Small Changes That Give You Energy Back
Most people come to coaching and mentoring because they want something to be different. Not because everything is wrong, but because things could feel better, easier, or less draining than they feel right now.
Things may be great on the surface with busy roles, responsibility, momentum. Day to day though, there can be a lot of reacting, a lot to hold in their head, and not much space to think.
I often use an energy audit tool with clients and we work through it together in sessions. If you’d like the tool, let me know and I’m happy to share it.
If not, you don’t need anything special to get value from this. You can try a really simple exercise instead.
Take a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle. On one side, write what drains your energy. On the other, what gives you energy. Don’t overthink it. Just write down what’s true.
The drains side usually fills up really quickly. Meetings that don’t move things forward. Firefighting. Being pulled into decisions that don’t need you. Always being available. Keeping too much in your head. Overthinking….
Seeing it written down brings clarity. It explains why some days feel heavier than others.
The other side of the page often takes longer. People pause, and think and they notice how little time they’re spending on things that actually give something back. Give them energy back.
Things like having space to think and reflect. Finishing something properly. A decent conversation. Moving your body. Working on things that matter rather than reacting all day. Knowing what’s expected of you. Learning something new.
Once it’s all there, I invite clients to choose one thing from the drains side. Just one. Something that takes more energy than it should.
Then we decide what to do with that one thing.
Sometimes it can be removed altogether. Sometimes it needs reducing. Sometimes it stays, but the way it’s handled changes so it takes less out of you.
That might mean changing a meeting. Delegating something. Being clearer about your availability. Or it might mean letting go of the habit of being involved in everything, adjusting expectations, or stopping the constant checking and stepping in.
The important part is that it’s one change. Not a big overhaul. That change gets put into practice and left alone for a bit. Long enough for it to land.
Then, once that’s landed, the process repeats. You come back to the page. You choose the next drain. You make one more small adjustment. Then another. And then another.
Over time, those small changes start to stack up. Space opens up, things feel lighter, decisions get easier and CLARITY arrives. There’s less unnecessary firefighting, because less energy is leaking out in the first place.
An energy audit is a way of paying attention and making small adjustments that actually stick.
If you want things to feel a bit lighter or work a bit better, this is a good place to start. One piece of paper, an honest look, and one small change.
If you’re like me, and love a list….
Draw a line down the page.
Write a list on the left: What drains my energy.
Write a list on the right: What gives me energy.
Choose one item from the drains list.
Decide what you’ll do with that one item:
Remove it completely, or
Reduce it (do less of it, do it less often, shorten it, put a boundary around it), or
Change how you do it so it drains you less.
Do that one change for a week or until you are confident it’s landed.
After a week, do the exercise again:
Pick another item from the drains list.
Remove it, reduce it, or change it.
Do that for a week.
Keep repeating that loop. One change at a time. Then another. Then another.
If you would like the tool, message me or send me an email at sarah@nineyardscoaching.co.uk and I’ll send it over to you.
