Anne Krog Iversen is the Co-founder, Chief DNA & Culture Officer at TimeXtender.
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Most of us have been there: feeling tired, fatigued or lethargic during a workday or during our normal daily life. For those of us who lead very active lives — with work, family and personal activities — we can feel overwhelmed at times and simply exhausted. However, it’s inherent upon us that we strive to keep our energy levels high so that we can perform at our best for our co-workers, customers, stakeholders, spouses, kids, families and friends. Yes, the list is long and important to most of us.
The good news is that we can proactively take measures to help us reenergize ourselves during the workday so that we bring greater value to projects, meetings and initiatives. It starts by understanding that we have the power within us to take responsibility for maximizing our energy and thereby our wished output. Doing so can also be contagious, as it can affect how others perform and interact with us. In other words, we can choose to be a positive influence on those around us at work.
In a 2020 article in Harvard Health Publishing, Harvard Medical School lays out several ways we can help improve our energy by controlling stress, sleep, diet and other daily factors. With that in mind, the following are several other proactive steps that you can take to improve your energy levels during the workday.
Before attending a meeting, spend a few minutes preparing what intention and energy you would like to bring to that meeting. You can mentally prepare yourself by visualizing the meeting that is about to begin, planning what you would like to contribute, and thinking about what objectives and outcomes you have in mind. Walk through that intention and think about your colleagues who will be attending the meeting to ensure your energies and positive intentions are aligned.
You can set a positive frame of mind by counting your breath, thinking positive thoughts, performing a quick body scan or concentrating on relaxing and grounding your energy. This could help set the tone and mind for constructive decisions and “out-of-the-box,” innovative thinking.
To help you understand this at greater length, consider examining chronotypes, the general labels for how people work based on sleep, personal traits and other factors. Consider how you personally can take proactive steps to maximize your energy during the workday. (GetVoip has some helpful information to get you started on identifying chronotypes.)
In today’s business world, many progressive companies have come to realize the value of employees having an abundance of energy and a positive mindset at work. This means leaders need to better understand how they are prioritizing and scheduling time during the workday to help their staff become more energized. This promotes general well-being, along with an increased sense of purpose and happiness.
At my company, TimeXtender, we have found offering these activities as voluntary programs really helps boost the resilience of the Xpeople (what we call ourselves) and our entire company. Based on the success we've found with these initiatives, here are a few ways you can recharge your teams during the workday:
• A moment of silence before commencing business meetings to help your team land, regroup and re-energize before a new group discussion. A moment of silence gives employees time to reflect during meetings, which helps optimize decision-making and innovative thinking. You leave the meeting with a calm, balanced mind.
• Weekly recharge sessions online to introduce various well-being tools to your team and to provide mindfulness, breathing, stretching and strengthening exercises.
• Guest speakers and educational events to share ideas about the impact of health and well-being so that your employees can all lead better lives at work and at home. At my company, this program is an instrumental part of our vision to impact the world with data, mind and heart.
But what about those times when you’re simply having a bad day? What should you do then?
Well, it really only takes a few seconds to change and alter your mood from dismal to upbeat. To do so, find a quiet place, even a bathroom stall will do in a pinch, and start smiling. You will be amazed at the impact that putting on a smile has for your mood and outlook. A smile can help you shake off the bad vibes of that bad mood you’re experiencing, transforming them into positive thoughts and aspirations.
Along these lines, sometimes we let the noise of others impact our mood. We cannot control what others say or do, but we can certainly control how we react to any external stimuli. By having a mental wall in place we can easily fend off any negative external distractions thrown our way. At no time should we let others change or determine our inner peace. For those rare occasions when we do, we can easily modify our thoughts and perceptions to help us get back on a positive track.
These are simple exercises and tools that can help you protect yourself and build resilience to obtain a higher sense of happiness in your life and work. This is not to say that you will entirely avoid bad days, but in my experience, these activities can counter a bad mood with a five-star treatment.
It's essential for us to take responsibility for the mood and energy we bring to our daily engagements to help us in our professional journey. Doing so builds trusting and fruitful relations. If we make the conscious choice to help us drive up our energy levels, we can become more successful at achieving intended results both at work and at home.
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