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Many leaders mistakenly believe that the antidote to exhaustion is rest. While rest is essential for recovery, it’s not the magic solution that many of us think it to be. In fact, rest alone won’t fully recharge your mental, emotional and physical energy.
If you imagine your body as a phone that’s running out of charge, just putting it to one side and hoping it will regain power on its own won’t work. To restore energy, you NEED to plug it in to recharge.
Humans operate in much the same way. We can’t just ‘rest’ and sit on the side ‘relaxing’ to find our way back to vitality. We must find ways to actively recharge our own internal batteries, and that means doing things that genuinely make our hearts sing.
Finding what recharges you.
The real trick to taking on this challenge is to identify what specific things and activities ignite that spark within yourself. The things that make one person feel energised will not necessarily be the same for another. For some of us, it might be that physical exercise recharges us when we are tired, for others it might be creative pursuits or spending time with friends and family. Whatever the activity is, the constant must be that these activities trigger a positive response in you. These emotionally recharging activities act as the fast plug-in charger for our emotional and physical wellbeing, filling us up with the energy we need to function. It is critical that they are emotionally triggering activities. To recharge, we need to utilise this energy in motion that we feel in our body, these e-motions, for a truly fulfilling rest.
It’s all about understanding the power of energy in motion
It’s easy to assume that the benefit is just the activity itself, but that’s not always the case and it shouldn’t be the focus if you are trying to find activities that recharge you. In truth, as mentioned above, it’s the emotion that it generates from you in the end. And the emotion that keeps generating positive experiences that matters.
Think about the last time you exercised, read a decent book or spent time with a friend you hadn’t seen in a while. Long after the activity is over you are still getting the emotional return on investment.
For example, you’ve chosen to go to the gym after a long week in the office. This has led to an endorphin rush leaving you feeling virtuous, victorious and invigorated!
This kind of emotional response is far more powerful than given credit. It’s not just about the short-lived physical effects of exercise: looking back on the situation can leave you feeling positive about what you achieved.
Creating your own vitality
One of the reasons why we encourage emotionally fulfilling activities that leave us feeling energised is that it has a direct impact on our body’s hormone levels, specifically DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone). DHEA plays a key role in uplifting us emotionally. When we engage in activities that do this, our bodies can start to produce more DHEA, which therefore leads to more sustained feelings of energy and wellbeing overall.
In contrast, spending the day in a state of ‘relaxation’ might feel restful but can sometimes have the opposite effect and we are left sluggish and drained. This is because non-emotional passive activities leave us – surprise surprise – passive!
If you’re feeling brave, try monitoring this effect in your own life. You have sat down after work to watch the latest episode of ‘Whatever’’. You happen to spot the time and turn off the TV and head to bed. Did you feel rested by that experience? Or were you just distracted by the subtle pains you’re feeling from a lack of proper rest and emotional connection?
Coincidentally, this is also why we rely on the comfort of films, books, and tv shows that we know and love, it leaves us feeling connected and stable. It tickles your emotions when you watch that scene that left you crying with laughter the first time
True recharge doesn’t come from inactivity; it comes from emotional fulfilment. Even in a non-physical example, this can be true.
The key to whichever style of activity you choose is to recognise that true rejuvenation is an inside-out process. The more we engage in activities that trigger positive emotions, the more energy we can cultivate and look back on if we need a quick emotional boost. This energy helps us feel more vibrant and more ourselves and also fuels us to take on the challenges we face on a daily basis.
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Rest is important, but it’s not enough on its own. The true antidote to dealing with exhaustion is recharging with activities that make your heart sing and evoke emotions from you that leave you feeling renewed.
The next time you feel drained, instead of defaulting to passive relaxation or a quick caffeine fix, try finding something that fills you up emotionally. The effects will give you a much-needed boost in energy, vitality and resilience.
Make time for what matters and the rest will follow.