I’ve been interested in increasing productivity and self-performance for a long time. I’ve always tried to organize my work and manage my time in order to be more productive.
There was a period in my life when I was obsessed with time. I tried to save every minute whenever it was possible. I tried to respond to emails while eating breakfast and sleep one hour less, just so that I could squeeze in one more hour of work. I was burnt out, unhappy, disappointed and still didn’t really know where all the time went. I was doing it all wrong.
Then, I found a book that has changed my life: The Power of Full Engagement. Managing Energy, Not Time, is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal. As the title suggests, managing energy is the key to high self-performance. Good time management and self-discipline is crucial but your energy is the base of everything.
You may have the best car in the world but it won’t run without fuel.
Why energy?
I found out that what really makes me productive is: MOTIVATION + ENERGY. First, I need to be strongly motivated to do something and then I need a lot of energy to move forward and accomplish that goal.
In this blog post, I’d like to focus on energy, which you may have never even considered before.
According to Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz (the authors of The Power of Full Engagement), to be fully engaged, we need four separate but related sources of energy:
- Physical: sleep, exercise, diet, etc.;
- Emotional: enjoyment, trust, patience, self-confidence, openness;
- Mental: positive attitude, positive self-talk, focus, creativity;
- Spiritual: honesty, courage, integrity, service to others, passion;
When we talk about energy, we usually think about our physical energy and we forget about other sources, which are also very important.
Let me go through a few changes I made in my life that are not really directly connected with work but in a magical way helped me to be more productive in my regular job and do many other things on the side.
I quit freelancing and started blogging
When I started working full time at Copyblogger Media, freelancing on the side became a big problem for me. I was too tired to do more creative work after hours. I was stressed about the projects that I still had to do and I was afraid I would disappoint some of my clients.
That’s why I simply gave up freelancing and spent my time after hours on my personal website which led me to finally start my blog. Running the blog helped me to switch gears and do something different than I do in my regular job. I found writing posts to be very relaxing and having a small community around my own site is a great feeling.
Even after a long day of work I still have some energy to write a new blog post.
I traded running for playing soccer
I hate jogging. I really wanted to start running regularly to improve my fitness. I tried a few times but I always gave up because I never liked doing it. I didn’t make any progress and I found millions of excuses to skip my training.
So, instead of trying again and again I started playing soccer. I used to play soccer a lot in a school and, believe me, there is a lot of running during a typical 1.5-hour game. I never tried to skip my soccer games because I simply love doing it. I can’t wait for another game which comes with a built-in workout session.
When I incorporated an enjoyable exercise into my weekly routine, the positive energy seemed to flow from within. Try it and see if you can also create some positive energy in your life!
I started doing what I always wanted to do
I always wanted to start training in martial arts. I found Krav Maga, which is a connection of self-defense and real life street fighting. Besides the technique, this is a great workout that helps me to reduce stress, build my self-confidence and be someone else for an hour at the gym.
Do you think you have no time for this? You just need to trade your time and skip something less important. I need only 2-3 hours during the week for my Krav Maga training.
I take one class on Saturday/Sunday, which requires me to wake up one hour earlier than usual, and commit to one afternoon during the week. Does it sound impossible? I don’t think so.
Once again, pairing up a physical workout with enjoyment created a new passion that contributed to building my self-esteem.
Conclusion
In summary, remove or minimize activities in your life that you don’t like doing. If there are some necessary benefits from it, try to trade it for something else that you would enjoy more.
Think about something you’ve always wanted to do but always had a million excuses as to why you couldn’t do it. No more excuses — start doing it as soon as you can!
Surround yourself with positive energy and in a very short time you’ll become much more productive, efficient, creative, and fully motivated to do more at your regular job and in your life.
I truly recommend reading The Power of Full Engagement. It’ll open your eyes but you’ll have to take care of the rest.
I’d like to hear your personal stories. Have you had similar experiences you would like to share?
I’ve been eating much healthier as of late (almost no fast-food – the occasional In-N-Out here and there). But really, I’ve been cooking at home, drinking lots of water and natural teas. I find that I don’t rely on coffee as much to get up and get going and well, I feel better all around.
As for working out, that’s something that I know gives me energy. A lot of it, and it feels good. But I’ve been dealing with back pain as of late. Just the other day I injured myself doing a simple trail run. This has been the toughest for me to deal with so I’ve turned to swimming and running less. And let me tell you, swimming is/was hard (for me at least). I prefer to run 3 miles than to do laps in the pool.
But anyway, those are the things that give me energy. Ultimately, it feels good. It’s good for your motivation, and it’s nice to go through the day on a natural buzz from the good energy you derive because you’re eating and sleeping well.
My man, biking is where it’s at (although I’m no back doctor).
I’m a big tennis and soccer guy myself.
Last but not least, great post Rafal!
We should play soccer some day 😉
Ricardo,
it’s great you mentioned about eating. This is something I still can’t change in my life. I think I eat too much bad stuff and I often skip breakfast. I’m still working on it.
Great post Rafal. It is absolutely true that when we think of energy we usually think about the physical and neglect the other forms of energy. I’ve made enhancing my physical energy a big focus this year – by eating better and working out regularly, especially yoga – and I’ve also found that it’s had a huge impact on my focus and overall mental energy, which in turn makes me more productive.
Very intrigued by the book. May have to pick up a copy. Thanks for the recommendation.
Jerod,
I think both Yoga and some martial arts like Kung Fu bring a lot of mental energy. I’d like to try it out one day.
Thanks for your comment!
Great solid tips here.
One thing I did to conserve my energy and not get burned out, is learn when I needed to hit the off switch at the end of the day. As soon as I felt like I was going to keep working after an exhausting day, I trained myself to just stop and do something totally unproductive. Like watch a movie or play Diablo 3 😉
Good stuff!
I hear you! I used to play Call of Duty a lot but now I prefer some more physical activities 😉
You are really good but you need to shag some good women Rafal
I agree that it’s not always about managing time and more about the 4 sources of energy you mentioned.
Being a good organizer and a time management freak is exceptional, but only when you combine that with a strong discipline which allows you to eat healthier food, exercise and just be happy will make a difference.
I’m in the middle of the audio version of Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long. It also focuses on energy – your brain uses massive amounts of energy and can only sustain good work for just so long before things fall apart.
I had to quit listening to the book while I work, though. 😉 As soon as he hammered home the point for nearly an hour that you can’t multi-task without something suffering, I had to quit except during my walks and while driving.
Hey Jesse,
I still do multi-tasking even that I know it’s bad for productivity. It’s one of these bad habits.. 😉
It sure is… I’m doing it right now. Darn it!
Rafal,
Stumbled on your blog (via your ‘First Client’ image of all things). Your blog is very refreshing and inspiring. I’m on your list now.
I know of a book which will likely have as big an impact on ‘focusing’ (vs multi-tasking) as the book ‘Full Engagement’ had on your energy – it’s called ‘The ONE Thing’ by Gary Keller & Jay Papasan. Check out the reader reviews on Amazon
Keep sharing,
JK
Rafal, thanks for your advise! I’ll read it for sure. I also want to advise you a great book of Russian author. It’s kind of time management but for creative people 🙂
http://www.amazon.com/organize-creative-chudovishche-organizovat-tvorcheskiy/dp/5916571011/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1349677408&sr=8-5&keywords=Yana+Frank
Thanks! Unfortunately, I don’t speak Russian 🙁
I spend as much time as possible in nature. I am an artist/photographer so it is part of my job. But brainless ultra-maratons in mountains are window in man’s soul. When you are pushed to the limit you will find out who you truly are.
Of course I have lots excuses when I have to do something and I have no motivation at all. So I just go out or do anything else until there is sudden flow of energy. I call it cycles. I do nothing for months and then I finish all like in one month. It is funny sometimes, stressful but I didn’t find different way to force myself. So regular work is hard for me 😀
Very helpful article. I was looking such kind of this.