What do you typically run out of first — time or energy?

For years, I assumed time was my scarcest resource. So I fixated on squeezing the most out of every second of every day.

But somewhere in my late 20s, I made a discovery.

I realized I could build a life that “worked” on my calendar — but not in practice.

I’d get to a certain thing I was scheduled to do…and I had the time to do it. But I didn’t have the juice to actually accomplish it.

So what did I do?

You’re going to laugh, but I started taking 5-Hour Energy drinks every day. It was my attempt to will my body into producing the energy my calendar demanded.

Shockingly, that wasn’t sustainable either.

Eventually, I had to reckon with a hard truth: my calendar was writing checks that my mind and body couldn’t cash.

Since then, I’ve been on a journey of thinking about boundaries less in terms of time and more in terms of energy.

For example, when I consider a new consulting project, I don’t start by asking, “Do I have room on my calendar?”

Instead, I ask, “How much mental energy will this engagement require — and do I have the bandwidth to actually deliver it?”

One framework that’s helped me here comes from Dan Sullivan and what he calls an “actor’s schedule.” He categorizes every day into one of three types:

• Rehearsal days — preparing to be “on”

• Performance days — fully locked in and delivering value

• Recovery days — letting the mind and body recharge after performance

Want to guess which bucket he spends the most time in?

Recovery — roughly 180 days a year!

Sullivan explains that the more committed he is to high-impact work, the fewer entities he works with — and the more intentionally he invests in recovery.

I like this framework because it’s a time system that actually takes the limits of our mind and body seriously. 

I’m not suggesting you should do exactly what he does. But I would encourage you to reflect on the following questions:

• Where has your calendar been asking more of you than your energy can realistically give?

• Which commitments currently require the most mental effort — not just time?

• When was the last time you experienced a true recovery day?

I’m finding that better calendars don’t come from better time management — but from better energy management. Curious if that feels true of your experience, as well?

Thoughts from fellow travelers

If I’m honest, my aim in writing this newsletter is somewhat selfish: I hope readers will listen to what I have to say — and then offer thoughts back that refine and improve my thinking on whatever topic I address.

This was certainly the case with my last newsletter about building a “multi-room life.” So many thoughtful responses came in that, if I re-wrote it today (just two weeks later), it would read differently. 

If you’re interested in going deeper on the topic, here are a few helpful resources shared by readers:

• Billy Oppenheimer on how “we are worked on by what we work on”

• David Epstein on why generalists triumph in a specialized world 

• Michael Adams on LeBron James’ disordered recipe for greatness

Carry on fellow travelers, we’ll talk soon.