Jory MacKay on September 03, 2024 How to protect your energy (and remove chaos from your work)
When it comes to improving our productivity, most people focus on finding more time. But in reality, it’s not a lack of time that’s our problem — it’s our lack of energy.
While we all have the same 24 hours in a day, how we use those hours is up to us. Unfortunately, most people’s daily allotted energy is often drained by unexpected meetings, negativity, and poor personal relationships, leaving little left for the things that truly matter.
For an example, just look at the so-called “hungry judge effect”. Studies have shown that judges are more lenient in their sentencing in the morning and directly after a lunch break when their energy levels are more likely to be high — proving that energy levels can directly impact decision making.
That’s also one of the big reasons why Planio operates on a four-day workweek. We believe strongly that it’s not the quantity of time that matters, but the quality that matters.
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If you’re finding yourself feeling overwhelmed during the workday, you might not be able to create more time — but you can protect your energy so you can make the most of the time you do have.
The day-to-day factors that drain our energy levels
Protecting your energy is a way of deploying tactics that help you safeguard your most productive moments for the tasks, events, and experiences that really matter.
By avoiding negativity, removing distractions, and setting boundaries, you maintain a state of high energy, allowing you to be more productive throughout the day.
But before we go any further, let’s get one thing straight — difficult situations, both inside and outside of work — are an unavoidable part of life. Learning to protect your energy isn’t going to make all of life’s challenges go away. But if your energy levels are high, you’ll be better equipped to handle tough situations when they occur.
In our day-to-day lives, there are so many people, situations, and events that drain our energy without us even realizing it. Let’s look at some of the most common energy-sappers:
- Toxic relationships. The people around us can be the biggest energy drains of all. While we all know toxic romantic relationships are bad news, friends and co-workers who are negative, spread rumors, and cause drama are equally bad for your energy levels, too.
- Unnecessary meetings. There’s nothing more demotivating than a last-minute work meeting that turns out to be pointless. Not only do they waste time, but they sap your most valuable work-time energy.
- Mismatched tasks. Tasks that don’t align with our strengths inevitably take more energy to complete. Ask a creative or analytical brain to work up a spreadsheet, and it’s easy to guess which one will finish the task feeling exhausted.
- Clutter and distractions. Our subconscious brain takes inspiration from the world around us. Your brain has to work harder to focus in messy and loud environments, meaning you lose energy faster than in a quiet, clutter-free setting.
- Overthinking and worrying. When our brains are working at 110%, they’re going to run out of energy pretty fast. Overthinking past situations or worrying about things you can’t control are classic causes of low energy.
- Poor physical health. While it sounds counterintuitive, regular exercise actually improves our energy levels. Match that with a well-rounded diet and your body is primed to operate in a high-energy state!
- People pleasing. Many of us focus our energy on making those around us happy. While being selfless and caring are great qualities, focus too much on people-pleasing, and you’ll find you have no energy left for yourself.
Why is it so important to protect your energy? 6 benefits
While some might seem obvious, there are several great benefits that come from protecting your energy. Master the process, and these are just some of the benefits you’ll see in your work and personal life:
- Higher productivity (and more predictable outcomes). You may think you have 8+ hours in the day to get work done — but in reality, studies show that number is closer to 2 hours and 48 minutes. When you protect your energy from invaluable tasks and negative situations, you’ll be able to make the most of those working windows.
- Better decision-making. As we saw with the hungry judge effect, our energy levels have a direct impact on the decisions we make. When we’re tired, we’re more likely to go with the easy option, which may not be best in the long run. Keep your energy levels high, and you’ll have the brain power to stay calm under pressure and make the best call.
- Lower levels of stress. When we cut out the things that drain us, we have more energy to get things done in the time we have available. This stops us feeling overwhelmed and stressed by mounting pressure and missed deadlines.
- Less chance of burnout. Nearly 75% of workers say they’ve suffered from burnout in their career. While this may have been caused by factors out of their control, high-energy levels and greater productivity reduce the risk of burnout occurring.
- Greater overall wellbeing. When you’re less stressed, have higher energy, and achieve your work goals, your overall mood and well being improves. That means more time for hobbies, family, and friends, all while being more present and engaged.
- Stronger personal connections — and fewer toxic ones. Positive, high-energy people attract other positive, high-energy people. Find a way to prolong your energy, and you’ll gravitate towards people with less negativity and toxic traits.
13 ways to protect your energy at work and in life
If you’re feeling overwhelmed at work, it’s time to focus on protecting your energy levels to give you more juice for the things that matter.
Your energy is limited - make the most of it each work day!
Try these 14 strategies to help you avoid negativity, remove energy-sapping distractions, and set boundaries that help you thrive.
1. Understand what drains your energy
The people, events, and experiences that drain your energy levels will be unique to you. Before you start trying to fix what’s broken, take the time to really understand what energizes and drains you, so that you’re better placed to plan for the future.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
Step back and think about what drains and energizes you through the following lenses:
- People. What type of people do you enjoy spending time with? Are you an extrovert or an introvert?
- Situations. Do you thrive under pressure, or do you prefer calm and stable environments?
- Tasks. What type of work do you enjoy? Are you creative, analytical, collaborative, or a lone-worker?
2. Tune in to your Circadian rhythm to identify your peaks
Our energy levels are influenced by our Circadian Rhythm – the physical, mental, and behavioral changes all humans experience in a 24-hour cycle. This means we’re naturally more alert at different times of the day. So, to maximize our success, we need to align with our biology!
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Research. Do your research on the Circadian Rhythm to understand when your body is at its most active.
- Plan your day. From there, think about how you can plan your day to complete your most important tasks at the times you have the most natural energy.
- Nail the basics. Quality sleep, regular exercise, and well-timed caffeine will help keep your body in the best rhythm to produce energy.
3. Designate “office hours” to minimize drop-by distractions
There’s nothing more frustrating than when you get into a state of flow and someone interrupts you. Not only is this unproductive, but it takes a lot of energy to get back into that state a second time.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Allow for distractions. Set “office hours” where you’re not in focus mode and are happy to be distracted by those around you.
- For hybrid workers. If you’re a hybrid worker, use in-office days to connect with colleagues and home working days to focus on the details.
- For home workers. If you’re a full-time home worker, establish ways of working and team rituals so everyone knows when to chat and when to focus.
4. Take control of your calendar with time blocking
To help you take complete control of your calendar, experiment with time-management techniques such as time blocking. Time blocking creates a template for your day, helping you to save energy by avoiding constant context switching.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
Get started with time blocking. Check out the Planio guide on How to use time blocking to boost your productivity. Within it, you’ll find tips for:
- Categorizing your daily tasks
- Scheduling them into your day
- Communicating your time blocks with the team to avoid distractions.
5. Make meetings more meaningful and effective
Unnecessary meetings are one of the biggest culprits when it comes to losing precious energy. To overcome this, focus on making the meetings you have valuable, by keeping them concise, meaningful, and effective.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Meeting vs. email. In the modern working world, there are so many ways to connect. Before you schedule or attend a meeting, consider if an email or IM message would be a more effective way to share information.
- Structure and etiquette. The Planio 5 Steps to Planning and Running Fast, Efficient Meetings guide offers great advice to plan, structure, and run energy-saving meetings.
- Master 1:2:1 meetings. Because of their direct nature, one-to-one meetings have the potential to drain us with their intensity. Use this guide to help you master them for you and your team members.
6. Stay organized to reduce confusion and chaos (Planio plug!)
If you’re disorganized, you’ll spend precious time and energy trying to keep all of your plates spinning. While some people are naturally more organized than others, using project management tools helps reduce the confusion and chaos around you.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
Here are just some of the features Planio provides to help busy people like you stay in control of their day:
- Task management. Automate and track the to-do list of you and your team.
- Agile. Sprint plans, retros, and reporting made easy.
- Wiki and docs. Keep all of your important information in one place.
- Comms. Team chat, forums, and commenting keep the team collaborating.
- Help desk. Quick, easy, and efficient customer service.
7. Don’t aim for perfection
We all want to do a good job, but there are times when striving to do the perfect job is counterproductive. Perfectionism is actually bad for our mental health, leads to unnecessary stress, and drains our precious energy.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Goals and objectives. When working through tasks and big projects, be clear on what the goals and objectives you’re aiming to ensure everyone is pulling in the same direction.
- Define ‘done’. Ask two people what a finished job looks like, and you’ll get two different answers. Take the time to set a ‘definition of done’ with your stakeholders so that everyone agrees the standard you’re working to.
- Follow the 80/20 rule. Pareto’s 80/20 rule proves that 80% of the value you create comes from 20% of the work you do. You may be doing additional work for little gain, so take the time to assess and re-plan accordingly.
8. Limit distractions in your working environment
In a survey of millennial and Gen-Z employees, 36% admitted that their smartphone distracts them from their work for around two hours a day. This is just one example of how our work environment can silently steal high-energy hours from our day.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Silent mode. Mobile phone, laptop, and tablet notifications are specifically designed to grab your attention. To kill the noise, cut off notifications to help you stay in a high-energy zone.
- Simplify your work setting. If you’re lucky enough to have a home office, do everything possible to simplify the surrounding space. That means less post-it notes, pens, and digital gadgets to stop you getting distracted.
- Sound and temperature. Whether it’s complete silence or calming music, make sure the audio in your work setting doesn’t distract you. Then, try to keep the temperature comfortable to avoid losing energy from cooling down or heating up.
9. Set boundaries with your stakeholders
In a hybrid world, many of us feel the pressure to be ‘always on.’ But that’s not realistic, and trying to live up to that expectation drains our energy. So we need to work hard to set boundaries with our stakeholders to create a better work-life balance.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Out of hours. Set clear start and finish times each day, and be disciplined with not replying to messages and emails out of hours.
- Device management. Remove email and messaging applications from your personal device to give you a clear definition between work and personal time. If you can’t do that, at least turn the notifications off at a sensible time.
- Async culture. Establish an asynchronous communication culture within your team. This means people can reply to emails and work on tasks at a time that works for them, so long as they meet collective deadlines.
10. Practice mindfulness and journaling
While we put focus on avoiding situations that drain our energy, what can we do to build our own energy up? Mindfulness and journaling are both tried and tested ways to help us step back, relax, and re-energize to give us that extra workday boost.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Mindfulness. Check out this 101 guide on Mindfulness to help understand the benefits of bringing awareness and presence to your daily life. Spoiler alert: Greater focus, less stress, more energy!
- Journaling. If you’re new to journaling, it’s a great habit to help understand your daily thoughts, feelings, and growth. Crucially, it’ll help you identify the situations that have drained and boosted your energy, giving you the insight to plan better for the future.
11. Make time for your physical health
As with your Circadian Rhythm, your biology directly impacts when your energy levels rise and fall. To help keep energy levels high, make time to maintain and improve your physical health.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Prioritize daily exercise. This article from Everyday Health explains how just 30 minutes of heart-raising exercise can increase energy, endorphins, and focus time throughout the working day.
- Sort out your diet and allergies. Eating well gives your body the food it needs to create energy to live your life. But if you’re constantly fatigued, check for any allergies or intolerances. There’s a 60% chance you’ll experience low mood if you’re eating the wrong things for your body.
12. Restore your energy with better breaks
Everyone knows we need to take breaks to keep our energy levels high, but what makes a good break?
Here are some actionable steps to help:
To improve the quality of your breaks, plan them through three lenses:
- Timing. A longer break isn’t necessarily a better break. Stepping back for a 3-5 minutes break more regularly can actually be more beneficial than a longer 15-20 minute break.
- Location. Swiveling your computer chair around isn’t the best way to take a break. Move to a new location to help you make the most of your break times.
- Activity. Scrolling social media isn’t the best way to take a break, either. So try mixing it up with a short walk, listening to some music, or chatting with a friend.
13. Get comfortable saying no
Once you’ve put any combination of the above tips into practice, you need to work hard to maintain your energy-protecting habits. As the people around you try hard to drain your energy, learning to say no is essential to stop you falling back to your low-energy past.
Here are some actionable steps to help:
- Explain the consequences. When someone asks you to do something you know will drain your energy, negotiate a trade-off with them. E.g., if your manager asks you to attend a short-notice meeting, let them know it will mean another task will need to be delayed. Knowing the consequence helps others decide whether their request is actually important or not.
- Offer alternatives. If someone or something threatens to take your energy, look for alternatives you can offer to improve the situation. This could be re-arranging a meal with a friend or swapping tasks with a colleague at work. Whatever it is, find a way to do that thing at a time that better aligns with your energy.
Many of us think we need more time, but we actually need to be better at managing our energy.
Your energy is limited — make the most of it each day
While many of us think we need more time, we actually need to be better at managing our energy. After all, we only have a limited amount of energy to use each day, so if we use it for unnecessary tasks, we run the risk of stress, burnout, and frustration from the things that really matter.
Whether it’s learning to say no, removing distractions, or aligning with your Circadian Rhythm, the good news is there are many ways to protect your energy. Get better control of your energy, and you’ll see your productivity, mood, and decision-making drastically improve.
And of course, when it comes to the workplace, the best way to maximize your energy and productivity is by using project management tools such as Planio. Thanks to features for task management, time tracking, and communication, you can take the stress out of the day-to-day admin and put your energy into the tasks and relationships that make a difference!
Try Planio for yourself — free for 30 days (no credit card required)
