Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hey there, welcome back to another episode of the Leading Yourself podcast. As we step into a new month, I also want to introduce our new theme for February. We're going to be talking about energy management this month. But before we get into the tactics and the tools or the changes that we're going to be talking about this month, I want to start with a bigger question. Because
This is something that I see over and over again in my own life and in the life of people that I work with, that I mentor, that I coach. Let me ask you this. Have you ever had a day where technically everything worked? You follow your calendar, you got through your meetings, you checked the boxes, nothing really went wrong.
And then by the end of the day, you're laying in bed feeling drained, feeling done, feeling like you were really busy, but you didn't accomplish anything tangible. Or you question, what actually did you do that day? That feeling is what I want to talk about. Because for a long time, when I felt that way, I assumed the problem was time. I thought, I need to plan better.
I need to get more organized. I need to manage my time better. And I kept trying new planners and new systems and new apps. I became the time management queen. But at the same time, I kept trying to fix the same problem with the same solution. And here's what I've come to realize. And this was a big shift for me. Time was never the full equation.
And if time management alone worked the way that we all were promised it would, most of us would feel more energized, more fulfilled. But instead, we feel productive but depleted. We feel busy but not fulfilled. We feel like we're on top of things, but somehow still feel behind. So in this first episode of the month, I want to reframe the conversation, not by throwing time management out.
I still believe time management is necessary and super important. But I want to explain why time management alone has failed us and why the missing piece, the one that we were never taught, is energy. Today is about understanding the difference between the two, why they never meant to be separated, and how learning to integrate time and energy changes the way you design your days and your life.
This episode is not about fixing everything. It's about seeing something clearly for the first time, because once you see it, you cannot unsee it. Are you ready? Let's dig in. Welcome to the Leading Yourself Podcast. This is your host, Carolina de Arriba.
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Chapter 2: Why do I feel drained after a productive day?
I'm an HR professional, coach, wife, mom, and above all things, a goal getter. In this podcast, we're going to be digging into all things leadership, professional and career development, habits, and relationships. This is a podcast for those who want to become the best version of themselves. Those who have big dreams and are willing to embrace the journey and put in the work to achieve them.
My goal is to share with you the tools, tips, and tricks to help you in your journey. So let's dig in into today's episode. Let's talk about time management because most of us didn't just casually try it. We were raised on it. From early on, we were taught that if we could just organize our time well enough, everything else would fall into place.
We were told to plan ahead, to be efficient, to use our time wisely. And that advice, that advice got even more sophisticated. We went into color coding our calendars and time blocking and productivity systems and morning routines. And behind all of that, the underlining belief was always the same. If I manage my time better, I'll finally feel in control.
And to be fair, time management does work to a point. It helps us to show up, to meet deadlines, to stay responsible, to get things done. The problem is what time management doesn't account for. Because time management is really about one thing, feeding more into the available hours. It treats time like a neutral container. An hour is an hour. A meeting is a meeting. A task is a task.
So we plan our days by asking what fits. If we have an open morning, we schedule more meetings. If we have a free afternoon, we use it to catch up. We ask ourselves, how can I squeeze this in? We rarely ask how will this feel or what will be the cost or what kind of energy does that require of me? Time management doesn't ask whether you have the capacity, only whether you have the availability.
And that's where things start to break. Because in real life, not all hours are equal. An hour of back-to-back meetings is not the same as an hour of focused thinking. An hour of decision-making is not the same as an hour of admin work. An hour of emotional conversations is not the same as an hour of answering emails. But time management flattens all that out. One hour equals one hour.
So we end up building days that look reasonable in paper, right? They fit in our calendars, but they feel brutal in our bodies. You might recognize this. You have meetings all day because your calendar allows for it. You schedule hard conversations at the end of the day because that's when you have space on your calendar. You do deep work in the left hour hours when you're already tired.
And then you wonder why everything feels harder than it should. Why your patience is thin and why your focus disappears, why your motivation drops, why even the things that you like doing start to feel heavy. And here's the part that really matters. When time management alone stops working, we don't question the system. We question ourselves. We think, I should be able to handle this.
Other people do more, so I should be able to do more. I just need to be more disciplined. I just need a better system. So what do we do? We double down. We optimize harder. We control more. But here's the truth. Time management... doesn't create capacity. It just organizes demand. It helps you fit more in, but it doesn't help you feel better as you do it.
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Chapter 3: What is the difference between time management and energy management?
The time is there, but what you didn't check was your energy, how rested you are, how mentally sharp you are, how emotionally available you are. So by midday, you start to feel it. Your focus drops, your reactions get sharper. You start pushing instead of choosing, not because the day was badly planned, but because it was planned without energy in mind. Energy is information.
It tells you what kind of work you can do well, when you should protect yourself, when you can lean in, when do you need to pull back. But most of us learn to ignore it. We learn to overwrite it. We learn to push through and power past all of that, to drink more coffee, to lower the signal and raise the pressure. And when that stops working, we assume something is wrong with us.
But nothing is wrong with you. You're just been trying to run a life on time alone without fuel. Here is the key difference. Time management asks, what can I fit in? Energy management asks, what do I have the capacity for? That question changes everything because when you start paying attention to energy, you realize that not all work costs you the same. Not all hours are equal.
Not all days should be designed the same way. An hour of decision making is expensive. An hour of meetings can be draining. An hour of emotional labor can wipe you out. An hour of admin work might be easy on some days and exhausting on others. And once you see that, this becomes obvious why time management alone isn't enough. Because time management treats you like a machine.
Energy management treats you like a human. And this is where integration starts to matter because the goal is not to stop managing time. The goal is to pair time with energy. That's the shift we're after. I want to show you what that actually looks like in real life, not as in theory, but as a way of designing your day differently.
So let's talk about what this actually looks in real life, because manage your energy can sound abstract. And I don't want this to stay in theory. Integration is not about throwing your calendar out the window. It's not about working less. And it's definitely not about becoming rigid or precious with your time. It's about designing your time around your energy instead of fighting it.
Here is the simple way to think about it. Time is the structure. Energy is the signal. Time tells you when things can happen. Energy tells you what should happen when. When you integrate the two, you stop planning based on availability alone and you start planning based on capacities. Let me make this personal. For me, mornings are when my energy is the clearest. That's when I think best.
That's when I can make decisions the best. That's when creativity feels easier. So I tried in the mornings to schedule deep work, strategic thinking, important decisions, conversations that require presence and clarity. Not because I'm disciplined, but because that's when my energy supports that kind of work. By the afternoon, my energy changes. I'm still capable, but in a different way.
That's when I'm better suited for admin work and follow-ups and emails and lighter meetings and execution instead of creation. And here's a big one for me. I don't schedule difficult conversations at the end of the day if I can avoid it. Of course, this is not perfect, right? There are things that are out of your control, but as much as I can,
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Chapter 4: How does time management treat us like machines?
And this is where alignment lives because alignment isn't about doing the right things. It's about doing the right things at the right time with the right energy. When time and energy are misaligned, life can feel heavy. When they are aligned, life feels spacious, even when it's full. Now, let me be very clear about something. I mentioned it, but I want to make sure I'm very clear.
This is not about getting it perfect. You will still have days where energy crashes. You will still have seasons where demands outweigh capacity. You will still have weeks where you're just getting through. Integration doesn't eliminate that. What it does is stop you from making it worse by ignoring the signals. It helps you work with yourself instead of against yourself.
And that's why this month matters because once you see the difference between time and energy, you cannot unsee it. And next week, we're gonna go deeper. But for now, the goal isn't to change everything. It's just to start noticing. And that's exactly where we're going next, okay? Okay, so here is where we are. We've talked about why time management alone doesn't work.
We introduced energy as the missing piece in this equation. And we've looked at what integration actually means in real life. Now, if you're anything like me, your brain might already be moving forward. Okay, so what do I do? How do I fix this? What changes should I make? And I want to slow that down just for a moment because
Before you change anything, before you redesign your calendar, before you add a single new practice, I want to invite you into something very simple. Just notice. That's it. This week I'm not asking you to overhaul your schedule. I'm not asking you to implement a new system. I'm not even asking you to change how you work. I'm asking you to pay attention. Here's what that looks like.
As you move through your days this week, start tracking your energy alongside your time. Not obsessively, not with a spreadsheet, just awareness. Notice, when do I feel most clear? When does thinking feel easier? When do decisions come naturally? When do you feel grounded, focused, present? That's high energy time. I also want you to notice when does everything feel harder?
When does your focus drop? When does your patience thing? When do you feel foggy and reactive or just done? That's low energy time. And here's the really important part. Notice what drains you and what restores you. Because not all work costs the same. Some meetings leave you energized. Others leave you completely wiped, even if they were fine. Some tasks feel light.
Others feel like dragging a weight behind you. There's no moral judgment here. It's not about good task or bad task. It's just information. Your energy is telling you something. So this week, listen. You might notice patterns that you didn't expect. Maybe mornings aren't your actual best time. Maybe certain types of conversations cost you more than you realize.
Maybe you've been scheduling your hardest work during your lowest energy hours and wondering why it feels so hard. Or maybe you'll notice that the way you've been doing things is actually working. That's valuable too.
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Chapter 5: Why are not all hours equal in terms of productivity?
Embrace each day as a chance to learn, grow, and chase your dreams. The world needs you to shine brightly, so go out and shop fully and authentically. Take care and I'll see you next time.