Are you working until the point of exhaustion?  The problem with working until we’re exhausted is that the brain uses the MOST energy of any organ in your body – 20% at rest and 25% of active thinking.  That’s more than your liver, heart or kidneys.  If your brain is burning all your energy, you’re increasing the risk of poor decisions, taking irrational risks, lowering your creativity and believe it or not, lowering your IQ.  So working until exhaustion is self-defeating.

And, if you’re performance review mentions that one reason you’re getting a better than average rating because they see you putting in hours above and beyond, then that’s unfortunately unspoken encouragement to”keep it up, if you want to move up or if you want to continue to see these great ratings.”

But if you’re trying to achieve life or work-life balance, then your “mental energy” is the second most valuable energy source, out of the four sources (i.e., spiritual, mental, physical, emotional).  And there’s many ways to help you keep your brain happy.

7 ways to increase your Mental energy

1. Exercise your brain by doing the opposite of what feels natural to stimulate both hemispheres

Try brushing your teeth with your other hand or learn a new dance move once a day.  Or if you journal, change the way you do it each day.  For example, one day do linear, traditional journaling to exercise the left brain.  The next day do mind-mapping journaling to exercise the right brain.

2. Work in sprints vs. marathons to increase creativity and focus

Rest, intentionally and periodically. In other words, work in sprints, not marathons.  Successful people take 5-minute breaks around every 90-min.  Unfortunately, a little over half (51% to be exact) of people take only 1 break each day.  However, employees who take a break every 90-minutes report:

• 40% greater ability to think creatively
• 30% higher level of health and well-being
• 28% better focus

Start taking breaks.  Even better if they’re out of the office space.

3. Meditate to give your brain’s executive functioning and focus muscle a workout

When you meditate, if you here you’re inner voice saying…

This is boring!

My God, I can’t focus and feel restless; this is frustrating.

I feel guilty for doing nothing.

That means your limbic system is fighting your prefrontal cortex.  And you’ll probably give in to your limbic system a lot or occasionally when you first start meditating.  Or it will wander into the future or the past and then to something weird like a crazy story with Taylor Swift or Brad Pitt.  Don’t judge.  Just simply be aware and notice your brain’s regular pace.  Then be happy because that’s when the muscle is made.

That’s why when you meditate you can start to go longer.  That’s because your focus muscle gets stronger with each workout just like your muscles do with strength-training.

How?  Grey matter thickens in several areas of the brain and there are multiple studies that show that the blood volume is increased to prefrontal cortex (where logic lives) even after mediation has stopped.  Oh and by the way, it also helps memory.

Hopefully I’ve convinced you to give it a try.

Here my two personal favorites.  Headspace (try the 10 free ones to see if ya like before upgrading to the pain version) or Insight Timer (all free – I love the Zen guitar option on this one!)

4. Smell your way to focus and concentration

Use a focus/concentration essential oil blend (rosemary and peppermint) in a diffuser.  Make sure you clean it weekly with mild soap and a microfiber and monthly with a touch of diluted rubbing alcohol or white vinegar.  Sounds laborious but it’s worth it to me for the way it makes me feel.

Or use a mini glass roll-on bottle on your pressure points such as temples, behind your ears, wrists, bottom of feet and anywhere else that makes you feel good.  I find though that this doesn’t last very long.

5. Do a digital detox, starting with bathroom breaks to increase your IQ by 10 points

According to a British study, being addicted to your gadgets and “chronic” infomania, lowers your IQ by 10 points over a year, which is worse than smoking pot.  Take a moment to step away from technology and feel what it’s like to connect with life around you.  Break the dopamine hit of needing to check your phone for email, social media or mindless scrolling.

Give up digital items like your phone, tablet or TV for an hour.  Can’t do an hour?  Then commit to not taking it in the bathroom.  Once you’ve built up to a bathroom break detox, then slowly build up with the goal of a digital detox one day a month or <gasp!> once a week.

6. Perform a brain pattern interrupt with a 16-second breath technique to increase logic

To do this, take a deep breath for 4 counts thru your nostrils, hold for 4 counts in your belly, slowly exhale for 4 counts and pause a final 4 counts.  I like to do this when I’m at a red light, in the bathroom or if I’m in a meeting and getting frustrated.

This tiny gap allows your brain’s prefrontal cortex, where logic lives, to reduce control over your instinctively reactive and emotional amygdala.

7. Boost your IQ, memory, learning and reduce temper with Mozart

There’s study after study that shows that music has a significant impact on different parts of the brain.  A general 2006 study showed that spatial IQ went up 8-9 points after listening to specific Mozart songs.

Another study, showed that again certain Mozart songs stimulated the brain’s temporal lobes which functions your memory, learning and temper.

In theory, it’s believed that music warms up the brain and some songs produce better results than others.

Try creating a creativity/focus playlist.  I created a Mozart Pandora station.  I also have an Amazon Prime Music and here’s just a few of my choices from songs listed in the studies:

• Mozart’s Sonata for Two Pianos
• Mozart Violin Concerto No. 3
• Mozart Violin Concerto No. 4

Summarized, short version

1. Exercise your brain by doing the opposite of what feels natural to stimulate both hemispheres.
2. Work in sprints vs. marathons to increase creativity and focus.
3. Meditate to give your brain’s executive functioning and focus muscle a workout.
4. Smell your way to focus and concentration.
5. Do a digital detox, starting with bathroom breaks to increase your IQ by 10 points.
6. Perform a brain pattern interrupt with a 16-second breath technique to increase logic.
7. Boost your IQ, memory, learning and reduce temper with Mozart.

Do you lead others?  2 ways to increase your team’s mental energy

If you have the privilege of leading others and looking for higher employee engagement scores, first role model the behaviors above.  Next, here’s two other ways you can influence your team’s mental energy scores.

1. Schedule email time only during traditional working hours

If you frequently send emails in the evenings and the weekends, your direct reports will feel obliged to read and reply.  Even when leaders say they don’t expect replies on the weekends, their actions won’t match their words.  And people notice the actions more than the words.

Here’s what you can do. If you like to get your work done during flex hours, then use your mail send option to deliver it during typical working hours (unless of course those 1% times where it’s red hot urgent).

2. Schedule email time only during a few hours a day -and/or- have the team pick a NO email day

A similar problem occurs if you check your email yourself all during the workday and forward/send email to your direct reports all during the workday.  The effect is that your direct reports are frequently sidetracked from their work in progress.  Your directs already have a hard time focusing on one thing at a time because of constant distractions and disruptions.

Here’s what you can do.  Schedule appointments with yourself to check and respond to email once or twice a day. Personally, I do it every work day between 1pm – 3pm which is my personal time preference.

Better yet, tell your direct reports that you’re more interested in the energy they bring to their work vs. how much time they give to their jobs.  Then let your team know about your email practice and suggest they consider adopting the same habit OR perhaps decide as a group on picking one “no email day” a week.  This way everyone gets a break from the never ending onslaught and gets sacred time to have strategic thinking (vs. reactive thinking) and be creative.

Question: On a scale of 1-10, what’s your mental energy score? Which tip will you try out today to improve your score by 1-point? You can leave a comment below.