Completing my diploma in fitness and running a wellness company helped me to fully comprehend how important a healthy body and high energy levels are. As a business owner, I also appreciate the vital relationship between energy levels and employees’ productivity
RONEL JOOSTE CA(SA) Director at FinanciallyFiTLife and author, speaker and radio talk show host
Exercise for energy
People often ask where I find time and energy to go for my daily running and gym sessions. I admit, keeping up with consulting contracts, running a few businesses, spending time with loved ones and following an exercise programme do require juggling and dedication. Truth to be told, exercising provides me with the required energy to keep all the balls in the air. Schedule time in your diary to exercise and keep to it, even if you only spend 20 minutes daily, four or five days a week. Get yourself a treadmill, or mini trampoline or follow an online training programme to save time and combat non-favourable weather conditions. Find an activity that you enjoy doing, not everybody like running or going to the gym. Keeping that body moving will increase energy levels, reduce stress, help to focus better, improve sleep, and give you that emotional boost to meet those important deadlines.
Healthy and regular eating
Follow a healthy, balanced diet and eat regularly to ensure your blood sugar levels remain consistent throughout the day. That will help you get through those long days without having to grab a chocolate or sugary energy drink. Don’t skip breakfast. Keep healthy snacks in your cupboard or laptop bag. When you have a busy week coming up, prepare your meals over the weekend.
Get sufficient sleep
It is common to struggle with insomnia when spending long hours staring at a screen or rolling around in bed trying to balance that cash flow. Avoid screen time for at least one hour before bedtime. Read a book or listen to music to help you switch off. Using a diffuser with a calming essential oil also helps to improve sleep. Rather take an early night than try to push through the night with no energy and limited focus. Waking up refreshed after a good night’s sleep certainly goes a long way to focusing better and being more efficient.
Rest!
When you are feeling tired, emotionally drained and lack energy and motivation to get out of bed, it is most likely your body telling you to rest. Don’t ignore it. Burnout is a reality for many finance professionals and ideally, you want to identify the signs early on. It is perfectly OK to stay in bed over a weekend doing absolutely nothing when your body and mind urge you to do it. Put the laptop away and switch off the cell phone. Schedule time in your diary to relax and do things that you enjoy.
It does sound easier said than done, but choose to take better care of yourself and your wellbeing. When you are healthy and happy, it becomes a lot easier to perform at your ultimate best and achieve those career goals.
IN BRIEF
The job description of a finance professional requires dedicated focus and attention to detail, a high level of productivity to meet deadlines and efficiency to save costs. Recalling the decade spent in the corporate group finance world, I remember clearly how tired, and energy-deprived I felt towards the end of a financial year-end – working long hours for an extended period, a few hours’ sleep, no time to exercise and eating chocolates and take-aways to get me through the days – making it hard to focus and operate at my optimum best at all times. How can you increase your energy levels to increase productivity?
