Are You Living at 2% Battery Life? How to Create Reserves to Help You Avoid Burnout and Achieve Peak Performance

by | Jan 16, 2018

How to Create Reserves to Help You Avoid Burnout and Achieve Peak Performance

Nothing warms my heart more than spending time with my kids. Recently, my youngest son Rock was home for 6 weeks over Christmas break. I love having him here and I’m fortunate that at 19 he makes time to pencil me into his busy social calendar.

As much as I love Rock being home, he has one habit that drives me nuts; no, it’s not the clothes left on the bathroom floor, not the dirty dishes I find in the morning from his midnight snacks, not even the fact that his room is unrecognizable due to clutter: empty potato chip bags, clothes, candy wrappers, Taco Bell leftovers or soda cans – none of that bothers me. My pet peeve is that he lives his life at 2%. I’m talking about the battery life on his phone.

It’s not for lack of resources. I bought him a Mophie charging base, he has a phone charger in the car, his bedroom, the bathroom and the kitchen; still, his phone is either at a perpetual state of 2% or dead.

Before you are quick to judge Rock, what areas of your life are you living at 2%? What reserves of battery life do you constantly operate on?

Create Reserves to Help You Achieve Peak Performance - Transform UniversityReserves

To function at a peak performance level, you must establish reserves in your life. Reserves enable you to have more than what you need in key areas that affect the quality of your life. Having strong reserves in place gives you independence because they create abundance and breathing room for you.

With reserves in place, you have the freedom to choose how you want to spend your time and you have the resources to do so. This is a far cry from always being rushed, stressed, or leaking energy; living life in the fast lane. When you don’t have margins set up, your reserve tanks fall dangerously low and you risk running on fumes; constantly being in survival mode which is a far cry from peak performance.

Can you envision what your life would be like if you had margins in the following key areas?

  • Time
  • Finances
  • Sleep/Rest
  • Ideas
  • Energy
  • Healthy Emotions

Human Reserve Gauge

We are equipped with 100% full battery life on our phones. We know when we are at 50%, 30% or as in Rock’s case, 2% battery life because it shows up on our home screen. Wouldn’t it be great to have the same digital indicator in our bodies? The fact of the matter is we do, but unfortunately, we don’t know how to read the gauge very well.

  • Overwhelmed? Battery life at 2%.
  • That stress headache you got last week? Battery life at 2%.
  • The cold you caught trying to meet endless deadlines? Battery life at 2%.
  • The financial crunch you’re experiencing – causing you to lose sleep? Battery life at 2%.
  • Not able to find clarity and focus? Battery life at 2%.

What is it costing you to live your life at 2%? How can you start building much-needed margins into your life? Let’s take a look at intentionally building reserves for yourself.

Designing Reserves

Unfortunately, reserves are not automatically built into us. Thankfully, you have the power to create them. There are some key factors that serve as anchors to help you establish and sustain reserves for your life.

Commitment

There is power in commitment. When you commit to something, you wrap your belief system in the decision. The simple act of resolve allows you to take ownership of what you’ve chosen to do. This, in turn, increases your self-confidence and enhances performance.

That’s the power of commitment; it changes what you believe and consequently your results.

Self-Awareness

To start creating reserves, it’s important that you take time to evaluate where you are now in each of the areas mentioned previously and see where you want to be. Do you feel?

  • Washed-out
  • So-so
  • Okay
  • Good
  • Energized

Focus

Consider the areas in your life that you want to create reserves in. Which area would serve you best right now? If you are experiencing quite a bit of stress due to debt, finances might be a good starting place for you. If you are constantly tired, sleep and rest might be where you want to begin.

3 Steps to Building Reserves

1. Imagine a Full Reserve Gauge

Envision what a 100% battery life looks like to you in each area you have chosen. For example, if your first category is to build a reserve of energy, write down what that looks and feels like to you.

For me, having high energy levels feels like:

  1. I’m rested.
  2. I’m in control of my thoughts.
  3. I don’t feel like I’m dragging, drained, or exhausted.
  4. Life is not moving at such a high rate of speed.

Basically, I feel in control.

2. Action Steps

Make a list of the steps you must take to build that reserve. Staying with the energy example, my action steps would be to:

  1. Create a nighttime routine to get to bed earlier.
  2. Recognize when my mind is worrying and reframe toxic thoughts.
  3. Practice the *Pomodoro Technique to increase my productivity.
  4. Eat clean.
  5. Train at the gym.
  6. Schedule a half day a week to organize my paperwork.
  7. Schedule one day a week to rest and reset myself.

3. Measurements

List measurements to determine what a full reserve is for you. My milestones, still using the energy example, would be:

  1. Getting 8 hours of sleep.
  2. Having my quiet time in the morning.
  3. Having the majority of my meals prepped.
  4. Getting six workouts a week in.
  5. Having fewer piles of papers, sticky notes, and books on my desk.
  6. Staying ahead of my deadlines instead of finishing them at the 11th

Start with one category at a time until you have selected all the ones that benefit you.

Mindset

Creating Reserves For Your Life - Transform University Personal DevelopmentNever underestimate the role your mind plays in peak performance. You want to consider the big picture of your life. Creating reserves is not a superficial or task-oriented activity. Reserves go much deeper than a to-do list. Honestly, having margin in your life creates a coveted lifestyle and is part of the essence of who you are. Margin is also a key player in your purpose because it allows you to be more and to give more to others.

When you are 19 like Rock and live life at 2%, it might be okay for a while. However, I know from personal experience and can guarantee you that eventually it will catch up to you and you will suffer from burnout. Think about what that could potentially cost you in time, energy, relationships, your health, and finances.

I hope you commit to creating reserves in key areas of your life where you are experiencing low battery issues. I guarantee you that the benefits will far outweigh the short amount of time involved in setting them up.  You will feel better than you ever thought possible, your performance will excel, and your life will never be the same.

“Margin in your life is not something that just happens. You have to fight for it.” – Michael Hyatt

*The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method that has increased my productivity tremendously. I use it and my clients use it with great results. It is a very simple system to follow that focuses on splitting tasks into timed intervals throughout the day. Here is the link if you are interested: https://cirillocompany.de/pages/pomodoro-technique
Rita Hudgens
Follow Me
Latest posts by Rita Hudgens (see all)