Top 7 Tips for Energy Management

People always ask me how I do so much.  There are many reasons for this, and the one I’m going to focus on today is energy management. I get the most out of my day when I effectively manage my energy.

 

Effective energy management is a life style. It’s a choice about how I live my life. I choose what and when to eat, whether or not to exercise, what time I go to bed and the quality of my sleep. And in my experience, the effects compound. So it’s not that I only make choices today that support high energy, I make choices that support high energy on an ongoing basis.

 

I find it be very helpful to have an accountability partner. This person can be a friend, a family member, a coach, or a group that you report to. This person or people will help you stay on track and encourage you to make smart choices.

 

The key to maintaining those high energy choices is to not keep making them; the real key is to embed them so they become habits. When they become habits, you need to use your willpower to keep making those choices.

I allow my life to be on auto pilot for the habits I want to encourage. And rather than restricting me, which people have asked me about, I feel freer because I have energy and willpower to devote to more creative outlets.

I also pay attention to the natural energy cycles. We all have natural rhythms; circadian rhythms dictate our sleep/wake cycles, ultradian rhythms (90-120 minute cycles) dictate our energy levels throughout the day, weekly cycles, monthly cycles (yes, both men and women have monthly cycles) and annual cycles. Ensuring that we spend time to fully recover after a period of activity ensures that we perform our best during the next level of activity. If we short change our recovery time, we compromise our performance. Equally, we compromise or performance if we don’t put effort in during the activity times. So we have to find balance for ourselves.

A key indicator that I’m maintaining balance for me is being eager to get on with the next thing (as opposed to dragging my heels on it).

So here’s a short version of the keys to maintaining high energy throughout the day.

1. Create habits that support my energy
   1. Decide what to do
   2. Start small to ensure success
   3. Make it non-negotiable
   4. Keep doing it even if I don’t for a day or two
2. Sleep well
3. Eat well
4. Exercise
5. Pay attention to energy cycles throughout the day.
   1. Put in maximum effort in my productive times
   2. Eat and rest during the low energy part of the cycle
6. Pay attention to maintaining balance – the proper ratio of activity to recovery.
7. Have an accountability partner