3 WAYS TO BOOST YOUR ENERGY – PANDEMIC EDITION

As the months tick by that we continue to be in the midst of a pandemic, I am having more and more conversations with people around feeling demotivated and de-energised.  In August Tara Haelle, wrote an amazing article “Your ‘Surge Capacity’ is depleted It’s Why You Feel Awful” that described what was happening to us. 

This article resonated with so many because it answered why we have been feeling so flat. 

Anna Master, PhD explains in the article that “Surge capacity is a collection of adaptive systems — mental and physical — that humans draw on for short-term survival in acutely stressful situations, such as natural disasters.”  The problem is that the pandemic isn’t a short-term thing, it continues on and we don’t actually know when it will be a thing of the past.

 In order to be kind to ourselves and continue to face these challenging times we need recognise that we are in the midst of history.  This is an event that is a once in a lifetime or even none in a lifetime event.  So first and foremost we need to recognise that and be ok with it and adjust our expectations and demands of ourselves.

 By recognising and understanding what is going on, we can also start to use the tools available to us to start to get our mojo back. Obviously, there are countless ideas on how to rebuild energy levels; from getting good sleep, eating well to practicing gratitude and meditation but today I want to focus on 3 below that are perhaps less known but equally as valuable.

 PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTHS

Obviously being a Strengths Profiler & Coach is going to mean this is my numero uno.  But let me explain why.  Strengths are behaviours that you perform well at and energise you.  So by incorporating them more into your day-to-day life you will undoubtedly increase your energy levels.  Plus, if you are able to use your Strengths in situations that would normally drain you, you are going counter that and not eat away at your energy reserves.

A great example of this is if you love to communicate through stories and humour but you hate standing on stage and presenting a key learning piece to your team. By changing your presentation style and mindset to telling a story interlaced with humour to explain the learning to your audience, you will feel more energised and less drained. 

Plus studies have shown that people who use their Strengths in new and different ways report higher level of happiness.  We could all do with some of that at the moment.

KEY ACTION: Start noting your Strengths and then flexing those Strengths more in your day to day life

 PLAY MORE

Researcher Stuart Brown, MD, describes play as time spent without purpose. Now let that sink in.  When was the last time you did something that you enjoyed without purpose.  Something where the time just flies by and you could sit and do it for hours.  Rarely? Never? Me too.

 Turns out by incorporating more play in your life you are better able to tap into innovative thinking and creativity.  Plus, it helps increase your energy reserves.

 It is crucial for the play to be truly without purpose.  For example, if you love to bike ride – you need to make sure you are doing it not with the purpose of exercising, beating your record or getting somewhere.  Instead it is about enjoying the process, the exploration and just rolling with what happens in the play.

 KEY ACTION: Write a ‘play’ list of all the things you love to do without purpose and then make time for it. 

CONNECTION

Connection is always a great way to increase your energy levels, but most people are finding it hard under the current restrictions.  So let’s look at connection through a pandemic lens.

 It does not have to mean sitting down and chatting with a friend or even talking virtually.  Instead it can be connecting on them in a different way.  Perhaps you could send them a hand written letter, drop off their favourite food, send them an article they would be interested in.  It is the act of thinking of them and doing something about it.  Showing them you appreciate it and then feeling all the good vibes when they do!

 It’s also important to note that previously “water cooler chats” or whatever you like to call them – the quick conversations in passing you had in your workplace, helped you self-regulate.  Research has come out that shows that when we are feeling flat or down, it is these conversations that help us bolster our spirits and start to move on.  Obviously we are currently missing out on these and it’s contributing to us not being able to as easily get out of our funk. So again, it is even more important to connect with others in whatever small way you can, and never underestimate the power of small acts of connection.

KEY ACTION: Think of small ways you can connect with your friends & family.

Again remember, this is a hard time for everyone and we all face different challenges.  But we are in the middle of a pandemic people so be nice to yourself and do whatever little thing you can to get rebuild your mojo piece by piece.