Managing your money well requires you to manage your energy and your emotions well, we all know that. How much harder is it for you to resist the temptation to overspend or to stay committed to your daily personal finance planning habits when you’re physically exhausted? On the other hand, how much easier is it for you to remain hopeful and enthusiastic about your financial situation and practice good spending habits when you have a lot of energy and focus?
Considering this, let’s look at some things you can do to ensure that you have all the energy you need to stay committed to your plan for creating financial freedom.
Sometimes Less is More
If you’re working extra hours to earn more money, it’s important to consider the impact on your ability to be productive and to do the best job possible. There are times when you can do more and more before the good old law of diminishing returns starts to chip away at your ability to get the best results. Your body needs time to rest, to relax and to refocus, that is if you want to live a long and healthy life.
This downtime is beneficial to evaluating your progress and reworking your personal finance planning, a key activity that I teach my coaching clients. So the first thing to ask yourself is… how are you using your energy, and are you giving yourself the time needed for recharging?
The Great Energy Paradox
I doubt I have to sell you on the benefit of good exercise. Do you know why many people avoid exercise? Is it because they don’t have the energy, or because they don’t have the time? Ironically, this is the very reason why you need to commit fifteen to thirty minutes a day to cardiovascular exercise or strength training. The more you do this, the more energy you’ll have, the more focused you’ll be and the more you’ll get out of the time that you have.
Eating Healthy is the Best Way to Spend less Money
Eating healthy is another one of those paradoxical things that people don’t do because they either don’t have the time or don’t have the money. It might interest you that the leading cause of personal bankruptcy is medical bills, and a poor diet is certainly an invitation for health problems. Perhaps not right away, but eventually poor eating habits will catch up, and when they do you’ll find that they’ve been collecting “compound interest” the whole time.
So if you want to make sure you have the energy and the willpower to stick with your personal finance planning commitments and to manage your money well, follow these simple tips. You’ll be glad that you did.
How Well Are You Managing Your Energy?
Are the everyday demands of a busy life taking a toll on your energy and impacting your health and wellbeing?
When the seemingly relentless demands of a busy life take their toll on our energy, we tend to feel more overwhelm and stress. When not addressed this could lead to lack of focus, lower performance, anxiety and burnout.
A good way to understand how well you’re managing your energy is to reflect on what demands have an impact on your health and wellbeing. By answering the following statements, you will better understand how well you’re managing your energy.
With this awareness, you can quickly see the areas that are most challenging for you. From there you can put a plan of action to help you with reducing stress, boosting your Energy and avoid more serious health challenges.
- I rely on sugary or carbohydrate-rich snacks for bursts of energy when I need an energetic pick-me-up.
- I tend to do what feels immediately pressing and easier to accomplish rather than make intentional choices about how I spend my time and what matters most.
- I’m so busy I rarely have time to reflect on what I value most deeply.
- I seem to be stuck in overdrive; I feel like I’ve lost the ability to shift to any other gear.
- I work out (cardiovascular and weight training) irregularly, if at all.
- I regularly get less than six hours of sleep.
- I rarely take breaks; that way, I can get more done.
- When I take the time to notice, my breathing seems shallow; I seem to go a long time without taking a deep breath.
- When I’m under pressure, I easily become irritable with others.
- It’s been a long time since I’ve done something purely because it was enjoyable or felt good.
How many statements did you answer with a “yes”? Even just a few “yes” is an indication that you’re probably not performing – or feeling – as well as you could be.
Now ask yourself, how different would your life be like with less stress and more energy?
Imagine waking up feeling refreshed ready to start you day, feeling more energized throughout your day, enjoying yourself and having fun with those close to you and ending your day feeling grateful ready for a great restful night’s sleep.
Imagine feeling invigorated, healthier and happier!
Tips for Managing Your Energy, Not Your Time
Managing your energy, not your time is the key to success. To manage your energy well, that means you are taking care of the basics, such as eating, sleeping, and exercising. It also means that you are respecting your boundaries. When you manage your energy well, it also means that you are drawing from multiple sources of power, such as your mind, body, emotions, and spirit. The more you draw from, the more support you have for boundless energy.
Why Manage Energy, Not Time
You can throw a lot of hours at something, but if you don’t have the energy for it, you are not going to get anywhere fast. On the flip side, when you bring a lot of energy to the challenge at hand, you can do amazing things in short periods of time. In fact, a powerful way to think of making things happens is to think in terms of a series of sprints, instead of looking at things as one long marathon. This will help you break things down into smaller wins to build momentum. This will keep your energy strong, while you flow value along the way.
Test Your Results
The most important idea here is that regardless of which technique you adopt, you have to test it. You have to find what works for you. When you test it, be sure to focus on the principle, not the rule per se. If you stay flexible, you may find that there are many ways to make the principle more useful for you.
