Your Energy is Everything!

When you prioritize your energy, everything else is sustainable! Isn’t it true that you feel like you can face the day when your energy levels are high and similarly when your energy is low, the smallest of tasks can seem daunting and draining?

Most people think of the physical only when we talk about energy, but each element is actually critically important. Energy is physical, yes, but it is also the mental and emotional energy we bring to the day. Once we have all of these in balance, things just seem to flow and we can operate at our highest potential and lead more effectively.

Most of us go through life in reactive mode. We take little time to consider the energy we want to bring to a day. I would recommend checking out “The Intentional Leader” journal which helps reframe each day and strategically map out the type of energy you want to bring, and the leader you want to show us as that day. 

The way we show up matters!

Your energy impacts the room!

As leaders, we have a lot on our minds and it can be easy to keep our heads down, walk straight into our offices and leave our teams in a confused emotional wake. Yes, it sounds dramatic but it’s true. Our energy introduces us before we even speak. This was an important lesson that I learned as a leader while receiving valuable insight from a 360 review. I tend to withdraw and tackle challenges head on when I’m overwhelmed. I’m not the type of person who likes to chat my feelings through or bounce ideas off of people for support. I prefer to face the challenge head on in a quiet space and come out for air once I feel confident that I’ve done my best to deal with the issue. You may relate. The challenge is that when I would do just that, my team would think that I was upset with them. My energy was probably uptight, frustrated, or anxious and little did I know that I was sweeping through the office leaving that toxic energy behind me. As leaders, we have to be very intentional about the energy we bring into our space, or at a minimum communicate that you’re frustrated, working on something and that you’re not upset with anyone in the office. There will be a collective sigh of relief – trust me on this!

Mental stamina

Without a strong mind and the tools to keep up with the bombardment of mental stimulation throughout the day, we can easily get lost in unproductivity. We’ve all been there. Spinning our wheels, looking at the same email twice and not remember reading it the first time or going to open a file and desperately trying to remember what you’re working on or why you’ve opened the main storage drive in the first place. Our minds get cluttered. In order to build mental stamina, breaks are vitally important. I went 18 years in business before taking breaks seriously and now that I do, I can tell you that they have had a profound impact on the energy and focus I’m able to deliver. Buy an egg timer off of Amazon. Every time you sit down, turn that timer to 55 minutes and when it goes off, reboot your mental energy. I do this by jumping in place and breathing in and out of my nose aggressively for 30 short breaths. I know that others on my team prefer Brendon Burchard’s “Release” meditation which is also an excellent tool and can be found on YouTube.

Emotional Energy

We see the world as we are, not as the world really is and so it is imperative that we consciously decide to control our emotional energy to be effective. Emotional drain can leave us feeling in a state of constant edginess or irritability. Most of this stems from unresolved conflict or issues that hinder us from moving forward or living in the present. I know this to be true in my own life when I have unresolved issues or I haven’t spoken my truth or confronted a situation, it holds me back from being completely present and happy. I don’t show up as a vibrant and enthusiastic leader. Instead I feel exhausted, drained and aggravated. When I recognize these feelings, I need to do an emotional energy reset and deal with the difficult conversation head on or express myself journaling or writing. If you’re feeling “off” consider any toxic relationships you need to remove from your life or courageous conversations that need to be had. Speak your truth, let it go and move on with a new sense of relief and vibrancy so you can face each day in a stronger headspace.

Physical Energy

Our health is our wealth and is the fuel that sustains us. I decided that this year I was going to be the healthiest I’ve ever been, and I can say with certainty that this physical energy has kept me strong through some of the toughest times of my career. I used to make excuses that I didn’t have the time for exercise. I couldn’t justify time to myself when the emails were piling up and I felt guilty leaving client inquiries waiting if I left on time to go to the gym. Now, physical wellbeing is my number one priority of the day. Besides time spent on gratitude, prayer, meditation and intentional planning, my next big move everyday is to get my sweat on! The stronger you are physically, the more resilient you become with your emotional and mental energy throughout the day.

A combination of physical, mental and emotional strength are signs of a high effective leader. What one practice or habit do you do to stay at peak performance in these areas? As always, we would love to hear from you!