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15 Ways to Boost Mental Energy Levels

The mind is one of the biggest contributors to energy levels. The benefits of having high levels of mental energy include
happiness, confidence, focus, and increased willpower, motivation, and productivity.
Additionally, the mind has a huge effect on ones level of physical energy. Increased willpower and motivation often lead to
healthier eating habits, less procrastination, and more.
The way we think has an astounding effect on the way others perceive us and how we perform. When you feel confident, you
look confident, and will also perform more effectively, increasingly the likelihood of success in whatever you are doing.
This article covers 15 ways to boost mental energy levels.
1. Be Grateful
Remind yourself of the things you are grateful or thankful for in your life. Gratitude will make you think more positively and
give you more mental energy. If youre not having fun at work, be grateful that you have work and are earning a salary. If youre
having challenges in any aspect of your life, understand that challenges make you stronger, and be grateful that you dont have
a boring life.
Being grateful reminds you of whats important. For example, you might be upset about being stuck in traffic. Being grateful
for your family will remind you of the traffics relative insignificance.
Action item: Write down 5 things you are grateful for in your life.
2. Practice Negative Visualization
Negative visualization originated in a philosophy called Stoicism. Stoics periodically contemplate, but dont worry about,
worst-case scenarios.
Negative visualization is practiced to lessen the impact if these scenarios do come true. In addition, its intended to reduce
insatiability and force you to appreciate what you do have.
Most of us spend our idle time thinking about the things we want but dont have. We would be much better off, Stoics believe,
to spend this time thinking of all the things we have and reflecting on how much we would miss them if they were not ours.
3. Surround Yourself with Great People
Humans are naturally social people. Building relationships makes us happy and gives us energy. Spend time with people who
think positively, and have a lot of energy, and talk in a positive tone. It will make think more positively and give you energy.
Action items: Who in your life is overly negative? Should you be spending as much time with them as you do? What kinds of
people would you like to spend more time with? Create a game plan for meeting or spending time with these people.
4. Think Positively
Thinking positive thoughts will make you feel more positive. Feeling more positive and optimistic will boost mental energy.
If youre feeling sluggish or slightly depressed, forcing yourself to think positively is a great way to start reversing negative
momentum. Momentum has a profound effect on our energy levels. Energy builds on itself. If your mental energy levels are
declining, gets harder and harder to start improving them. If your mental energy levels are improving, it gets easier and easier
to keep building it.
Focus on the positive in any situation. Take advantage of opportunities present as they present themselves. Instead of thinking
about what could go wrong, think about what could go right, or go better than expected.
5. Declutter Your Mind
Most people are very busy and have a ton of different things on their mind. We receive information such as emails at a faster
pace than ever before. Declutter your mind by delegating, setting reminders, taking notes, and keeping a calendar.
To avoid making mistakes, and to declutter your mind, keep as much as you can outside of your brain. For example, if you set
a meeting with someone, put it in your calendar so you no longer have to remember it. Keep a to-do list. It will be enable you
to be more present and conscious of what youre doing in a given moment. Delegate what someone else can do for you.
6. Go Outside
Exposing your skin and eyes to sunlight will give you Vitamin D, which can boost energy.
In addition, our minds and bodies are used to being awake during the daytime and we naturally have more energy during the
daytime. Getting exposure to sunlight reminds our body that its daytime and that we should have more energy.
Action item: if youre feeling tired while at the work, take a short break outside in the sun.
7. Have Fun!
Dont forget to allocate time to friends and family, hobbies, etc. These activities provide excitement and keep you motivated.
It seems counter intuitive, however taking a break from work can actually help you get more work done. Having fun stimulates
your brain in a way that improves energy levels.
Action item: Set times out of your week for hobbies or activities you find fun.
8. Stimulate your Mind
Keep your mind stimulated but not overworked. Mental challenge will give you energy, but too much may leave you fatigued.
Without enough challenge you may become bored and lethargic. Try learning a new skill to stimulate your mind.

Action item: Make sure your experience some challenge throughout your daily life.
9. Meditate
Many people find meditation to be a great way to boost mental energy. A basic definition of meditation is simply being
conscious of mind and breath. While meditating, the goal is to not think about future or past. Its to be present. I think of
meditation as a time to let my thoughts flow freely and to take notice of my emotions, thoughts, and body.
Action item: Look for a meditation class.
10. Try New Things
If you stick too close to the same routine, your brain can go into auto-pilot. You become un-stimulated and dont have to
think as much. As discussed above, mental stimulation is essential for energy.
Try breaking your routine. Learn something new. Go on a spontaneous adventure to give yourself a fresh perspective. Try
taking a different route to work. Go into a bookstore and pick out a random book from a genre you dont normally read.
Action item: Choose an activity that you do consistently and adjust it in some way.
11. Practice Minimalism
Learn to say no and eliminate excess in your life. Throw away what you dont need. When you have fewer items in your life,
there is more space for things you want.
12. Focus on Whats in your Control
Stoics believe in focusing on whats in our control, and not whats out of our control. Wanting or hoping for things that are not
in our control will disrupt our tranquillity. Worrying about or hoping for something that we dont have an impact on can cause
anxiety.
Action item: List what youre currently worrying about or hoping for and differentiate what is in your control from what is not.
13. Do What Youre Passion About
Taking part in activities, professionally and personally, that youre passionate about leads to more happiness. Spending time
on activities that you dont enjoy can be exhausting.
Action item: What do you love doing? How can you arrange your career or lifestyle so you can do more of it?
14. Take Responsibility for Your Emotions
Emotions have a strong effect on your energy levels. If you are feeling sad or embarrassed, you will have less energy. If you are
feeling proud or confident, you will have more energy.
By taking responsibility for your emotions, you will become less dependent on external validation or circumstances to influence
energy levels. When you are responsible for your own emotions, your energy levels will always be high.
15. Be Present
Thinking negatively about the past can cause anxiety. Thinking about the future can give you anxiety. Be in the present moment.
Accept the situation youre in and take the best action you can. Wishing you were in a different situation, or wishing you had
done something differently in the past will only cause anxiety. The past is out of our control.

2. 8 Ways Procrastination Can Destroy Your Life

We are all guilty of procrastinating at some point or other; no one is a stranger to it, right? Some of us might be lucky enough
to identify it in time and still do something about it. Unfortunately for others, it steals dreams and can even destroy lives.
The reason we procrastinate varies from person to person and is not always obvious. Sometimes it is a hidden fear that we
dont want to acknowledge, or it could even be as simple as not wanting to do something because it just doesnt motivate us.
Whatever the reason may be, if you know you are a procrastinator, be careful: it has far more damaging effects than you may
realize.
Here are the eight most common ways that procrastination can destroy your life:
1. You will lose precious time
How much time have you wasted procrastinating? It isnt easy to tell, but I am sure you can imagine. The worst thing about
procrastinating is the moment you realize that you are two, five or ten years older and nothing has changed. Where did all the
time go?
This is a terrible feeling because you cant turn back the hands of time, you just have to live with the helpless feeling of regret.
There is nothing worse than feeling frustrated at yourself, knowing the situation could have been so differentif only you had
taken that first step!
Dont do that to yourself, you deserve what you desire.
2. You will blow opportunities
How many opportunities have you wasted because you didnt take advantage of them when they were there? This is when you
really want to kick yourself.
What you dont realize is that the opportunity could have been life changing, but you missed out on it. Most opportunities only
come around once; you are never guaranteed a second chance.

Opportunities are the worlds way of giving you more, do yourself a favour and grab them with both hands!
3. You wont be able to meet goals
Procrastination seems to come on with full force when we entertain the thought of goals, of wanting to achieve or change
something. You might have a strong desire to change, but you just cant seem to take the first step forward.
This is normally really confusing and perplexing; you might find yourself thinking, Why is it so hard to go for something that I
want so badly? Only you can answer that; youll have to explore a little deeper into the resistance.
We set goals because we have a deep desire to better our lives in some way. If you dont do this because of procrastination,
you destroy the possibility to better your life.
Uncover the root cause behind your procrastination if its preventing you from achieving your goals, otherwise you will never
attain them.
4. You could ruin your career
The way you work directly affects your results, how much you achieve and how well you perform.
Perhaps procrastination prevents you from meeting deadlines or achieving your monthly targets. What consequence will this
eventually have on your career? You might miss out on promotions or worse; you might even be at risk of losing your job. You
can try to hide it for a while, but dont doubt that long-term procrastination at work will almost certainly ruin your career.
Dont undermine your own performance unnecessarily.
5. You will lower your self-esteem
This is one of the vicious circles you might find yourself in. We tend to procrastinate sometimes because of a low self-esteem,
but procrastinating doesnt only reinforce this, it makes it even lower.
You start to doubt and question what is wrong with you. You might desperately ask yourself, Why cant I just do it?
Having low self-esteem destroys lives in many ways. When we have low self-esteem we hold ourselves back, we feel less than
we should and it leads to self-sabotaging acts. Procrastination eats away at your confidence, slowly but surely.
If this resonates with you, focus on building your self-esteem instead of holding on to the illusion that you should be able to do
something, as this makes you force yourself when you are not ready.
6. You will make poor decisions
When you procrastinate and make decisions from this standpoint, they are almost always going to be poor decisions because
of the place you are coming from. When you procrastinate, you make decisions based on criteria that most likely wouldnt be
there if you didnt procrastinate, like pressure to finally make a decision because time is running out.
Emotions heavily influence the decisions we make and procrastination affects how we feel to a large degree.
Poor decision making has huge negative effects on our happiness, results and life.
7. You will damage your reputation
When you keep saying you will do something and you dont, your reputation inevitably gets tarnished. Nobody wants empty
promises.
Besides damaging your own reputation, you are damaging your self-esteem and self-confidence. You will find that it gets easier
to procrastinate each time because you are not surprising yourself anymore. People could stop depending on you and hold
back on offering you opportunities because they could be worried that you will simply procrastinate and they will be left to
clean up the mess.
A bad reputation has multiple, underlying negative effects.
8. You will risk your health
Procrastination is linked to stress and anxiety, and these in turn are linked to health issues. If your procrastination leads to
feelings of depression, over time this depression will start to affect other areas of your life.
If you procrastinate too much with something, it will most likely start to stress you out and cause anxiety, especially when
other people or things are involved. Studies show us more and more how damaging stress and anxiety are for us, with stress
being the silent killer.
Another way that procrastination can affect your health is when you continually put off check-ups, and postpone appointments
or things you need to do, such as exercise. The problem only gets worse and the consequences direr.
Remember that procrastination is like a habit, it is really hard to kick, but it can make or break you!

3. 11 Practical Ways to Stop Procrastination

You have a deadline looming. However, instead of doing your work, you are fiddling with miscellaneous things like checking
email, social media, watching videos, surfing blogs and forums. You know you should be working, but you just dont feel like
doing anything.
We are all familiar with the procrastination phenomenon. When we procrastinate, we squander away our free time and put
off important tasks we should be doing them till its too late. And when it is indeed too late, we panic and wish we got started
earlier. The chronic procrastinators I know have spent years of their life looped in this cycle. Delaying, putting off things,

slacking, hiding from work, facing work only when its unavoidable, then repeating this loop all over again. Its a bad habit that
eats us away and prevents us from achieving greater results in life.
Dont let procrastination take over your life. Here, I will share my personal steps which I use to overcome procrastination with
great success. These 11 steps will definitely apply to you too:
1. Break your work into little steps. Part of the reason why we procrastinate is because subconsciously, we find the work
too overwhelming for us. Break it down into little parts, then focus on one part at the time. If you still procrastinate on
the task after breaking it down, then break it down even further. Soon, your task will be so simple that you will be
thinking gee, this is so simple that I might as well just do it now!. For example, Im currently writing a new book (on
How to achieve anything in life). Book writing at its full scale is an enormous project and can be overwhelming.
However, when I break it down into phases such as (1) Research (2) Deciding the topic (3) Creating the outline (4)
Drafting the content (5) Writing Chapters #1 to #10, (6) Revision (7) etc., suddenly it seems very manageable. What I
do then is to focus on the immediate phase and get it done to my best ability, without thinking about the other phases.
When its done, I move on to the next.
2. Change your environment. Different environments have different impact on our productivity. Look at your work desk
and your room. Do they make you want to work or do they make you want to snuggle and sleep? If its the latter, you
should look into changing your workspace. One thing to note is that an environment that makes us feel inspired before
may lose its effect after a period of time. If thats the case, then its time to change things around. Refer to Steps #2
and #3 of 13 Strategies to Jumpstart Your Productivity, which talks about revamping your environment and workspace.
3. Create a detailed timeline with specific deadlines. Having just 1 deadline for your work is like an invitation to
procrastinate. Thats because we get the impression that we have time and keep pushing everything back, until its too
late. Break down your project (see tip #1), then create an overall timeline with specific deadlines for each small task.
This way, you know you have to finish each task by a certain date. Your timelines must be robust, too i.e. if you dont
finish this by today, its going to jeopardize everything else you have planned after that. This way it creates the urgency
to act. My goals are broken down into monthly, weekly, right down to the daily task lists, and the list is a call to action
that I must accomplish this by the specified date, else my goals will be put off.
4. Eliminate your procrastination pit-stops. If you are procrastinating a little too much, maybe thats because you make
it easy to procrastinate. Identify your browser bookmarks that take up a lot of your time and shift them into a separate
folder that is less accessible. Disable the automatic notification option in your email client. Get rid of the distractions
around you. I know some people will out of the way and delete/deactivate their Facebook accounts. I think its a little
drastic/extreme as addressing procrastination is more about being conscious of our actions than counteracting via selfbinding methods, but if you feel thats whats needed, go for it.
5. Hang out with people who inspire you to take action. Im pretty sure if you spend just 10 minutes talking to Steve
Jobs or Bill Gates, youll be more inspired to act than if you spent the 10 minutes doing nothing. The people we are
with influence our behaviours. Of course spending time with Steve Jobs/Bill Gates every day is probably not a feasible
method, but the principle applies. Identify the people/friends/colleagues who trigger you most likely the go-getters
and hard workers and hang out with them more often. Soon you will inculcate their drive and spirit too. As a personal
development blogger, I hang out with inspiring personal development experts by reading their blogs and
corresponding with them regularly via email/social media. Its communication via new media and it works all the same.
6. Get a buddy. Having a companion makes the whole process much more fun. Ideally, your buddy should be someone
who has his/her own set of goals. Both of you will hold each other accountable to your goals and plans. While its not
necessary for both of you to have the same goals, itll be even better if thats the case, so you can learn from each
other. I have a good friend whom I talk to regularly, and we always ask each other about our goals and progress in
achieving those goals. Needless to say, it spurs us to keep taking action.
7. Tell others about your goals. This serves the same function as #6, on a larger scale. Tell all your friends, colleagues,
acquaintances and family about your projects. Now whenever you see them, they are bound to ask you about your
status on those projects. For example, sometimes I announce my projects on The Personal Excellence Blog, Twitter and
Facebook, and my readers will ask me about them on an ongoing basis. Its a great way to keep myself accountable to
my plans.
8. Seek out someone who has already achieved the outcome. What is it you want to accomplish here, and who are the
people who have accomplished this already? Go seek them out and connect with them. Seeing living proof that your
goals are very well achievable if you take action is one of the best triggers for action.
9. Re-clarify your goals. If you have been procrastinating for an extended period of time, it might reflect a misalignment
between what you want and what you are currently doing. Often times, we outgrow our goals as we discover more
about ourselves, but we dont change our goals to reflect that. Get away from your work (a short vacation will be good,
else just a weekend break will do too) and take some time to regroup yourself. What exactly do you want to achieve?

What should you do to get there? What are the steps to take? Does your current work align with that? If not, what can
you do about it?
10. Stop over-complicating things. Are you waiting for a perfect time to do this? That maybe now is not the best time
because of X, Y, Z reasons? Ditch that thought because theres never a perfect time. If you keep waiting for one, you
are never going to accomplish anything. Perfectionism is one of the biggest reasons for procrastination. Read more
about why perfectionist tendencies can be a bane than a boon: Why Being A Perfectionist May Not Be So Perfect.
11. Get a grip and just do it. At the end, it boils down to taking action. You can do all the strategizing, planning and
hypothesizing, but if you dont take action, nothings going to happen. Occasionally, I get readers and clients who keep
complaining about their situations but they still refuse to take action at the end of the day. Reality check: I have never
heard anyone procrastinate their way to success before and I doubt its going to change in the near future. Whatever
it is you are procrastinating on, if you want to get it done, you need to get a grip on yourself and do it.

4. 29 Ways to Beat Procrastination Once and for All

We all procrastinate. Sometimes its not a bad thing, but it can turn into something evil and nasty if we arent careful. Try these
procrastination beating techniques to destroy this deadly foe once and for all.
1. Get up and move
One of the best ways to change the channel of procrastination is to change your scenery. Rather than sit in front of your
computer or TV all day, get up, do some stretches, jog in place, do push-ups, and move until your frame of mind has changed.
2. Setup reminders
Setup a daily (or hourly) reminder that you should be working on something or at least not wasting your time (unless you have
time to waste). You can also set up reminders that give you motivational quotes.
3. Get a motivation buddy
There is nothing like having someone on your side when it comes to making your goals a reality. If you start to slip into
procrastination, your motivation buddy will get you back in the game.
4. Make yourself accountable
You can do this with people around you or even with your motivation buddy above. A great way is to announce your change
publicly and be vocal about it. Hit the social networks, your blog, write letters, whatever it takes to make yourself more
accountable to getting work done.
5. Create something everyday
No matter what it is. Artwork, photos, videos, a journal, some code, anything that gets you into a creative mood and gets you
working.
6. Wake up early
The nicest part about waking up early is that it is quiet and still. You can concentrate on a few big tasks as soon as you get up
and get a bunch of work done that would have taken many more hours during the bustle of the day.
7. Go to sleep early
You cant wake up early and work if you dont get to sleep early. We need to recharge and being tired is definitely a motivator
to keep procrastinating.
8. Clean and clear as you go
Sometimes we see how big a mess is in our lives and rather than do anything about it, we procrastinate. If you spend 15 minutes
a day or just clean and clear things as you go (email, physical cleaning, tasks, etc.) the load of things to do isnt as big.
9. Cut the cable
Sitting in front of your TV isnt a good thing (all the time). Beat procrastination (as well as save some money) by getting rid of
your cable.
10. Just do it
We have all heard the excuses. So, rather than make up new ones, just hunker down and get to work.
11. Schedule time blocks
If you know that some tasks are coming up as due and you have a lot of work to do on them, take out your calendar
and schedule some time blocks. This will give you a set time to work and help you beat procrastination.
12. Follow a task list
Its hard to get stuff done when you dont know what to get done. Have a task list with you to make sure that you have the
right things to do at the right time.
13. Have a system
We recommend GTD, because, you know, its the best.

14. Dont check email

One of the worst things that you can do when starting to work is check email. It will put you in an non-action mood. Instead,
pull out your task list and work on a big task first. Check email later.
15. Destroy social networks
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, everything. Turn them off completely to beat procrastination. Focus on the task at hand.
16. Time yourself
One good way to get to work is to set a specific time for yourself to work. Say, 25 minutes (i.e., Pomodoro Technique). After
the set amount of time, rest and do whatever you want for a little bit. Then work for a set of time again.
17. Track yourself
One of the best ways to know where you are spending your time and find free time to beat procrastination is by tracking
yourself. There are a host of apps for doing this. Find your weaknesses and change them.
18. Automate when you can
If you hate doing some menial on your computer, then try to automate it whenever you can. It will save you time and allow
you to concentrate on more important, interesting things.
19. Create a playlist
Jam out to some music to beat procrastination. Create a beating down procrastination to a pulp play list that puts you in a
state of flow with your work.
20. Identify and face your fear
Most times, we are afraid of something when we procrastinate. Try to find your fear and face it. Then you can start creating
and working.
21. Realize it will never be perfect
If you cant work on something unless it is perfect, then you should find a way to leave earth. Nothing is perfect. Make
something real and awesome. That will be great enough.
22. Become mindful
Know what you are doing at all times to beat procrastination. Dont get stuck in a mindless rut of web surfing, channel flipping,
comment flaming, balderdash. Be aware of your surroundings.
23. Set goals for the day
At the beginning of each day identify a handful of things that you want to accomplish. Some say three things. It depends on
how large the tasks are. Set a limited for yourself and work on each of them until they are done.
24. Give yourself a break
Dont be too hard on yourself if you are having a tough time beating procrastination. Remember, you are human and we love
to sit and stew in our own uncompleted mess of work sometimes. Just work hard to get out of it.
25. Stick with tools
You are reading Lifehack because you love the idea of productivity and productivity tools. Im writing for Lifehack, because I
love them too. Dont. Trying to find the perfect productivity tool can be an excellent way to procrastinate.
26. Entertain yourself
Go to a movie, a play, an art museum. Getting away from work is a great way to beat procrastination as well as refuel your
creative energy.
27. Work less
One reason we procrastinate is because we are trying to do too many things at once. Identify key projects and complete those
first. You wont feel overwhelmed and will be able to get to work.
28. Have some quiet time every day
We are constantly plugged in to our digital world. We constantly have music or sound on. It can be an overwhelming and
stressful causing us to tune out of work and life. Give yourself at least 15 minutes of quiet every day to refocus and be with
yourself.
29. Dont settle
Dont think that you are just lazy and that this is the way you are. It doesnt have to be and you dont have to let it be. You
can beat procrastination.
Conclusion
If you want to beat procrastination once and for all, these are the 29 ways to do. Pick the best one for your current situation
and then get back to work.