Harness Your Personal Power — Plug Those Energy Leaks!
May, 2009
by Angelique Devost
Have you ever noticed how difficult it is to focus when you have a lot of things, big and small, tugging at your attention? They remind me of tiny pinhole leaks in a tire, depleting our energy in subtle ways.
Gay Hendricks, author of Five Wishes, calls them "incompletions." He recommends that we make a list of all the things we've left undone - people we need to apologize to or to whom we owe money, conversations we've been avoiding, or issues left unresolved because we don't want to face them. Your list could also include practical tasks such as cleaning out the garage or hanging those photographs you bought three years ago - whatever it is that's been calling your attention and sapping your energy.
Just walking through my house, I feel dozens of these energy leaks - the bathroom vanity that's been waiting to be painted for almost two years, the book that I keep forgetting to return to a friend, the stack of mail on the counter that needs to be put away, the clutter in my home office...all of these things distract me and deplete my energy.
When my energy becomes really scattered, I know it's time to take a look at my incompletions so that I can refocus my attention on my work, or just relax without distraction. If I pause for a moment and ask myself, "What is it that really needs to be done right now?" what rises to the surface of my awareness is the one thing that when I focus my attention on it, I accomplish it with ease. Without fail, I always feel lighter and more energized after I have heeded the call, and I go about the rest of my day with greater clarity and purpose.
Try taking an hour or so to sit down with a pad and pencil. Honestly ask yourself, "What are my energy leaks?" Write down everything that comes to mind. Don't worry about the order of importance, just pour them all out on the page.
Once you feel you jotted everything you can think of, read over your list. Sort your energy leaks from easiest to take care of to the most difficult, or vice versa if you are one of those people who like to take care of the tough things first. Make a commitment to cross 2-3 things off your list each week.
With each "completion" you will feel energized and purposeful, and wondering why you've been giving your power away for so long! You will be astonished at how invigorated you feel and how much energy you have to focus your intentions on what you want to create in your life. It's very empowering!