Energy Management vs. Time Management

We all discuss, complain and boast about how much work we have to do, the limited time to do it all, the roles we must play, the competing demands on our lives, and the many hats we wear (literally!). Meanwhile, we suffer from fatigue, exhaustion, and burn out. This is very real for us all, particularly as health professionals who care to change the world. But it is precisely such a desire to make a difference that led me to appreciate a recent dialogue about energy management that resonated with my own research.

In many of our research studies across the globe, I’ve found that the most significant driver for the perceived well-being of women who juggle many roles was role integration, which emerged from the data as the balance between stress and satisfaction across all the primary roles. This finding was a surprise considering previous data demonstrated that the balance of stress and satisfaction with each role in a person’s repertoire determined the level of health and wellness in women. Bottom line: even if women are highly stressed in one role (a marriage, for example), a higher level of satisfaction, meaning and accomplishments in other roles (like maternal and occupational ones) can balance the marital stress.

Now back to energy management. A very insightful article in the Harvard Business Review written by Tony Schwartz (2007) analyzes what could be the driving force for more productivity, time management, and life satisfaction. While time is a finite resource, he writes, energy is a different story. It is expandable and replenishable. Schwartz further examines the four different kinds of energy –– physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual –– and offers insight in how they can best be managed.

Perhaps easiest to understand is physical energy because nutrition, exercise, sleep and rest have evident and significant effects on the quality of our lives. But so too does emotional energy, which Schwartz describes as “the quality of energy.” From taking deep breaths when under stress to expressing appreciation to others (“a practice that seems to be as beneficial to the giver as to the receiver”), positive emotions help us perform best. Being in control of our mental energy, “the focus of energy,” stems from teaching our minds how to concentrate. Schwartz recommends ending each work day by identifying challenges for the next day and making them top priority in the morning. Finally, spiritual energy requires that we reflect on the meaning and purpose of our work by clarifying our priorities and discovering what we do best and love most. Each component may expand or contract our energy, regardless of the amount of time available.

As nurses, it is perhaps in this last form of energy where we can best “recharge.” When I think of the depth of our research and the range of our clinical practice, I am overcome by the abundance of meaning and purpose that exists in all we do. As members of this school, we strive to change the world. It is no small task, but still, we remain committed. And despite the stress we often face, it certainly helps to remember that it is better to think about managing energy than time. After all, we have more control on the first and less on the second.