. This is exactly why I recommend the Energy exercise discussed today. 

I would love to learn how this Exercise works for you!  

Till next time, with great energy and love,    
 

May you be happy now and always

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