How many times have you said, “There just aren’t enough hours in the day”? It’s true: Time is finite, and you can’t stop the clock. But you can rethink how you expend your energy, which is limitless. First, you have to figure out if you’re spending it wisely. (Replaying bad news on the TV or fuming over something a friend said can waste energy—even volunteering can exhaust you spiritually.) Enter Tony Schwartz and Jim Loehr, EdD, authors of The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal. Their plan tracks energy expenditure and recovery in four areas—emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual. This strategy helped one of Health life coach M.J. Ryan’s clients make a major change. “She thought she needed a vacation, but after mapping her energy, it turned out that she was tired because she wasn’t spending enough mental energy,” Ryan says. “She needed a better job, not a trip to the beach.”

By Gretchen Roberts

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