Energy Sappers

A phone call you've been putting off....a repair you've been meaning to take care of....an apology you know you should make...a bill you're avoiding paying....a task at work that you're procrastinating doing....some cleaning you're dreading....a goal you're postponing.

What do all of these things have in common?  They're energy sappers!  They're stealing precious energy from you and you may not even realize it.  The reason is this:  The things that you ignore in your life begin to use up your resources.  For instance, if you believe you "should" exercise, but you don't do it, you begin to feel badly about it.  Feeling badly or guilty about something steals emotional energy, which saps physical energy.  So, even though you're not doing the exercise, you're actually using the energy it would take to do the exercise itself, but you're not getting the benefit and, worse, you're hurting your body and getting the guilt!  Whew...what a vicious circle!

Have you ever noticed that you avoid certain rooms in your house? Or that you feel good in one room and not the other?  Do you sigh when you look at the pile of papers on your desk?  Or get a sick feeling in your stomach when you think about the phone call you need to make?  You can actually feel your physical energy change when you think of or come into contact with certain thoughts or places.  Maybe the clutter, broken appliance, thought, or memory is draining your energy.

So, how do you end this cycle?  Action!  Taking action, even the slightest action, toward addressing your energy sappers will begin to free up tremendous emotional and physical energy.  One very effective exercise you can do to begin to clear away your energy sappers is to create a list.  Write a list of 50 energy sappers in your life.  Walk through your house and identify that which needs to be repaired.  Think of important conversations that need to be had, problems that need to be addressed, phone calls that need to be made, bills that need to be paid, closets that need to be cleaned, health challenges that need to be overcome, goals that need to be pursued, etc.  Ask yourself what you've been putting off and putting up with in your environment and in yourself, no matter how small or large.

Once you've got your list of  50, decide that you're going to take 15 minutes a day (or 15 minutes a week) to begin to chip away at the items on your list.  I always tell myself that I can do anything for 15 minutes, no matter how much I dislike doing it.  You don't need to complete an item completely right away....you just need to start it and then keep whittling away 15 minutes at a time.  I like what my sister tells herself when she begins to procrastinate or feel lazy:  "Come on, get up!  You're stronger than this!"  You're stronger than that, too!

Go for it!

As you've entered the new year, what has been on your mind? What have you been thinking you'd like to change about yourself or to accomplish in your life? Do you have a particular health, weight loss, or fitness goal? Do you have a buried dream that you want to resurrect? Do you need a new job or want a different one? Do you have a desire to make a difference in the world? This is the time of year when we all start thinking about making a fresh start. We have hope in the year ahead and we feel we've been given a clean slate to become who we want to be....and we are right.

Now, ask yourself what, if anything, might be holding you back. Have you already started pursuing your goal? If not, why not?  Why haven't you already set yourself on a course to accomplish your goal, realize your dream, or make the change within yourself? We all have the same reasons that hold us back from living the lives we really want:  fear that we'll fail is a big one; not feeling like we deserve what we want is another; worry about what other people will think is a biggie; worn out recordings in our minds that tell us we're too old, that it's too late, that we're not smart enough, that it's going to be really hard, and on and on. Have you ever stepped back as a silent observer to listen to the bill of goods your mind tries to sell you every day? Most of it is garbage....and it isn't even true!

The truth is that you (all of you) are creative, resourceful, and whole and you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. Do you realize that everything in your life started out as a thought? Do you want to make a change? Change your thoughts! Begin to think thoughts that are in line with your goals. Begin to question the worn out recordings playing in your mind that bring you down and start to believe the truth about yourself.  Make sure the picture you have of yourself is the "you" that you really want. Project yourself into the future and see yourself accomplishing your goals, living the life that you want, and being the person you want to be. The real you is not the negative recordings.The real you is great, strong, beautiful, at peace, loving, and joyful.

You were created in the image of Love, the most powerful force in the universe. Love is living on the inside of you and will help you to accomplish anything you want. And when you start pursuing your most cherished goals and dreams and living the life you truly desire you will start to get happy, and then you will pass happiness and hope on to others.


Yes, the new year gives us a clean slate, but every new day does, too. Go for it!