Vampires! They are secretly living among us. Well, not really. My husband and son are currently hooked on a vampire comedy television series. One of the characters is an energy vampire and it got me thinking, there really are vampires among us, just not like the show portrays. Our energy and productivity is greatly influenced by the people around us, especially those with whom we spend a large amount of time. According to a CPP Global Human Capital Report, 85% of us experience conflict at work. On average, we spend 2.8 hours per week dealing with conflict. 25% of us have had this conflict go so far as to result in sickness or absence from work. Conflict is one of the ways we are drained. By contrast, there are people in our lives who energize us. Just spending 15 minutes with them lifts our mood and makes our day better. Reflect a minute and you know this is true. One of the keys to productivity and work satisfaction is the balance of vampires and boosters.
Energy impacting people
In general, there are three types of people who impact our energy every day. There are:
Boosters
Cruisers
Vampires
These seem pretty obvious once you think about it, right? Boosters lift your energy. They give you a “boost” when you need it and generally you enjoy being around them. Cruisers neither add or subtract from your energy. They cruise along the road of life with you. They do not take any of your energy, but they do not share any of theirs. Vampires, well they just drain you dry.
Identify your Vampires and Boosters
Close your eyes. Okay, wait until after you read these instructions. I bet if you take a few deep breaths, close your eyes and think about for a minute you will think of at least two energy vampires and boosters with whom you interact regularly at work. Ok, now close your eyes and get those names.
Are you back? Write those names down. You know the research as well as I do. Writing things down with good old pencil and paper makes a huge difference in our learning.
Let’s take that vampire. What makes them a vampire for you? For me, draining traits are:
Not dependable - I have to go back to them, nag them, over and over.
Poor communicator - They are a slow speaker, wordy, or speak often to the wrong audience.
Cannot problem solve on their own - They always need me to solve their problems instead of coming to me with ideas and options.
You get the idea. Again, get out that pencil and paper. Write down a few things that make this person a vampire for you.
Now take the booster. I bet when you list the things that make them a booster it will be just about the opposite of the vampire. Take the time to write down a few behaviors or traits about this person which give you energy
Shift the balance of vampire and booster in your life
Now that you are in tune with the traits of people who boost and drain your energy, give serious thought to all the people at work with whom you spend significant time. This should include team members, employees, and even your boss. If you are brave enough and have access to a shredder (no way do you want this piece of paper to get into anyone’s hands) consider writing down everyone’s names and if they are a vampire, cruiser or booster. If you have more than a couple of vampires in your life, your challenge is to see how you can:
Reduce time spent with vampires
Increase time spent with boosters
And if you must spend time with vampires, can boosters be in the meeting too?
Managing your energy throughout the day will increase your productivity and general satisfaction at work.
Know how to charge your energy
We cannot completely eliminate all the things that drain our energy at work, including the vampires. I find it interesting though when I ask people how they charge their energy at work, I get odd stares. Usually the response is they wait until after work. The challenge is many of us are away from home 11-12 hours a day including our commute. We need to recharge throughout the day or we will be completely drained by the time we get home. My husband has given me the advice for many years to take a “mini vacation” at work so that I can recharge my batteries. I am an introvert so this usually means I need alone time and quiet. For other people, this is different. Discover how to recharge your energy at work. I can tell you it is not surfing social media.
How do you discover what you need to do for your mini vacations? Try a bunch of stuff. Get out of your work space and walk, meditate, lunch with friends, color, read a relaxing book, knit, shop, coffee (just coffee - no work). Tons of options here. Make a long list of 20 ideas that would fit in various time frames and then check them off as you try them. Write down if you will keep, ditch, or try again. I bet you have a nice, usable list within 30 days.
You challenge this coming week is to:
Determine what behaviors drain and boost your energy at work
Determine the people with whom you need to adjust the time you spend with in order to improve your energy levels
Make a list of at-work, recharge activities to try and start finding your “mini vacations”
Good luck! And be aware, there really are vampires out there.
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