Are Energy Drains Sucking the Life Out of You?

In my last post I described how my wife and I improved our office environment by removing clutter, reorganizing and repainting. The clutter was an energy drain, and addressing it made a big difference for both of us.

Identifying and removing energy drains is important to your business, your relationships and your health. Energy drains are the things in your life and environment that feel as if they are sucking the life out of you. Take a minute to think about something that has been on your to-do list for ages. How do you feel when you think about it? See, that is an energy drain!

Such drainers, or leaks, include the following:

• projects you’ve intended to tackle but haven’t,
• things you’ve been meaning to do but haven’t,
• cards you’ve meant to send,
• people you’ve planned to call, and
• commitments you’ve made but not completed,

Energy drains also include environmental and digital reminders of any of these things, such as clutter on your desk, stacks of paper to be filed, or an incomprehensible number of messages in your e-mail program.

As you’ve experienced already, just thinking about the leaks in your life can weigh you down. Dealing with several on a regular basis can be overwhelming. Seeing physical reminders of drainers in your home or office is also exhausting, and the outcome is costly.

Energy leaks can affect your ability to provide good services and to relate fully to those you care about. They can ultimately influence the way you think about yourself and lead to poor productivity or negative self-judgment. For example, as business professionals, we understand that it’s important to do what you say you’re going to do. What does it mean if you have so much going on that you don’t do the things you’ve promised? With energy drains, there’s a cost personally and professionally.

The first step to eliminating them is identifying them. For each sphere of your life, consider your commitments and to-do lists as well as the cluttered areas, literally and figuratively. Identify the problem areas so you can address each one individually.

How many energy drains can you identify in your life?

What are you going to do about them?

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About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. His monthly e-zine, Belief Change Alchemy, offers coaches, entrepreneurs and leaders strategies for abolishing limiting beliefs that interfere with success, ultimately replacing them with life-changing, empowering beliefs. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want NOW.  http://www.terryhickey.com/