Coaching for optimal energy

Would you know how to address energy levels in your clients if you thought it was necessary? A few years ago, I didn’t.

I started executive coaching in 1998 and have specialised in coaching senior executives. About ten years ago I found myself becoming increasingly aware of differing energy levels in my clients: some had appropriate levels to cope well with their working life and others had problematic energy levels and were at times struggling to meet the demands being made on them.

Why energy is important for senior executives

When energy is suboptimal a person’s performance, behaviour and interactions with others can suffer. There may be an impact on their emotions and cognition and there can be a knock-on effect on the individual’s team and organisational culture. And, if the individual has a coach, it can influence the efficacy of their coaching.

Whereas research has indicated that being appropriately energised, having Optimal Energy®, has numerous benefits not only related to performance and productivity ^{i, ii} but to the ability to inspire others ⁱⁱⁱ, career success, work and life satisfaction ^iv, health and wellbeing ^{v, vi} and higher levels of creativity.

The demands our clients are under

So much is expected of our executive coaching clients and it is suggested that managing complex organisations is now even harder now than it was just a few years ago ^vii with many leaders having to manage organisational changes such as restructuring, redundancy programmes and digital transformation.

What I did about this

I decided to look into the subject of ‘energy’ and found very little around apart from self-help books. I found the meaning of ‘energy’ in all the literature was implied but not explained nor based on research. There was one book which introduced the concept of ‘energy management’ by Dr Jim Loehr and the journalist Tony Schwartz who argued that energy, not time, is fundamental for high performance ^viii. But I wanted to see the research to back up their ideas and the book did not answer my question regarding what I could do as a coach.

Meanwhile, I began to actively address energy with the clients for whom energy levels seemed to be an issue. I also used these strategies myself and found them effective at a time of life when many demands were being made of me. However, my interventions were not based on academic research. I also started to wonder if it was just me who saw the influence that energy levels had on clients - were other executive coaches addressing energy levels in coaching and, if so, how? In the end, I decided that I wanted to research the subject properly and I embarked on a Masters in Coaching and Mentoring Practice at Oxford Brookes University to do so – this was the focus of my research dissertation. In my interviews with fellow executive coaches I discovered that they did think it was relevant to work with energy and the concepts and models of practice were formed based on this sharing of experience. After finishing the MA, I spent the following four years looking into this further and the end result was my book Coaching for Optimal Energy: A Guide for Executive Coaches. The book is full of anecdotes and case studies from my colleagues.

What is new about this work?

This is the first time that energy has been researched and written about for executive coaches and coach supervisors. The book:

• Gives a pragmatic definition of energy and aims to help executive coaches become more able to recognise manifestations of energy in their clients and understand how it impacts how a client feels and behaves. This work challenges how energy has been thought about in the past.
• Introduces the concept of Optimal Energy®.
• Explores the many possible influences on our clients’ energy.
• Considers why it is important to address client energy and whether it is the executive coach’s role to do so.
• And, half of the book explores what executive coaches (and other practitioners) can do in sessions and what clients can do out of sessions to address energy and what might get in the way.

Implications

Working with clients to address energy has many implications and exploring these in any detail is beyond the scope of this article. But here are a few points:

• When facing many pressures there are benefits for the individual leader, and therefore their organisation, in them having energy levels that enable them to carry out their day-to-day tasks and meet their demands. Considering and addressing energy and self-care can have massive value for the individual rather than being a cosy ‘add-on’ to their agenda because there are so many benefits to having Optimal Energy® - just a few of which I have already mentioned above. However good an individual’s work-related intentions are, if they are not appropriately energised to act on them, they are less likely to succeed.
• This may in turn influence organisational performance and sustainability.
• If our clients are enabled to maintain and regain optimal energy levels this will impact their relationships with colleagues.
• If senior people learn how to manage their energy and take this aspect of self-care seriously, they will be good role models and hopefully encourage others in their organisation to do so as well.

A question to end with

Are we doing our clients a disservice if we do not consciously assess whether their energy levels are appropriate for what they are trying to achieve and help them to address this if the need is there?

Our deepest thanks to Viv for allowing us to share more about Coaching for Optimal Energy.

Viv Chitty is director of Viv Chitty Associates, a coaching consultancy which works with senior people in a wide variety of sectors. She has been an executive coach for over 20 years and is a coach supervisor. She is passionate about working with senior clients who have multiple challenges to face. Amongst other qualifications in psychology, counselling, and coach supervision, she holds a MA in Coaching and Mentoring.

References

1. i. Quinn, R.W., Spreitzer, G.M. and Lam, C.F. (2012) ‘Building a sustainable model of human energy in organizations: Exploring the critical role of resources’, The Academy of Management Annals,6(1), pp.337-396.
2. ii. Parker, S.L., Zacher, H., de Bloom, J., Verton, M. and Lentink, C.R. (2017) ‘Daily use of energy management strategies and occupational well-being: The moderating role of job demands’, Frontiers in Psychology, 8, pp.1-12. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg....
3. iii. Cross, R. and Parker, A. (2004) ‘Charged up: Creating energy in organizations’, Journal of Organizational Excellence, 23(4), pp.3-14.
4. iv. Baruch, Y., Grimland, S. and Vigoda-Gadot, E. (2014) ‘Professional vitality and career success: Mediation, age and outcomes’, European Management Journal, 32(3), pp.518-527.
5. v. Quinn, R.W., Spreitzer, G.M. and Lam, C.F. (2012) ‘Building a sustainable model of human energy in organizations: Exploring the critical role of resources’, The Academy of Management Annals,6(1), pp.337-396.
6. vi. Parker, S.L., Zacher, H., de Bloom, J., Verton, M. and Lentink, C.R. (2017) ‘Daily use of energy management strategies and occupational well-being: The moderating role of job demands’, Frontiers in Psychology, 8, pp.1-12. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg....
7. vii. Hatami, H. and Hilton Segel, L. (2022). What matters most? Six priorities for CEOs in turbulent times. 17 November. https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/what-matters-most-six-priorities-for-ceos-in-turbulent-times
8. viii. Loehr, J. and Schwartz, T. (2003) The power of full engagement: Managing energy, not time, is the key to high performance and personal renewal. New York: Free Press.