In today's post I'm going to share with you one of my favorite tools for monitoring my own engagement and commitment at work. It's called the Energy Wheel, and it was created by Lewis Richmond and is described in more detail in his wonderful book "Work as a Spiritual Practice." You can find the book here. (My thanks go out to Lewis Richmond for generously allowing me to share this concept with you today.)
One of the difficult things about working is that your level of energy and engagement tends to fluctuate regularly. It's hard to assess "where we are at" over the long term, and it's easy to dismiss low energy as a temporary problem. One of the things I love about the energy wheel is that it allows me to track my energy and engagement over time, and see what patterns are there. These patterns inform my choices.
So what is an Energy Wheel? To put it simply, it is a diagram consisting of a circle divided into four quadrants. Each quadrant represents a different kind of personal energy.
Hot Negative - Passionate negative feelings including Stress and Fear
Cool Negative - Depressed negative feelings such as Failure and Boredom
Hot Positive - Passionate positive feelings including Ambition and Joy
Cool Positive - Mellow positive feelings such as Calm and Relaxation
You can see a visual representation of the Energy Wheel by clicking Download EnergyWheelDiagram.doc
So what can you do with an Energy Wheel? Probably a lot of things, but this is how I use mine. I've posted the Energy Wheel on my wall right next to my computer, and it reminds me to regularly "check in" on what my energy is like. On the days that I remember to use it, I place a small square of sticky note (you could also use a pin) on the wheel in the appropriate location. Over time these markers demonstrate a pattern, which I can learn from. (I write the month and day on the sticky square to help me track in more detail).
For example, when I was trying to decide whether or not to leave my corporate job to start consulting, I used the energy wheel for over six months, and realized that I spent the majority of my time in the "Cool Negative" energy state. (Discouraged, Bored.) This helped me make the decision to leave. My current pattern is about 70% Cool Positive, and 10% each Cool Negative, Hot Negative, and Hot Positive. So my change in career has moved my energy into more positive territory.
One of the things I like about the wheel is that it is two dimensional. For example, I sometimes have days when I am right on that edge between Joy and Stress. By placing my marker on the edge between those quadrants, I can adequately track that state of being. Likewise, if I'm completely bored, I can position my marker at the outside of the "cool negative" quadrant - noting the intensity. This provides me with more information than if I were simply categorizing my energy into four unrelated buckets.
You can also use the wheel to judge your energy level at different times of day, after dealing with different people, or however you can imagine it. My understanding of the wheel is that there is no "right answer" involved. It is unreasonable to expect yourself to be in a positive energy state all the time - that simply isn't human. But by using the wheel, you can give yourself a bit more objectivity by looking at your engagement over time, thus gaining some perspective. And perspective is certainly something that I value.
I hope you find this tool as useful as I have. If you do, I encourage you to check out the book it comes from. The book is from a Buddhist perspective, but is equally relevant to non-Buddhists. (I am not Buddhist.)
If you have a comment or a suggestion for how to use the wheel - please post it below.
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