“Energy management is a skill that will help you employees prosecute as much as if they had 28-hour days. And they will enjoy it too,” he writes. Ludmila on his web, where it is approached by individuals, but especially by companies who want to teach their employees to use their energy optimally. So that they work for a shorter time, but more efficiently.
How to achieve this? What are the most common signals that something is wrong? And how did Ľudmila get into energy management? Read in this interview.
Before you started fully training and mentoring in the field of wellness and energy management, you worked in HR for more than 10 years. What led you to make this change?
I suffered from a similar illness to many other Christians. The work made sense to me and there were always many things that needed to be done. So my life was mostly about work. When my daughter was born, we decided that I didn't want to blame myself for missing her Christmas dinner. I decided that I would probably not succeed in the company, and during maternity leave I started my own business.
But over time, I realized that I had not solved my problem at all. I understood that it's not about whether I work in a corporation or in my own company, but about how I change my functioning myself. It was the methodology of energy management that helped me solve my own problem. From there, it was only a step towards me starting to pursue development programmes on the subject.
What knowledge and skills you have gained as an HR manager find application in your current position?
I also met the energy management methodology itself for the first time in my role as an HR business partner. At the time, we solved the problem of work-life balance in the company. We regularly had excellent results in motivation surveys, people were engaged and willing to do extra things as well. But the consequence of their commitment was that the work-life balance repeatedly came out to us as the worst parameter.
Our first attempts at solutions were very similar to what I see now in many companies that deal with wellbeing — introducing various benefits such as office yoga. Of course, this did not work. Education in the field of energy management has been successful. It was then that people realized that there are many things that can be done by themselves for better well-being. Stress is often caused not only by the busyness itself, but mainly by the feeling that you are not in control.
I draw from this experience so far. I know what worked and what didn't work, and over time I can see what we could have done even better then.
What are the most common signals that something is wrong and is it time to start paying attention to it?
There are several typical signals. One of them is the feeling that I am constantly chasing myself and not withstanding, that I am like a hamster in a bicycle. Further, it is a feeling of general fatigue and exhaustion. Feeling like I can't live. A tendency to procrastinate can also indicate a lack of energy, even though I know that then I will not prosecute. An absolute warning sign is when you are tired of things that once made you happy and when your life “turns gray”.
What does the layman think of in terms of energy management?
This is best explained in comparison to time management. Time management They teach us how to use our time efficiently. Energy management shows that the relationship between time and outcome is not directly proportional. More time spent working doesn't mean we get more done.
We unnecessarily reserve time for a task when we have no idea or can't concentrate. Or when we are hampered by thoughts of the type: why should I do this, my boss will give me a redo anyway. Conversely, when we have enough energy, we can do the same tasks in less time and often with better results.
Energy management is about the principles that allow us to maintain a high level of energy in the long term and be not only productive, but also to have joy in your life.
When we have enough energy, we can get tasks done in less time and often with better results.
In addition to helping individuals, you specialize in helping businesses that care about the mental health and productivity of their employees. Do you see a growing interest in this area?
I definitely feel that more and more companies are focusing on the topic of wellbeing. In the last 100 years, working conditions such as working time or place of work have practically not changed, although the pace and character of work have changed dramatically due to technology. This has led to an increase in stress and mental health problems. Companies recognize this and are trying to do something about it. But it should be said that most companies are still struggling with this and are trying different patches in the form of benefits.
My clients are from different fields, but what they have in common is that they have already passed this stage. They are companies with a healthy corporate culture that are dedicated to the topic of motivation and satisfaction of employees in the long term. Companies where it has HR The role of a management partner.
At what stage are the companies that contact you with an interest in cooperation?
These are companies that have high demands on employees and their productivity, but at the same time they have motivated employees. They perceive that it is not easy for their people to balance work with other life roles, and they are looking for a way to support them in this. They are companies that recognize that wellbeing and productivity go hand in hand.
What does the process of working with companies look like? And what should it ideally look like in practice after completing your trainings?
It depends on the size of the company. For larger companies, I worked primarily with HR, for smaller ones with the management of the company. But more and more I try to reach out mainly to the management of companies, because not every company has HR Department sufficient standing to be able to push through such a programme.
Ideally, an energy management development program starts from top leaders and progresses in various forms downwards across the organization. The outputs are then twofold. For one thing, the leaders themselves and the people in the organization will make changes in their lives that will help them have more energy. It's mostly about building new habits. It's usually the little things that have a big impact.
On the other hand, when leaders understand that more time at the computer does not mean better productivity, they come up with proposals for changes within the workings of the company. And they are also more open to suggestions from their people. But again -- this is an ideal scenario and I haven't gotten that far with any organization yet. Mostly we only do some of that and the impact is primarily at the level of individuals, not the entire organization.
More time at the computer does not mean more productivity.
In this area, too, can you use metrics that would allow you to evaluate the status before and after and the overall progress of the team after completing your mentoring?
Surely yes, and it is best to start from what the organization already measures. At the company-wide level, motivation surveys are a good source of data; at the team level, for example, the 360-degree feedback method can be added if it is used regularly in the company. There are also methodologies for measuring the level of burnout, such as the Maslach Burnout Inventory, which can be combined with comparison KPIs focused on productivity.
What about your personal progress? Do you have any specific goals that you would like to achieve in your business?
I feel like I don't want to chase myself anywhere anymore, in my business or in life overall. I am past this stage. I want to do what I enjoy and makes sense to me while also being able to enjoy every day and time available to me. It could probably be summed up by saying that my goal is just to enjoy the trip. 🙂
In what situations do you most often realize that what you are doing really makes sense?
I see it most in my children. When I pick them up from daycare or school and don't pull them out so we can catch something. When I can focus fully on their craziness, but also the problems that plague them.
What I develop in others, I live by myself. I do not always do it 100%, but it is with my children that I most clearly realize that it makes sense. More than about great achievements and strong stories, it is about everyday moments.
