The energy audit: what to stop, start, and continue

Leadership isn’t just about the decisions you make or the vision you set. It’s also about how you manage your most finite resource: your energy.

On any given day, my energy can easily scatter across 30+ Slack threads, an inbox that restocks itself hourly, a to-do list in my notes, and open mental tabs. In the past, I’ve maintained an analysis of what I’m spending too much time on, enough time on, and not enough time on. It served as a reality check versus where I wanted to be. I’ve recently looked into something just a little different, which is an energy audit. Essentially, I ask three questions: 1. What should I stop doing, 2. What should I continue doing, and 3. What should I start doing? And as a bonus that is equally important, especially for leaders: 4. Where am I burning energy by jumping out of my lane or stepping in when I really should be stepping back?

What to stop: the Slack spiral and hero mode

Confession: I have a hardwired urge to respond to every pending item in all of our Slack channels. I see a question hanging or a thread floating. Something I can easily take care of in less time than the group chat (or delay) that is going to happen. And my brain whispers, “It’ll just take a second.” And sometimes it will. But the real cost isn’t just the time (and note that the time it takes to constantly switch context), it’s the message it sends.

Every time I jump in to clarify, redirect, or fix, I’m reinforcing the idea that I’m the net. That I’ll always step in if others hesitate. That my job is to keep things moving, no matter the cost. But doesn’t that ultimately send the message that I and only can decide or act? I admit it, I am bad at 

Things to stop:

• Over-functioning. Doing the work for people instead of letting them stretch and struggle and grow.
• Indulging in Slack.  Every ping doesn’t need your presence.
• Filling every silence. Sometimes your opinion isn’t necessary. Sometimes it’s better if you don’t have the last word.

What to start: decisions, innovation, and energy that moves the needle

This isn’t about adding more to your plate, but about becoming more intentional with your energy. What you start doing should create traction, not just activity.

Things to start:

• Making decisions more quickly. Not recklessly, but with a bias for momentum. You don’t need perfect information to make a good call, but you need clarity and the courage to commit. (More on that in this post about bias for action.)
• Creating space for innovation. Block time for what’s next. It’s easy to deprioritize innovation when the urgent shouts louder than the important. But the future of your business depends on carving out space to think beyond today’s fires.
• Connecting effort to outcomes. Help your team see the “why” behind the work. What needle are we trying to move? What does success look like? Momentum grows when teams see their impact.
• Modeling experimentation. Be the first to test something scrappy. Roll out a “good enough” version and let data, not speculation, drive refinement.
• Letting silence do some of the work. Resist the urge to jump in. Start giving people a little more space to reach their own conclusions, pitch their own ideas, and stumble without you catching them too quickly.

What to continue: incorporating rituals and intentional pauses

Don’t forget to acknowledge what’s working, especially when it protects your energy and clarifies your lane.

Thing to continue:

• The structure that prevents reaction mode. This could be asynchronous updates, more thoughtful agendas, realistic timelines, or initiatives to encourage experimentation and innovation.
• Letting others have the spotlight and choosing not to be the loudest voice in the room
• Carving out time for training. Make time for your own professional development and for helping others through scheduled and ad-hoc training and office hours.

Stay in your lane 

We’ve been talking about this a bit internally, since a lot of us step out of our lanes not because we want control, but because we know we could do it faster or even better.

But that instinct can easily become an energy leak and a development block for others.

Staying in your lane means that you’re trusting your team members enough to handle uncertainty, you’re letting go of the belief that doing is the same as leading, and that you’re willing to let something take just a little bit longer if it means someone else grows.

You can be effective, or you can be everywhere. But not both. This is a lesson I’m learning every day. That’s why it has become part of my energy audit.

What about you? What would you stop, start, or continue this season?