The need for this podcast episode became obvious to me this week.
First, when a coaching client who deals with serious allergies that have the power to wipe our her day at a moments notice. Second, when someone made a nasty remark about someone else using their disability as an excuse. Third, my own deep gratitude for the energy and clarity of thought I’m enjoying these days.
Starting a business when you have a health condition or disability that limits your time is tough.
If you’re perfectly healthy, chances are you don’t have all the time you’d like to invest in your business. Imagine an invisible foe that swipes hours off the clock and turns your thoughts into a muddle – try ‘hustling it‘ then!
It’s not impossible to succeed when you’re dealing with health issues – but it is challenging.
The Answer? You Have To Manage Your Energy.
In the book ‘The Power of Full Engagement” the authors express the importance of making the most of your best engagement hours. While you can focus, Focus! When your focus begins to fade, it’s to move on to something else because you’re going to experience diminishing returns on your time and attention anyways.
They studied world class athletes and high level executives – from one admirable achiever to the next, they were able to work better and stress less when they embraced the principle of managing their energy and engagement instead of their time.
If this is so for those with NO handicaps, how much more valuable is this advice for anyone dealing with a body or brain operating at something less then than optimal?
If you are only going to get 90 minutes of clear mindedness, what are your priorities for them?
Group tasks by the level of clarity and creativity they require and prioritize the items that need you at your best.
Things that don’t require a lot of deep thought can be managed after you’ve tended to the important stuff.
Focus on ONE project. Multitasking and project juggling do not play well with brain fog.
Kelly’s Rule for Brain Fog Survival: No New Learning!
No more learning new things til you’ve done something with what you already know. New learning is a waste of your mental energy right now. Get something DONE.
Pursue accountability if at all possible. Having a coach to meet with weekly or just a friend to help get you centered on the work at hand can be a powerful tool.
Links Mentioned On This Episode:
- Nicole’s Challenge.
- Pandora.com (Search for Baroque Radio for peppy classical music & Jim Brickman Radio for soft piano music.)
- Grab my Silver Key.
Twitter: lindahenslee
says:
Hi Kelly,
This was a great post especially for me because I suffer from downtime due to an illness. Thanks for writing such a good reminder.
~Blessings,
Linda
Twitter: stephaniewatson
says:
Thanks for this podcast. It was timely. I have vertigo, chronic pain, migraines and a thyroid issue, (hypo) and while most days it’s fine, every now and then I’m just down for the count. Sometimes it’s a real reason, not an excuse. So many people have it so much worse than I do. I have clients who are dealing with so much worse. I’ve managed to get better via good time management (energy management), diet and exercise.
Thanks for being you and sharing your challenges and giving answers too.
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Kelly, thanks so much for doing this episode. It was very timely for me. I’ve been beating myself up lately because I’m just not getting anything done. I used to be very productive. For over 38 months, my son who is now 4, didn’t sleep through the night. And when I say that I mean he had us awake 6-10 times per night. No exaggeration. Then he cried most of the day. $7,000.00 in doctor bills revealed little and solved less. But through all of that I managed to maintain my house, (and my attitude), homeschool my older child, launch a website, and write two books.
Now that he’s sleeping and doing well during the day I seem to have lost all control over what I get done personally. Just this week I started hormone therapy which I hope will help with the brain fog that you talk about as well as maybe giving me back some energy. If it reduces the almost daily headaches/migraines… bonus!
I love what you said about no new learning. I have a strong tendency to just keep looking for something new to learn, because it’s easier to receive than to produce. I’m trying to rearrange my activities so that if I do have to learn something, or spend time being social, I save that for the “foggier” part of the day.
Another thing that I have to realize is that I get to define success. Maybe “multiple six figures” isn’t going to happen for me. It’s easy to feel like a failure if you don’t measure up to the seemingly ultra-productive people. But that’s just a recipe for failure in itself. I have to count every success and celebrate every accomplishment.
I need much more work on learning to narrow my focus and be intentional with my time so I can finish something! Thank you so much for talking through all of that!
I too have a brother (twin) who is, as we always called it, mentally retarded. Tying his shoes is totally out of reach for him. I definitely had to learn to be patient with him! Hmmm, I wonder if there’s a lesson there!
Thanks again Kelly! You’re an invaluable source of learning, encouragement, and accountability!
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