Women’s Energy Management: How Can Executive Women Work Stress-Free? | Women’s Leadership Success #120 | Sabrina Braham MA MFT PCC & Dr. Arin N. Reeves

Is gender equality, especially in the workplace, better than before? Absolutely. Does that mean we can move over to general workplace issues? Absolutely not. Especially now that COVID has brought problems like women’s energy management and career development to the forefront. Executive women are tired of being tired, but unsure how to get out of the loop. What exactly lies underneath the struggle? Time mismanagement? No. It’s energy mismanagement. Learn more about women’s energy management in this Women’s Leadership Success podcast episode. Specifically: How do you know if you’re physically tired or energy-wise depleted? How do you get out of the endless loop of exhaustion from work? How do you communicate your need for more flexible working conditions with your manager/leader? How do you set priorities straight without over-exerting your flexibility needs with your colleagues/leaders? What is sticky floor syndrome? How does it contribute to the gender equity problem for executive women? Dr. Arin N. Reeves’s Interview on Prioritizing Women’s Energy Management In this episode of Women's Leadership Success, Sabrina Braham interviews Dr. Arin N. Reeves, author of the best-selling books on leadership and life, The Next IQ, One Size Never Fits All and Smarter Than A Lie. Her most recent book, In Charge: The Energy Management Guide for Badass Women Who Are Tired of Being Tired, is an extensively researched effort at helping women regain control of their energy and, ultimately, their life. In today’s conversation with Sabrina Braham, she fills you in on the most pressing issues around women’s energy management, the factors contributing to it, and the ways to systematically improve your energy using effective boundary-setting, strategic communication, and task management. Women’s Energy Management: How Can Executive Women Work Stress-Free? Women’s Leadership Success Podcast #120 Show Notes: The people and situations post-COVID that encouraged Arin to write her book In Charge: The Energy Management Guide for Badass Women Who are Tired of Being Tired [06:28-07:33] What are we experiencing in our workplaces that leaves us drained of energy? [07:34-09:30] The difference between feeling tired vs. being drained of energy [09:38-10:55] How to break the cycle of all-consuming work [10:55-14:18] How to deal with bosses and managers that demand more work be done in a day [14:19-16:10] Flexibility as a productivity enhancer [16:10-18:05] Setting your employment boundaries straight before taking up a job [18:05-19:29] Why do women struggle with setting boundaries at work? [20:39-23:27] How do you change your habits to have a better sense of control over life, work, and personal energy? [23:29-29:43] Archaic and professionally draining stereotypes that no longer serve women [29:43-32:49] The sticky floor syndrome and how it causes the gender equality problem for executive women [32:49-35:30] Advice for immigrant women to excel in their jobs [35:30-40:10] Becoming a more badass woman leader [42:00-46:22] Women’s Leadership Success #120 Summary: Developing the Innovation Mindset Episode notes to leave with: The difference between being tired and being energy drained. When you’re energy-drained, You’re exhausted when you wake up in the morning. You can’t go to sleep because your brain won't stop thinking. You probably also have insomnia. Even after a vacation, you feel just as exhausted as before. If you know you’re over-exhausting yourself, start asking yourself what you should stop doing. Most women tend to fix themselves to get better at time management when the truth is that they need to stop doing something. Remember, you don’t have to get an A for everything you do. It’s okay to be average at some things when you have so much on your plate already. One good way to manage an over-exerting senior or manager is to pay attention to the output, not the input. Ask your supervisor what they want you to accomplish by the end of the day, what their idea of your success looks like, and focus on delivering that. When you do that, ask them for the flexibility to get things like that done on any particular day. It always helps to deliver the work first and then negotiate on doing it in your way, flexibly. It’s difficult for people to honor women's boundaries despite them saying no enough times. Take care not to let anyone invade your boundary because no one would care for it as much as you do. One of the best ways to get some energy back as soon as you think of something hard is to do it. Understand that it’s not your job to make everyone feel okay. If you’re working 14 hours a day and feeling constrained by all of it, it’ll drain your energy more. Some leaders expect women to be good in a supportive role alone. They don’t want to promote you because they think you’re good at your work. It’s called sticky floor syndrome. Take notice of it if you’d like to grow as a leader. Don’t let people exploit your loyalty to compromise your career development. If you’re an immigrant woman, prepare to build a broad network within any organization, no matter what industry you’re in, because chances are, people are going to try and isolate you. Inoculate yourself from being isolated. Remember, sometimes people are addicted to depending on you for help, so wean them off slowly. Take your time to offer help instead of saying no directly. If you feel energetic from a task, do more of it. Else, don’t do it again. Women’s Energy Management – Actions for Traction Listening to a podcast or reading a book is a good start. But the way you will change and grow yourself is to take a small action every time you have an aha from what you have heard or read. Here are three possible actions you might consider: Identify what makes you happy. Identify what pisses you off, then do more of what makes you happy. What is one activity that gives you peace? Take 5-minute peace breaks throughout the day. What energy-draining activity can you stop doing? Bonus gifts: How to Receive and Give Feedback Book Your Complimentary Leadership & Promotion Advantage Coaching Call with Sabrina Braham If you are ready to truly take your leadership, career, and income to substantial new levels – 3 times faster than you thought possible, Book Your Complimentary Promotion & Leadership Advantage Call with Me on My Calendar Here: After helping over 200+ managers and directors at your level, (see some client recommendations here) it’s evident that many leaders struggle with these things. And that’s why I help people like you master the skills of successful leaders to get promoted 3x faster or land their next-level role with a 20% - 50%+ increase in pay. And so If relevant, I would love to connect over a complimentary leadership and career advancement coaching session to help you become an influential and “promotion-ready” candidate, internally or externally. On this call, I will give you three proven strategies that will help you have an impact and confidence and stand out from the competition to advance your career and income much faster than you thought possible. If there is a good fit, we can discuss how I can help. If not, you will walk away with some actionable ideas to become the obvious choice for promotion. Are you open to a quick call to explore? Book Your Complimentary Promotion & Leadership Advantage Call with Me on My Calendar Here. Sabrina