Years ago, I came across a Harvard Business Review article titled “Manage your energy, not your time“. Because I worked in startup roles on around-the-clock international teams, I could work endlessly and there would still be much left to do. The article resonated with me. Then I forgot about it. Until a couple of weekends ago where after a focused and uplifting work week, I crashed hard because of emotional stress from Covid-19’s India surge. The combination of first-hand news, urgent check-ins on family and friends, and a desire to support from afar created an energy-vortex. In two days I went from significant vitality and sharp focus to a bit off the rails. How did this happen?
While I had made a conscious decision to pour myself into loved ones, I wasn’t conscious of topping up my own energy. We can’t give what we don’t cultivate. Living in India right now feels like being in a warzone and I simply wasn’t prepared. I thought if I could pour a little more of myself into just one more person or one other situation, I could make a difference. I didn’t even notice that I myself had situational stress from this crisis and by the time I realized, I was too depleted and needed to disconnect and hibernate. Like an overheated machine with a faulty internal thermostat. How strange for this to happen to us repeatedly when we live inside our respective human animals! Why is it hard to check-in with ourselves? It may be a combination of productivity addiction, feeling selfish when we focus on our own needs, or a host of other things. I won’t dig into the reasons here because my focus is on understanding how we build energy. This life force. Chi. Prana. For a long time I thought prana was this esoteric concept and only serous yogis and meditators had the skill to generate pranic energy. It’s actually quite simple. How did I recover? I got out of bed and started cleaning while listening to an interesting audiobook. I took the easiest action I could take without needing to think. As I put my space in order, I started noticing a shift inside. Once I got some energy back, I walked in the sunshine and sniffed spring flowers like a bee. The next day, I got more of my rhythm back and worked out. Nothing magical or esoteric here. But certainly a real contrast in what little bit of self-care can do.
Energy is that feeling of buoyancy on days we are well-rested, well-moved, well-fed, and well-loved. By well-loved I mean that we are tuned into not only others but also ourselves such that we are able to give and receive care. This combination creates a sense of inherent vitality that we then bring to our actions and interactions. Prana is not a vague concept at all. It is the foundation for everything we do in life. What seems to be key in our recovery and strength building is the ability to tap into our energy building practices at a repeatable cadence so we don’t even have to think about them. It can be whatever feeds our unique souls and to whatever degree is practical.
We’ll run into a million different situations and we cant game theory our way out of each. If we keep topping up our prana through repeatable personal practices―aka routines or rituals― we will become more grounded, adaptable and resilient in the face of twitching circumstances, thoughts, and emotions.
“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.”― Anne Lamott
