Running on empty
We all have the capacity to contain energy & vitality. We are also apt at losing vitality and energy. Healthy, happy, productive people have found the right balance between activities that boost their energy levels and ones that tax their energy levels.
There are a number of reasons for keeping your energy levels high:
- It feels better
- You are healthier when your energy levels are high
- You have the reserves available to do the things you want to do
…but there is another reason for keeping on top of things and ensuring you have bountiful energy. Murphy’s Law.
Murphy’s Law states not only that if it can go wrong it will. But also that it will go wrong in the worst possible sequence.
The scenario goes like this – You are running on empty. You no sooner finish the thought “the last thing I need right now is…” and you will get the call. If you’re anything like me then you will swear like a trooper. Then you will whine about the timing. Then you will remark about how you “just knew it would happen now”. And you did.
You knew it would happen and you knew when it would happen because you have been busy ignoring and denying the warning signs for a while now. You have put everything else higher on the priority list while your energy levels have been steadily declining. You knew it had to be dealt with, addressed, but the business of your life was put first. The dry cleaning, the errand, the overtime, the social engagement, the project, the favour, the deadline all taxed your energy and time, so energy boosting activities fell by the wayside and the domino’s began to fall.
Lesson: Know what fills your reservoir and make time for it. Guard those activities with all your might. You never know when the perfect opportunity might pass you by because you were too busy running on empty.
2 comments
Hrmm…does this explain why I also run my gas tank in my Jeep down as low as it can possibly go? I should mention that there are 3 gas stations within a 1/4 mile of my house.
I had never really thought about the whole thing this way, but I really like it and agree with it. There are so many opportunities that we have available and somewhere within we know that they are there. But we run ourselves ragged doing all the things we think we need to do, and these things that we just “should” do fall to the wayside.
Imagine the lives we would all lead if we focused our energies better!
Elisa, At least when you are in desperate need of fuel you don’t have far to go.
Focus is so important but it also pays dividends to invest in your body and your mind, because they carry out the focus. Massages, meditation, vitimins, sleep-ins, DVD nights, long walks, bubble baths – all the things that give you time to stop, regroup and refuel- aren’t indulgences they are what keep you in a position to chance your dreams and say ‘yes’ to the impromptu interview, date, meeting or deal.