As Tony Schwartz of The Energy Project remarked, “The way we are working isn’t working.” It’s as true for the C-suite business executive and high-powered lawyer as it is for the tireless teacher and caring nurse.
Think about the nurse who often skips her lunch to care for a patient, or the teacher who spends his free time helping students, leaving very little time for himself. Or the social innovator running on a daily regimen of two pots of coffee, five hours of sleep, and an exclusive diet of Ramen Noodles in order to bring about a better future. These people have a common thread throughout their work: a deep dedication and often all-consuming drive to give and serve others—at the expense of their own health.
For the past few years, I’ve been working to help people establish the habits needed to better manage the unsustainable “give more, work more” cycle these purpose-driven professionals often find themselves in.
As the founder of Movemo, a health service company for impact professionals, I believe that healthy habits can improve anyone’s ability to give more to the people and causes that matter most to them. Habits like regular exercise, healthy eating, mindfulness, adequate sleep, and time management are critically important acts of self-care that build the capacity and resiliency needed to do deeply important work.
If you find yourself in the “give more, work more” cycle, here are eight things you can do, without too much inconvenience, to better manage your health and energy, so you can more effectively do work the work that matters to you.
This month, challenge a neighbor to GOOD's energy smackdown. Find a neighbor with a household of roughly the same square footage and see who can trim their power bill the most. Throughout February, we'll share ideas and resources for shrinking your household carbon footprint, so join the conversation at good.is/energy.