“Keep an eye on the gas gauge”

This summer I am celebrating 25 years of work and in the spirit of the celebration I am committed to sharing 25 insights that I have acquired over the years and hold close to help me to manage myself and to lead the teams I have had the privilege to lead over the years. To make the exercise even more fun I am going to pen these lessons in the form a letter to my 22 year old self and share the letters in a series of posts over the next 6 months.

Before I begin, I do want to acknowledge that much of what I will share are concepts shared with me by those who have mentored and led me through the years. I’d like to consider this series of posts not only an homage to them but also a way for me to “send the elevator back down”. I hope you all enjoy the series and please share your comments and learnings as well!

Dear Shawn –

Energy is what propels you every single day and for you, at times it seems limitless. No matter how much you expend all it takes is a good night’s sleep to wake up rejuvenated and ready to take on the world! You take every opportunity to get our and enjoy life…I know “I’ll sleep when I’m dead”, right?

Let me share some of my thoughts around this as your voice 25 years in the future….

• Energy is like gasoline in a traditional combustible automobile engine both of them providing fuel for you to get you where you are going
• Like gas mileage your “energy mileage” varies depending on how fast you are going (your pace), whether you redline (your emotional state), the temperature outside (your environment), the slope of the road (the task at hand) and the overall condition of the engine (your health)
• Like your car your “energy gas tank” is of a fixed capacity and cannot be expanded. Once it’s empty you need to find a gas station and fill up
• In your car, air conditioning and audio systems can accelerate fuel consumption. In your body, periods of stress accelerate energy consumption while exercise and nutrition allow you to retain and conserve energy
• Just like a car needs to be “turned off” during refueling, your body does it’s best refueling when it is “sleeping”
• Although refueling a car takes 10 mins your body needs a solid 8 hours of sleep for a “full tank”. Any less and you are starting your day with less than a full tank and likely won’t have enough to make it through the day

Here are a few suggestions to think about in your day-to-day life –

1. REFILL YOUR TANK WITH SLEEP – Get 8 hours of sleep whenever you can; When you do choose to stay out late make sure you also give yourself an equal chance to catchup on your debt on follow-on nights. Design everything about your bedroom to cater to a good night’s sleep eliminating any and all stressors
2. OPTIMIZE YOUR MILEAGE WITH NUTRITION – Drink water throughout the day and think of what you are eating as “fuel” rather than calories
3. OPTIMIZE YOUR ENGINE WITH EXERCISE – Organized sport, weight training, running, walking or whatever works for you… Find 45 mins every day to sweat and make it a non-negotiable part of your day. Hold yourself accountable to it just like any other deliverable
4. CONSCIOUSLY SCHEDULE YOUR DAY – Prioritize activities that give you energy and positivity at the beginning of the day and move tough and draining activities to later in the day. Schedule 30-45 min breaks throughout the day to allow you catch your breath and transition between meetings. Remember recess in elementary school – it works 🙂
5. RECOGNIZE WHEN YOU ARE RUNNING ON EMPTY – If and when it happens reschedule critical meetings, focus on non-strategic tasks (independent work) and look for ways to disconnect and recharge. Reflect on what happened to cause the energy shortfall so you can avoid it in the future

I hope these tips serve you well in getting through your workdays. Trust me, once you get married and have children you will need to be an expert here to keep some gas in the tank!