Managing Life's Energies

If I ask you where your energy comes from, you might immediately think of a few things.

Food, water, rest, oxygen, exercise, caffeine, adrenaline, even stress. These are all the source of your energy, right?

Not exactly.

While all of those things can aid in supplying the energy that moves you, are they actually the source? Or does your energy come from somewhere else?

Consider the following scenario.

You have a job that you really like. You've worked hard for three years to get where you are at this company, and you derive a sense of meaning from your work.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, your boss taps you on the shoulder and says your role is being eliminated as part of the company's efforts to downsize. Effective immediately, you lose the stable pay, familiar environment, and solid group of coworkers that you've built over the past few years. You become filled with rage and confusion.

But how?! I've been such an integral part of this company! I'm not going to let this happen. I'm going to get my job back! Let me talk to the CEO!

Suddenly, the valves open inside of you and now you're on a mission, albeit one driven by fear and rage. Your energy changed after hearing just a few words come from your boss's mouth, didn't it?

What happened there?

Now fast forward one week, when the immediate feelings of anger, confusion, fear, and everything else subside.

Now you're home, unsure what do do. It's becoming harder and harder to wake up. Your energy levels start to plummet. Stress eating becomes the norm, and the task of exercising gets more daunting with each day.

Three months pass by, and you've lost all motivation. The days feel like a blur, and you're barely getting outside. You're still subconsciously clinging to the job you had for three years. You still can't believe they let you go.

Now, what's going on here?

Where did all your energy go? Is it that you're not sleeping enough? Are you not eating enough? Are you not stressed enough? Are you not drinking enough caffeine?

Chances are, you're doing plenty of those things.

So, once again, where did your energy go? Is there something else at play here?

The truth is, energy wants to flow through you all the time, 24/7.

The reason we don't always feel it is because we're blocking it through internal mechanisms that we're not even aware of.

Here's what happens; we go about our days and experience a sequence of events, from the moment we awake to the moment we drift off to sleep. Some of those things are pleasant, some are unpleasant, and some are just downright painful - like losing your stable job of three y