Energize

by Simon Alexander Ong

‘If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.’ NIKOLA TESLA

Think of energy as a form of power that we need to live and to thrive.

1. The 3–2–1 rule Three hours before bed, log off from all work-related activities and use this time to review your day and to plan the next day’s priorities. Doing so will help you fall asleep significantly faster because you won’t go to bed figuring out what to do tomorrow. Two hours before bed, say no to any more eating and use this time to wind down and get yourself in the right frame of mind for bed. One hour before bed, escort any digital devices out of the bedroom and use this time for relaxing activities such as reading, journalling, taking a warm bath, visualization or meditation. To accompany these, I tend to have calming instrumental music in the background, together with soft lighting.

2. Stop being a dayist We are dayists when we discriminate between different days of the week, and overcoming this when it comes to having a regular sleep routine is important. Going to sleep and waking up at the same time each day, even on weekends, will dramatically improve the quality of your sleep. Whenever I have an irregular sleep routine, it takes me longer to fall asleep and my overall sleep quality ends up being poor.

3. Check into a hotel room every night Whenever I ask people when they have experienced their best sleep, most tell me about a hotel or resort where they were a guest during their travels. It’s understandable when you think about it – the relaxing environment that is clean and clutter-free, the quality of the bedding used and that feeling of fresh sheets. The environment of the rooms has been optimized for the purpose of quality sleep, and it’s something we can also do to make our bedroom a more inviting place to be in the evening – like checking into your very own hotel room each night. Given that we spend around a third of our lives sleeping, it makes sense to invest in a better sleep environment.

This is how I see it: an hour of exercise takes up less than 5% of your day but has the power to transform your future,

1. Become a waterholic

2. Think inside the bento box

A bento box typically consists of food such as rice (40%), fish or meat (30%), vegetables and pickles (30%),

3. Go bananas

Letters to Strangers (L2S) in 2013 as a student club at high school, to help others tell their own stories by writing anonymous, heartfelt letters to share their vulnerabilities and offer support to those fighting through difficult times. Each is addressed in the same way: to and from a stranger.

When was the last time that you wrote a thoughtful letter to someone? When was the last time that you wrote in a journal to download and express your thoughts and feelings? When was the last time that you put some time aside to review your day, month or year?

Therapy for free One of the first exercises that I did when committing myself to the habit of journalling was to write a letter to my younger self. It’s

Choose the age or period of your younger self that you would want to write to – this could be you as a child, teenager or young adult. Whoever you feel could benefit the most from reading this. Take time to visualize this younger you in your mind, feeling what he or she is currently going through – the challenges, the hopes and the emotions. Referring to your younger self as ‘you’, be as honest as you can when writing this letter. Write whatever comes to mind: words of wisdom, of comfort, of hope or of kindness. Once you’ve finished, look at yourself in the mirror, see that younger self looking back at you, and read out what you have written slowly and purposefully to him or her. After a few days, go through your letter with fresh eyes, noticing what you notice.

Greater self-awareness allows you to be more intentional with the choices you make each day and the impact you have on those you spend most time with. It’s why understanding yourself is the beginning of wisdom. The more you understand about yourself and your current story, the better equipped you are to write a better ending.

Grab a pen and paper, find a spot where you won’t be distracted, and note down your responses to the following questions. If where you would like to be in life is a 10, then on a scale of 0–10 where would you say you are at right now? What made you choose this number and not one that is higher or lower? And how will you know when you are at a number higher than where you are now? What is currently draining your energy? Which of these energy leaks can you let go of in order to move forward? If you had an unlimited supply of energy, what would you do with it? What do you spend too much energy doing? What don’t you spend enough energy doing? What led you to what you are doing now with your life? What is working well for you right now? What has stopped you doing more? What resources do you already possess that can help you progress?

Cultivate an attitude of gratitude In July 2013, the YouTube channel SoulPancake uploaded an uplifting video sharing an experiment that they conducted on the impact of expressing gratitude.

In her essay ‘The Serviceberry – An Economy of Abundance’, Robin Wall Kimmerer wrote: ‘Gratitude and reciprocity are the currency of a gift economy, and they have the remarkable property of multiplying with every exchange, their energy concentrating as they pass from hand to hand, a truly renewable resource. I accept the gift from the bush and then spread that gift with a dish of berries to my neighbour, who makes a pie to share with his friend, who feels so wealthy in food and friendship that he volunteers at the food pantry. You know how it goes. To name the world as gift is to feel one’s membership in the web of reciprocity.’

As the French author Marcel Proust wrote, ‘The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.’

It’s something that the Stoic philosophers of Ancient Greece and Rome used to do regularly in order to cultivate appreciation for life in the present. By focusing on what it would feel like for important things or people to be taken away from us, we are reminded of just how fortunate we are and are energized to make full use of these blessings. Give this exercise a go and notice the wonderful feeling that begins to radiate from within: Think of something or someone that you can’t live without – that if you were to lose this thing or person, your life would be severely disrupted. Now close your eyes and imagine how life would be having lost the above. Visualize this scenario in as much detail as you can, noticing just how different life is. Pay attention to what’s missing and the impact this is having, to the emotions you are feeling and your thoughts in this moment. Bring your focus back to the present and to the fact that this hasn’t actually happened. Notice the gratitude you feel not just for this being an imagined scenario, but for the thing or person being in your life.

This clever poem, written by Chanie Gorkin when she was seventeen years old for an assignment at school in New York, illustrates this power of perspective and is titled ‘Worst Day Ever?’ Today was the absolute worst day ever And don’t try to convince me that There’s something good in every day Because, when you take a closer look, This world is a pretty evil place. Even if Some goodness does shine through once in a while Satisfaction and happiness don’t last. And it’s not true that It’s all in the mind and heart Because True happiness can be attained Only if one’s surroundings are good It’s not true that good exists I’m sure you can agree that The reality Creates My attitude It’s all beyond my control And you’ll never in a million years hear me say Today was a very good day Now read it from bottom to top, the other way, And see what I really feel about my day.

Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we are still alive, and is why the graveyard is so often referred to as the richest place on earth, because it’s filled with dreams that were never realized and talents that the world never got to benefit from.

Marcus Aurelius noted: ‘When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.’

You weren’t born into this world to just pay bills, scroll through social media, reply to endless emails, watch TV and then die. You were born with unique talents and gifts. And it’s the greatest adventure of life to discover what these are and how you can share these with the world. There is no competition for being who you were meant to be, because there is no one else here to do exactly what you are here to do in the way that you do it. As Robert Greene wrote in his book Mastery, ‘We are a one-time phenomenon in the universe – our exact genetic make-up has never occurred before nor will it ever be repeated.’

What does success mean to you? What does fulfilment look like to you? What sort of impact do you want your life to have? What would you do if money were no object?

Each day, he would read these words, visualize this aim unfolding in the invisible world of his mind and feel the energetic intensity of this future as if it was being experienced today. He was writing and speaking this imagined world into existence.

Author and educationalist Sir Ken Robinson pointed out that, ‘For most of us the problem isn’t that we aim too high and fail. It is just the opposite: we aim too low and succeed.’

Imagine that you and I were to meet five years from today and you were to tell me, ‘Simon, the last five years have been the most incredible and magical of my life in every way. It hasn’t been easy for sure, but I can honestly say that I am the happiest and healthiest I have ever been – both from a personal and professional perspective.’ What would you be telling me has happened that has contributed to these five years being the most incredible? Write this down now in as much detail as you can. The more specific, the better. • What accomplishments are you most proud of? • What does your personal life now look like? • Where are you living and who are you spending your time with? • How much money are you now earning and how is this being used? • In what ways have you shown up as your true self? • How has your physical and mental health improved? • What has been the greatest challenge you have overcome? • What are you now doing that you previously didn’t think possible? • What have been the most important changes you have made in your life? • What important lessons have the last five years taught you? Review what you have written to see if there’s anything else you want to add before reflecting on what all of this tells you, especially with regard to what matters most.

Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths to relax your mind and bring to mind the vision of your ideal future that you wrote down as if you have already achieved it. Make these images as sharp and as vivid as you can, noticing how confident, fulfilled and happy you are. Look at your surroundings and notice who else is there with you. Listen to what they are saying to you and what you are saying to yourself. Bring your attention now to what you are doing and how you are doing it. More importantly, notice how you are feeling in this moment. Let this incredible feeling cover you like a blanket, bathing your entire body in these wonderful sensations. From this energetic state of being, reflect on what words of wisdom this confident, fulfilled and happy you would say to the you of today. Listen closely to what is shared. When you’re ready, slowly begin to open your eyes. As you do, notice how you are feeling more energized and ready to act on what matters most.

As my friend Musa Tariq (CMO at GoFundMe) shared in a social media post: ‘I bet most of you have never sat down for at least an hour with a blank piece of paper and mapped out your career, what’s important to you and what your life strategy is, yet you probably do it for the company you work for all the time. Telling, isn’t it. Focus on you this weekend.’

When I get my clients to show me their calendars, I see that they have blocked out time for others: meetings with colleagues, with partners, with friends or with clients. However, when I ask them, ‘What time have you blocked out for you – a meeting with yourself to plan out your career and life strategy?’ I often get a puzzled look followed by the response that they don’t have the time.

Here are some of the questions that I came up with at the time during those one-on-one meetings with myself: What are the most important skills I must learn in order to start a successful business, and how will I develop these? What pricing structure would I be comfortable using as I build my experience? What are the challenges ahead that I foresee and how do I plan to overcome them? What strengths can I draw upon and how will I apply them? How can I start at once to give people an experience of what I do? How can I prioritize more time in my week to dedicate to what I want to do longer-term? How can I stand out from the competition and get people interested in what I offer? How can I expand my network to be surrounded by those who share similar values? How will I know that I am making good progress ninety days from today? Who can I reach out to that I can learn or seek guidance from? I

‘The energy of the mind is the essence of life.’ ARISTOTLE