It’s been said that you can’t really manage time. It’s going to move on no matter what you do. But, you can manage two things when it comes to time – you can manage how you use it, and you can manage your energy so that you make the most of the time you do have.
And that’s what I want to talk about today – energy management.
In order to be at your best when it comes to your business and your life, it’s so important to make sure you’re always operation with optimal energy levels.
Here are four tips to manage your energy so that you’re living your best life:
Tip #1: Pay attention to diet and exercise
No one likes to hear it, but it’s crucial and one of the most important tips when it comes to how to manage your energy. If you don’t pay attention to developing a proper diet and exercise routine, it won’t matter how many other habits or practices you master. Listening to your body is crucial to your success.
That’s not to say that you need to eat and train like a professional athlete. What you need to do is find the balance that works for you and your schedule. Be honest with yourself and intentional in your food and exercise choices, and you should find yourself with more energy than you know what to do with.
Tip #2: Add free time to your schedule
Believe it or not, the most productive people have free schedules. They are not always busy because they understand that it’s more about the quality of their work and how it impacts their ultimate goal that leads to productivity. The goal is to do less, with less but achieve more or maximum success.
Being busy drains your energy and prevents you from performing at your best, and makes you forget your life goals as you work to get through each day. When you give yourself a more realistic schedule, you can better use your energy to master your skills and achieve goals more efficiently with ultimate focus and precision.
Tip #3: Accept that you can’t please everyone
Unfortunately, you won’t, can’t, and shouldn’t please everyone. Trying to do so is a surefire recipe for overwhelm and burnout. It can also lead to poor communication and engagement among your audience.
Instead of trying to juggle several different personalities to please all the different factions you’re catering too, plant your focus on your target audience. Who are the ideal people you want to serve?
When you focus only on your target audience, you communicate more clearly and you’re definitely more engaging with your community. Your target audience is not going to be – and should not be – everyone and is something you should narrow down right away if you haven’t already.
Tip #4: Don’t stress about what you can’t control
Easier said that done, I know. I had to write that reminder for myself in my journal this morning!
Stressing about every little thing is a draining and exhausting never-ending rabbit hole that you do not want to fall into. Take it from someone who has survived two heart attacks… You can’t make everyone buy your products, or stop shopping with your competitors, but you can control the quality of work and put the best product out there to change their minds.
You do have control over how often you talk to your audience too – and you’re the only one that has control over that. Are you emailing often enough? Are you posting on social media? These are things you can thing about in a more positive way that will help build your energy up instead of stressing out about what your competition is doing. That’s a sure-fire way to deplete your energy instead.
Final Thoughts
This is all pretty basic stuff, but if you pay attention to it and watch your energy levels as you do, you’ll be more able to manage your energy and adapt your work habits to them.
Further Reading:
4 Ways to Manage Your Energy More Effectively – Harvard Business Review
Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most – Greg McKeown
Manage Your Energy, Not Your Time – Charlotte Grysolle