Carolina de Arriba

Keep a running list either on your phone or a notebook.

Here's what you're looking for.

Energizers.

Those are the activities, the people, the environment, the tasks that make you feel more alive, more focused, more engaged, more energized.

And the drainers are the activities, the people, the environments, and tasks that make you feel depleted, heavy, and exhausted.

Step number two, it's look for patterns.

After a week, look at your list.

What patterns do you see?

For me, I'll tell you, my energizers include things like deep work in the morning,

walking outside, one-on-one conversations, creative projects, strategic work, movement, quiet time alone, and solving problems.

My drainers include back-to-back meetings, context switching all day long, urgent interruptions, being on for hours without a break, administrative tasks in the morning when my brain is craving

to create, to do things more strategic kind of work.

Your list will look different than mine.

And that is the whole point.

Step number three is categorize your energies.

Now take your calendar from last week and categorize every activity.

When I mean categorize, use color codes.

You want to see a visual for what is energizing you and what is draining you.

Again, energizing things, activities that actually give you energy and draining activities that cost you more than they should.

Then I also want you to reflect the energy that tasks in your calendar require of you.