• Quote of the Month
• Upcoming Speaking Engagements
• Your Energy Level is Everything
• Focus on the Three P's: Preparation, Peak Performance, and Playtime
• Create New Healthy Rituals
• Changes That Last
• Inspired Leap Reminders
• Final Thoughts on Managing Your Energy
June Inspired Leap™ "Ah-Ha!" Newsletter
June 15, 2006
Topics Covered This Month
Dear Dianna,
After recently discussing the book The Power of Full Engagement with several people, I decided to review it again (I wrote about it in the August, 2003 issue). The book’s message of the importance of managing your energy is a powerful one and continues to be timely.As we move into the hotter, slower months of the summer, consider taking stock of how well you are managing your energy and begin to make changes that can have a profound impact on your performance. Read on to be inspired to create new habits to maximize the potential of your most vital and valuable asset—your energy.
Quote of the Month
We, too [like sprinters], must learn to live our own lives as a series of sprints—fully engaging for periods of time, and then fully disengaging and seeking renewal before jumping back into the fray to face whatever challenges confront us.—Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz, The Power of Full Engagement, p. 12
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
- An Intuitive Intensive at Lake Austin Spa Resort: September 14, 2006, 9:00 am – 3:00pm, with spa treatment immediately following. (Visit Inspired Leap to sign up now. Early Bird pricing ends August 15, 2006.)
Your Energy Level is Everything
When you consider the fact that your mind, body, and spirit are all energy, it’s clear why paying attention to your level of energy at any given moment is important. While we can debate the eternal existence of your spirit and thinking ability, there is no doubt that there exists a finite amount of physical energy. Just like a car, we can run our bodies into the ground, and suffer breakdowns and burnouts without proper care. In her book, Rewiring the Corporate Brain, author Danah Zohar shares how much energy an active, engaged, brain uses:A learning, creative brain uses more energy than the whole rest of the body put together. Out of the box, at-the-edge thinking uses as much energy as a game of rugby football. [p. 82, emphasis added]
Knowing this, would you choose to go into an important meeting, seminar, or discussion tired, wired, or stressed out? We need our brain working at an optimal level whenever serious thinking or creating is called for; yet, most of us rarely give ourselves permission to rest or rejuvenate our bodies and minds during the workday.
In their excellent book, The Power of Full Engagement, authors Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz argue that business executives need to see themselves as high performance corporate athletes and give as much attention to managing their energy as any good athlete would.
Human beings are complex energy systems, and full engagement is not simply one-dimensional. The energy that pulses through us is physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. All four dynamics are critical, none is sufficient by itself and each profoundly influences the others. [p. 9]
Much of my work in developing and harnessing the power of intuitive intelligence focuses on reducing the strain and energy drain in all four of the dimensions Loehr and Schwartz mention. We have an inner guidance system to help us know when to refuel and rest. This inner guidance can also use the power of synchronicity and hunches to lead us to the right answer with minimal use of our precious energy.
Unfortunately, most of us get caught up in the day-to-day grind and don’t realize that we never operate at peak performance because we never allow our energy to be fully restored in one or more of the four dimensions: physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual.
Focus on the Three P's: Preparation, Peak Performance, and Playtime
If we want to start thinking of ourselves as corporate athletes, then we need to first consider that professional athletes: 1) spend the vast majority of their time preparing for their performances or games; 2) allocate quality time for rest, play, and restoration; and 3) spend very little time on the actual performance. While this schedule is unrealistic for business people, we need to begin to dedicate a larger percentage of our workday to preparation and playtime or rest, so we can be at peak performance when we need to.Remember how much energy an engaged brain is using. To operate at peak levels, the brain and body need brief periods of rest and relaxation. In addition, Loehr and Schwartz point out the critical need for maintaining the energy of your body with proper nutrition and physical activity.
The size of our energy reservoir depends on the patterns of our breathing, the foods that we eat and when we eat them, the quantity and quality of our sleep, the degree to which we get intermittent recovery during the day, and the level of our fitness. Building a rhythmic balance between physical energy expenditure and recovery insures that the level of our energy reserves remains relatively constant. [pp. 48-49]
As you think about how you spend your workday, consider whether or not you are allowing frequent stretch breaks, short "fun" breaks, nutritious snacks, and exercise to keep your energy up.
Create New Healthy Rituals
One of the greatest energy gifts you can give yourself is frequent 5-15 minute breaks throughout the day. Think of it as getting ready to be fully present for whatever curveballs are thrown your way. Or, as Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz suggest in the opening quote, think of yourself as a sprinter. A sprinter’s time is primarily spent in training for the big performance, with short, intense spurts of activity during that performance, and then plenty of rest to restore his or her energy. Every step you take to restore your energy is a step toward a more powerful, balanced, "in control" business athlete—you!An example of changes that can be made comes from A.G. Lafley, CEO of Procter & Gamble. In the March 20, 2006 Fortune magazine issue, Lafley was one of the executives interviewed for their Secrets of Greatness article. Lafley noted that, "I’ve learned how to manage my energy. I used to just focus on managing my time." He noted that before participating in a Corporate Athlete program, he rarely ate breakfast and he used to put in grueling hours and be "just grinding through the day." Lafley now eats a light, nutritious breakfast of V-8 juice, half a bagel, and a cup of yogurt. He also made important changes in his work habits:
Now I work really hard for an hour or an hour and a half. Then I take a break. I walk around and chit-chat with people. It can take five or 15 minutes to recharge. It’s kind of like the interval training that an athlete does.[p.74]
What kind of changes can you make to your schedule? Below are questions to ask yourself to help you schedule in appropriate energy breaks, and a few tips for the type of breaks to take:
1. What time of day (or 2-3 hour block of time) are you most productive?
2. When is the biggest lull for you? (Most people hit "bottom" between 3pm and 4pm, so don’t schedule an important meeting then.)
3. Schedule short stretch, deep breathing, or snack breaks (5-10 minutes only) during your high performance time. Research suggests going no more than 90 to 120 minutes before taking a good break.
4. Schedule exercise workouts, long walks (20 minutes or more, if possible), or other rejuvenating breaks during your typical "lull" hour.
5. Find 15 minutes in your day for quiet time or meditation to "hear yourself think," or to listen to your intuition.
Changes That Last
In order to make lasting changes, it’s critical to tie these new habits or rituals—as Loehr and Schwartz call them—to our most cherished values or life mission. We need to draw on inspiration—not perspiration—to create new rituals that we'll stick with even in times of stress.The power of rituals is that they insure that we use as little conscious energy as possible where it is not absolutely necessary, leaving us free to strategically focus the energy available to us in creative, enriching ways. [p.14, emphasis added]
The limitations of conscious will and discipline are rooted in the fact that every demand on our self-control—from deciding what we eat to managing frustration, from building an exercise regimen to persisting at a difficult task—all draw on the same easily depleted reservoir of energy. [p. 168]
Many of us can remember failed attempts to make changes in our lives. Perhaps the problem is that most of us tend to rely on our willpower or discipline to "enforce" these changes. Learn from the experience Loehr and Schwartz gained from working with hundreds of athletes and business people—use your greatest inspirations and the values you live by to hold you to the new course you’ve set. Remind yourself that these changes are all about giving you the fuel you need to create the career and life you desire.
Finally, I want to briefly mention that I have been working on increasing my energy for the past year. I have found Oasis LifeSciences products to be a tremendous help to me and to my family. Because of my personal experience, I am marketing them as well (Visit Ageless to find out more). If you are not taking any nutritional supplements or energy drinks, you might want to consider using these or other products that appeal to you. You’re worth the investment of time, research, and dollars to figure out what’s right for your body.
Inspired Leap Reminders
Inspired Leap Reminders are areas of focus and part of the Inspired Leap Approach to maximizing productivity, creativity, and morale. In each newsletter, we take a look at how the topic of the month might be viewed in the context of these important areas of focus. Or, in some cases, we use the section as a gentle reminder to pay attention to these concepts in our daily lives.Responsibility: It can be overwhelming to think about making changes in all four areas of energy management: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. Which one stands out as the most depleted or chronically low for you? Use your intuition to decide. Focus on that area and take responsibility for doing whatever it takes to restore and revitalize that part of your life.
Creativity: What creative ways can you work with the idea of using inspiration instead of perspiration to create new rituals? Which leaders do you admire? Do they have healthy habits you can emulate? If so, you might want to have pictures of them or quotes from them around. You can also create a vision board specifically around the idea of managing your energy. Use magazine pictures and quotes to depict four energy quadrants on the board: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. What other things can you do to keep yourself inspired to make a change?
Detachment: Being "attached" takes energy. Think of being detached as simply managing your energy effectively. When you start to fixate on only one possible outcome or scenario to a challenging situation, visualize a clinging vine and the energy expended to keep it "clinging." Then, visualize "letting go" and putting that energy into a rewarding activity.Forgiveness and Kindness: Both of these concepts are not typically associated with business. However, they are included as key components of Inspired Leap programs because of the importance of managing our energy. It is exhausting to hold on to a grudge. Loehr and Schwartz have a chart in their book about the dynamics of energy. They point out that resentment, anger, and defensiveness are all high-negative energies. By forgiving or being kind after experiencing unpleasant situations, you release these negative, draining energies.
Resistance to Change: Remember to heed the wisdom of your body and intuition to keep your energy level high and your focus on what inspires you to move beyond the status quo.
Final Thoughts on Managing Your Energy
There is a quote from George Bernard Shaw on the Inspired Leap website that epitomizes being filled with vitality and energy:This is the true joy in life: The being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one. The being a force of nature, instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community, and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can.
I want to be thoroughly used up when I die—for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no "brief candle" to me; it is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.
To live this kind of energetic life requires making an effort to properly care for the body, mind, and spirit. I’m not where I want to be, but I’m slowly working on it. Look to your source of inspiration to give you the courage to make the necessary changes to effectively manage your energy. Your dreams are worth it.
With encouragement to leap ahead,
Dianna Amorde
President,
Inspired Leap Consulting Inc.Comments or questions about this newsletter? Email me at damorde@inspiredleap.com.
I look forward to hearing from you.. . .
If your company needs help with inspiring employees to reach new heights in productivity, creativity, morale, and integrity, please contact us at inspiredleap.com or 512-236-0090. If you need some more inspiration or more regular nudging to practice these steps, check out our website to see what’s new to inspire you (a visit to The Quiet Room may be just what you need!).
