Energy conservation is on everyone's mind these days. Rising electric, natural gas and heating oil bills are taking its toll on the budgets of homeowners and businesses. But even more so, we are all feeling the financial pinch of the highest fuel prices ever, needed to power tens of millions of cars, trucks, buses, trains, boats and planes that move just about everything around our nation......including us.
Now that we got today's energy issue that's on the top of our minds out of the way, I want to say that this lesson has nothing to do with that energy issue. What we will be discussing in this week's lesson is how we invest our personal energy throughout our life. I'm referring to the type of energy that we all take for granted even more than the gasoline it takes to power our cars and trucks. But keep in mind that this is not a science lesson where we are going to attempt to learn how energy is produced in our body, by discussing enzymes, chemical reactions, and the properties of glucose. Instead we want to focus on the value of the energy we all possess to different degrees, and why we must protect this most precious asset. Along with our TIME, our ENERGY shares the spotlight as the two most precious assets we possess.
Like our precious time, we all have a finite amount of personal energy. As we get out of bed each day, if we feel healthy, have a positive plan or purpose for our day, and are fortunate enough to have a good attitude - we will probably feel quite energized to start our day. How we invest our energy each day will have a significant impact on the results, success and fulfillment we achieve daily. For instance if we waste some of our precious energy in a fit of anger because the driver of another vehicle almost ran us off the road on the way to work; and dwell on this traffic incident for the next four hours; we will probably be doomed for a bad day and subject to a poor choice of energy expenditure. On the other hand, if we can get over the traffic incident quickly since no one was hurt, and then focus on our positive agenda for the day, we will accomplish most of what we set out to do.
Like time, unfortunately most people tend to waste too much of their precious energy each day. This is done very subtlety, since we can't see the loss of time or energy as we can see and hear air oozing out of a balloon. Unfortunately human beings finally realize how precious time and energy really are as they approach the last twenty years of their life. This is when they will witness their biological time clocks tick down as they watch the energy drain from their bodies, which they once seemed to have in abundance. This is a very unfortunate scenario. I believe it is so much better for all of us to realize that time and energy are finite when we have lots of it to enjoy. Time and energy are similar to money. When you have lots of it and invest it wisely rather than squander it, the results for your future tend to be much more promising.
An easy way to get an idea of the value of your personal energy would be to visit a friend or family member at a hospital or better yet volunteer some of your precious time there. You will quickly witness lots of elderly individuals who wish they had enough energy to just get out of bed and use the rest room on their own. You'll also witness young and otherwise healthy individuals who just underwent a surgical procedure with no energy whatsoever to spare. The lessons you will learn in hospitals is that energy is finite and extremely precious to the bedridden occupants who wish they had the energy to be home and moving about.
If you are convinced that personal energy is precious, why not always do all you can by attempting to create as much as possible; storing more; conserving more; and always investing your energy wisely in the worthiest of activities. I believe you can create more energy by focusing on positive thoughts and actions; exercise daily; eat healthy; and laugh often. Then work hard at conserving your energy by not overindulging in anything including overeating; over-drinking alcohol; and avoiding drugs. We should do all we can to avoid negative situations as well as the petty minutia we all have a tendency to argue and waste time and energy on. Better to invest our energy on positive activities that make our lives better each day.
Creating, conserving and investing your personal energy comes down to a matter of choice. Just as we should all conserve electricity, gasoline and other vital energy resources that are important in our lives, we should conserve and invest our personal energy with the same prudence. If you are a proponent of capitalism, you probably believe in the law of supply and demand. Value always goes up when supply goes down. Recognize early in your life that your personal energy supply will dwindle with age and use your energy diligently throughout your life. Don't let others steal it or drain it. Always stay in control of this precious asset, along with your precious time......and life will be much more fulfilling. Don't wait another day. Start investing your energy wisely - NOW!