ENERGY MAPPING our Daily Calendar:
WHAT IF we Commit to Ourselves, First?
This idea of committing to myself felt radical the first time it landed in my awareness.
I mean, we live in our bodies and our minds & spirits are part+parcel of this package we walk around in. Of course we are committed to ourselves, right?
Yes. And not so much.
I liken it to the airplane safety adviso to apply the oxygen mask to yourself first before your child’s.
Here’s what fractured self-commitment looks/feels like on any given day:
I start early with gusto, lots to do. I have some big projects that want my deep thinking and assorted other tasks/projects that can move forward with less intense creative bandwidth. I start on something easy to feel progress. That reminds me of something else I need to do. I head towards that. I check in on email and Instagram. I get distracted with replies and requests. I look at my day’s plan. I readjust priorities based on what I think I can do in the time left. I focus on something that feels urgent. … By mid-afternoon I am frazzled from shuffling my focus between the many balls we as solopreneurs, creatives, breadwinners, dog parents juggle.
Do you feel yourself in this picture, too?
What energies do you cycle through in your day’s usual activities?
Intentions are good as we begin our days but we zigzag between projects, focus, priorities and the back and forth saps us.
We are all busy. So we feel we are attempting to be accountable to our commitments.
But have we committed to OURSELVES, truly?
Here’s what it looks like for me when I feel I have fully committed to ME. (And when I do, the other areas of my life benefit from my commitment to my wholeness because in moving my trajectory forward in ways that give meaning to my life, ways I see myself in service and contributing, that sets the tone for continuing that energy in all I do.)
I map the next day on my calendar in blocks of focused energies, matching my best/peak energy times of day with my most substantive work.
I rise early to take care of my pup, then my body. I meditate, do yoga or run—I am best when I honor quieting my thoughts and livening my body/spirit to begin the day
Then it’s mind time
BEFORE all other projects, I invest the largest chunk of time on the project that is most meaningful to me, to my life dreams, to the creative investments I see as catalysts for energizing people who respond to my work—I am freshest creatively first thing, so I spend my morning on my creative priorities
I protect this juicy time. I schedule myself off the calendar for clients/calls/deadlines. I turn off email + all incoming during this first focused chunk of the day
Once I write, plan, ideate, design, practice towards my meaningful priority, I step away to get fresh eyes before returning to it—I find all words/images/ideas appreciate some breathing space after their birth in order to come into their groove & truly shine after a bit of rest and refinement.
I love varying the tempo of my day (like a musical score) so I juxtapose deep work with more shallow blitz tasks. And play/walk sessions with pup Ernie are fantastic mini-restoratives throughout the day.
Once the deep work is addressed, the remainder of my day is freer to skip between other commitments, with bursts of attention. Willpower, which I often need to sit with the projects that are most precious to me but also terrify me the most (new territory, speaking my truth, being vulnerable, daring), wanes as we continue to make decisions + choices. So partnering with myself exclusively on these laden creations ensures I have a full bucket of willpower to write through any temptation to distract myself.
Each task or focus asks of me a different energy, and mapping the day in chunks of like energies—administrative, creating, errands, play, inspiration, planning, meetings—then my energy for the wholeness of the day is balanced and carries me through with zestiness.
With this design, by the day’s end, I feel whole—I didn’t abdicate my commitment to me and what I knew I needed to invest in to move forward with my life dreams. I prioritized that, allowing everything else to come after. As a bonus, when I do give full commitment to me and my most meaningful work, I have more energy to devote to the remaining tasks.
I map my day by energy. It’s more efficient and even fun to plan my days and weeks with times sorted by energies, varying blitz tasks with deep thought, with play, with rest, with domestic activities… each day becomes a buffet!
Thank you for sharing my practice with me.
JOIN ME in WHAT IF, my new project of growing our creative lives+experiences. EMAIL ME for your free THRIVE KIT along with periodic delights + tips + workshops on fortifying creativity. I look forward to sharing our daring!