Nothing rings more true than the saying “your energy is your greatest currency”. It’s what connects you to others, what attracts opportunities, it’s what makes you feel alive and at peace. But with the never-ending pull of life admin, work and what seems like perpetual bad news filtered through our screens on a nightly basis. I speak for the collective when I say, we’re tired.
So, what can you do to care for your energy? Here are a few of our top tips:
Create boundaries: For people-pleasers, saying ‘no’ is like walking over fire. And who wins in the end if we can’t ever say no? Everyone else, but us. Start creating boundaries and feel the instant effect it has on your wellbeing. Practice making it part of your vocabulary. Do you want yet another social zoom catch-up? ‘No’. Can you commit to volunteering even more of your time? ‘No’. A firm yet gracious 'no’ puts a safety net around your energy.
Cultivate kindness: Self-care is really about self-love. Loving yourself enough to speak to yourself as though you were a dear friend. This one might take practice too, and perhaps it just comes in the form of cutting yourself more slack when your house isn’t as tidy as it could be, or you haven’t crossed off everything you so optimistically pilled on to your to-do list earlier that the day. Reminder - you wrote it in a caffeine-fueled “today is the day I achieve all” mode. You’re not a terrible person when things don’t turn out that way.
Identify your energy givers and energy drains: Energy givers (to name just a few) include; sunlight, movement, rest, hydration, gratitude and positive people. Energy Drains include; screens, stress, inconsistent sleep, alcohol, resentment and negativity. Tap into your energy givers and patch up the drains. Take action on this, and everything changes.
We hope this is helpful and inspires self-care for the in-between moments when your next break seems too far away. Remember, look after yourselves and take care of your beautiful energy. It is after all, your greatest currency.