Return on Investment (ROI) is a fundamental rule of business.
You need more money back than you put in.
Violate this rule and your business will die.
Where we invest our time also has a Return on Energy (ROE).
You need more energy back than you put in.
It’s a fundamental rule of our minds, hearts, and bodies.
Violate this rule and your passion will die.
Often, we force ourselves to stay committed to things that have been sucking us dry.
We do it because it makes us feel safe (financially, emotionally, physically).
We do it because of fear of change, of failure, or of the unknown.
We do it because we made a commitment and we intend to see it through.
This is true in business and relationships.
When we stay committed to the things that drain us we become empty.
Alternatively, commit to actions and people with a positive ROE and there are no bounds to how much you can pour in without burning or hollowing out.
Practice: Take 15 minutes today to write down all of your big commitments then rate each one 1-10 on the question, “What is the Return on Energy?”
See if anything shifts.
This is a short post, or what I’m calling a “Seed”. Seeds are simple ideas and reflections that may grow into essays, models, and books. I’ll be publishing seeds fairly frequently, as often as they sprout.
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This post made it all sink in for me.
I'd always wondered why, even though I followed my curiosity down a rabbit hole for some years, I end up so exhausted. It really does have to do with having a higher return on energy than what I put in. To feel gratified for what I did. To feel appreciated and rewarded. So important to us.
I can't wait for the full essay on this. Great stuff. Just subscribed.
I love this concept of "ROE" (Return on Energy). I've learned, over the years, to invest more time on high "ROE" relationships and stay away from the energy-sucking ones!