Energy Level Optimization

Being tired all the time isn’t normal. But most of us just accept it as part of life. And the tricky part? It’s not just about sleep. Fatigue sneaks up in ways we don’t always notice: ❌ Hitting snooze but still waking up exhausted ❌ Drinking coffee all day but feeling drained by 3 PM ❌ Struggling to focus even after a full night’s sleep Turns out, energy management is just as important as sleep. And when we’re constantly tired, it’s usually because our daily habits are messing with our body's natural rhythms. Here’s what research suggests can help: ➡️ Move in the morning – A short walk or light workout helps reset your body clock. Studies show that even 5-10 minutes of movement can boost cortisol (the hormone that wakes you up) and improve energy levels throughout the day. ➡️ Start with sunlight – Natural light in the morning increases alertness and helps you sleep better at night. If possible, get outside for 10 minutes within an hour of waking up. No sunlight? Sit by a window or use a bright light. ➡️ Cut caffeine in the afternoon – Caffeine blocks adenosine, the hormone that makes you feel sleepy. Even if you don’t feel wired, it lingers in your system for hours. The fix? Stick to morning coffee and swap afternoon caffeine for water, movement, or a power nap. ➡️ Build a wind-down routine – Late-night stimulation (scrolling, bright screens, overthinking) disrupts deep sleep. A consistent evening routine, like dimming the lights, stretching or reading, helps signal to your brain that it’s time to rest. Better sleep means more energy. We often think being tired is just about getting more sleep. But managing how we wake up, move and wind down has just as much impact. What’s one small change you could make today to feel more energised? 🚀

A very short story of a deaf person at a networking event. The lighting is dim. It's so noisy that she can't make out a single voice with her bionic ear. So, she switches her bionic ear setting to focus on the people in front of her. While the setting drowns a lot of the noise, it's still noisy. Her bionic ear makes her a better lipreader. However, in a setting like this, she relies on lipreading to listen. On top of doing the lip reading process, she has to fill more gaps than usual. The noise and overwhelm drain her batteries quickly. Her body feels compelled to find a quiet spot to ease her sensory overload. She musters up energy to return to the event or leaves if she has no energy left. The end. For years, I found myself walking away from the crowds to a quiet spot. I never understood why until recent years. I knew it was because I'm deaf, but not the real reason my body pushed me to leave. I love being social and meeting people. So, I couldn't understand why I'd leave or avoid the opportunity. That's when I learned about energy levels, introverted energy levels, and spoon theory. While I love socializing, my body can only take so much. Moving away from the sensory overload is my body's instinctive way of responding. Plus, sometimes I get tired of approaching people. It felt like they didn't want to talk to me. Being excluded is my weak spot. I also struggle with getting a conversation started and small talk. How can it be a better experience? Be open to texting or chatting with phones. Create small quiet spaces where a few people can chat without the noise. What other suggestions do you have? 🔔 Tap the profile bell for more. ➡️ Follow #MerylMots to find content. #Communication #Accessibility

In an age where instant gratification opportunities are abundantly available, why should one consider delayed gratification? In the realm of sustainability, this principle may be more important than ever. We are already witnessing the impact of global warming and climate change across the world, but our continued efforts are essential to manage and mitigate these effects. Here are a few high-impact ‘delayed gratification’ sustainable practices with long-term benefits … 1. Renewable Energy Investments Solar Power: These sources require significant initial investment but offer long-term gains in reducing carbon footprint, decreasing reliance on fossil fuels and importantly - preventing air pollution that has a direct and adverse impact on human health. 2. Reforestation Projects - Tree Planting Initiatives: While trees take years to mature, they play a crucial role in carbon sequestration, supporting biodiversity, and preventing soil erosion. Ideally, tree plantation drives should bring additionality – provide tree cover where none existed and where the tree species are native and well suited to the local area.  - Urban Greening: Incorporating green spaces in urban planning, including rooftop greening, improves air quality, reduces heat islands, and enhances the overall quality of life for city dwellers. Also, making available green spaces for a community to come together. 3. Waste Management - Recycling Programs & Systems: Effective recycling systems take time to implement but significantly reduce landfill waste and resource consumption. - Composting: Turning organic waste into compost enriches soil health and reduces the need for chemical fertilizers, contributing to a circular economy. Focusing on sustainable practices today ensures a healthier, shared planet for future generations. #india #sustainability #leadership #future #impact

I used to pride myself on skipping lunch during busy workdays. "I'll eat when this project is done," I'd tell concerned colleagues. Until my performance review, when my manager said something unexpected: "You're brilliant in the mornings, but your afternoon output is consistently weaker." This observation hit hard. I tracked my productivity for a month and discovered she was right my work quality dropped significantly after 2 PM. The solution wasn't more coffee or better time management. It was proper nutrition. I consulted a nutritionist who explained that my brain needed steady fuel, not just morning caffeine. She recommended adding protein to stabilize energy levels throughout the day. Skeptical but desperate to improve, I found a clean protein from TrueBasics (no artificial ingredients, just the essentials) and created a simple lunch routine that took less than 10 minutes. The transformation was remarkable. My afternoon focus improved. My creative problem-solving abilities remained consistent throughout the day. And surprisingly, I started leaving work earlier because I accomplished more. The productivity paradox: By taking time to nourish myself, I actually gained time through improved efficiency. Sometimes what we perceive as dedication-skipping meals, pushing through exhaustion-is actually undermining our performance. What counterintuitive change has improved your work productivity? #truebasics #collab #connections #networking LinkedIn LinkedIn News

The real reason you're exhausted (it's not what you think) 7 energy leaks + solutions that actually work: If you're tired of being tired, you're not alone. It's rarely about sleep or caffeine. These 7 hidden energy drains affect even the most organized and well-intentioned among us. Let's fix them together: 1. Decision Fatigue ↳ Your brain is overwhelmed from countless micro-decisions ↳ Plan tomorrow's meals and outfits tonight ↳ Create simple routines for regular decisions 2. Emotional Labor ↳ Being everyone's go-to person while ignoring your own feelings ↳ 5 min breaks alone to process feelings ↳ Build a support network for your own emotional needs 3. Time Anxiety ↳ Constant awareness of time passing and productivity pressure ↳ Choose one main priority (max 3) each day ↳ Track satisfaction instead of productivity 4. Social Battery Drain ↳ The hidden cost of your public persona ↳ Take mini-breaks between social interactions ↳ Design your social life around what energizes vs. drains you 5. Digital Overstimulation ↳ The cognitive burden of constant connectivity ↳ Tech-free transitions between activities ↳ Set up your devices to support focus, not scatter it 6. Unconscious Overthinking ↳ Your mind running background analysis on past/future scenarios ↳ Write down your swirling thoughts for 5 minutes ↳ Build in daily mind-clearing routines to prevent mental clutter 7. Emotional Absorption ↳ Taking on others' emotional states ↳ Visualize a protective bubble around you before draining situations ↳ Learn to care without carrying others' emotional weight You don't need more hours in the day. You need fewer energy leaks in your life. Which one speaks to you most right now? -- ♻️ Repost to help your network reclaim their energy and thrive 🔔 Follow me Dr. Carolyn Frost for daily insights to create smart habits that support your work and your life

Productivity isn’t just time management. It’s energy management. For the longest time, I thought the secret to being productive was fitting more into my schedule. Wake up earlier. Work longer. Stack tasks back to back. Maximise every hour. But instead of getting more done, I ended up feeling mentally drained, struggling to focus, and constantly chasing the feeling of “catching up.” I’d start my mornings forcing myself into deep work when my brain wasn’t ready. Push through long meetings when my energy was at its lowest. Ignore when I was naturally sharpest—just because my calendar said otherwise. And the worst part? I felt like I was busy all the time, but not seeing the results I wanted. So instead of forcing productivity at the wrong times, I started working with my natural energy. Here’s how it’s going so far: 🌅 Morning: 🧘♀️ Gym, stretch, walks → sets the right mindset. ↳ Without movement, I feel sluggish all day. 💡 Deep work & most pressing projects → avoid meetings. ↳ Mornings are my peak focus time. No distractions. ☀️ Midday: ☕ Lunch break, coffee break, stretch, fresh air. Hopefully get some sun (spring is almost here, you guys!) 🌆 Afternoon: 📞 Calls, meetings, admin tasks, group projects. ↳ Not as mentally intense, but still important. And if you struggle with afternoon crash but still need to perform. Here are things that help me reduce it: 1️⃣ Dirtea Lion’s Mane coffee → helps with cognition. 2️⃣ 2L+ of water & avoiding carb-heavy lunches. 3️⃣ Moving my body & getting fresh air often. Of course, this schedule isn’t always 100% doable, life happens. But whenever I structure my days like this, I perform at my best. What about you? Have you found the perfect system that works for your energy?👇🏼

LONG LASTING LIMITS (i) Topic for discussion: Long Duration Energy Storage (#LDES). While Battery #LiIon reigns supreme as THE short-term solution, several markets current tendency deals with lengthening the duration of their Storage assets. The follow-up questions could extend ad infinitum: why LDES? How long is long or how short is #BESS? How do we do it? what for? 📢 hereon a simple(ton?) recap 1️⃣ Pumped Hydro Storage (#PHS) is evidently the most mature, commonly known, currently active and globally deployed LDES. Yet its costs (#LCOS), environmental impact, lengthy and bureaucratic development lead time and specially its dependency on the suitability of the terrain are its biggest burdens 2️⃣ Compressed Air Energy Storage (#CAES) is also one of the most talked about LDES. It stores compressed air in underground caverns or tanks and releases it to drive turbines when E is needed. It offers relatively low #LCOS (compared to other emerging LDES) but the stages of air #compression and #expansion drain its efficiency. Also, its cost and impact are highly dependent on terrain-adequacy. So, its scalability depends on available (and suitable) geological formations vs having to build dedicated infrastructure. Interestingly, the #adiabaticCAES version (this is when the process captures and reuses heat, ergo no heat exchange with exterior) will improve efficiency...that`s the hope 3️⃣ Thermal Energy Storage (#TES) also very versatile grid-scale & mature LDES. It stores heat (or cold) often on fluids with high capacitance like salts. TES makes particular sense when paired up with industrial processes to capture its residual heat, or with renewable generation like #ConcentrationSolar. E is stored mainly in 3 forms: sensible heat (heated water or molten salts), latent heat (via phase change materials), or thermochemical storage (playing back and forth with exo and endothermic reverse chemical reactions, i.e. Limestone - Calcium Carbonate). The pros are certainly its technological matureness, high efficiency, high energy density, modularity and relatively low costs but its deployment challenges depend greatly on the E Source & end Use. A super high OPEX coz of the material degradation and the O&M costs, arguably Health and Safety risks, and costly large-scale insulated infrastructure needs push material science and integration to complexities that have derated its advancement I tried to be concise but impossible...So, this post compiles Market Ready or Grid Deployed options and runner-ups to follow LLL series: (ii) https://lnkd.in/duqe-fMK (iii) https://lnkd.in/duexS2YV #renewableEnergies

Most founders make this energy-draining mistake: Treating every task with the same approach. The result: - Inefficient use of peak performance hours  - Missed opportunities to delegate effectively - Burnout from pushing through depleting work After working with hundreds of founders, I've discovered a simple but powerful framework: The Energy-Colour Method: 1. Task Classification 🟢 Green: Energising tasks that fuel you 🔴 Red: Depleting tasks that drain you 2. Strategic Execution For Green Tasks: - Bookend your days (start/end strong) - Block uninterrupted deep work time - Use as rewards after tough sprints For Red Tasks: - Delegate where possible - Batch similar tasks - Eliminate non-essential ones 3. Implementation Rule Never schedule more than 2 red tasks per day. You can’t be strategic when your energy is low. Remember: Building a startup is a marathon disguised as a sprint. Founders, what are your go-to hacks for handling necessary but draining tasks? Let me know in the comments ⤵️

Most people think nutrition is about weight loss or muscle. But what about fueling your hungriest organ? Our brains burn ~20% of daily energy just to keep us focused, creative, and making (hopefully good) decisions. When we run on empty (unintentionally skipping meals or relying on ultra-processed snacks because we're “busy”), our brains pay the price: less focus, unstable mood, energy crashes.. the opposite of high-performance. The research is clear: what we eat shapes how our brains perform today – and how they age tomorrow. Fortunately for us, the basics are still the biggest unlock:  - Protein & amino acids → raw materials for neurotransmitters that regulate focus and mood  - Omega-3 fats → strengthen brain cell membranes and improve resilience - Antioxidants & fiber → reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, protecting long-term function A “brain meal” might have some fatty fish (salmon), with leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, Brussels sprouts), an egg or two (choline for memory and cognition), with some berries (antioxidants) and nuts (omega-3s) on the side. We compiled more tips like this for sharper focus and long-term brain health – check out Different Health's latest blog post below!