Stop giving your energy to your inbox

I used to think productivity was about getting more hours in the day. Now I know it is about using my best energy at the right time. For me, that starts early.I am definitely a morning person. A morning lark. I am up, at the gym, home for breakfast, and usually at my desk by 8am. But here is the part that matters most.

I already know what I am doing first. I plan my most important piece of work the night before, so I do not waste my clearest thinking time wondering where to start.

No checking emails first.
No scrolling social media.
No opening 17 tabs.
No “quick look” at LinkedIn.
No disappearing down a ChatGPT rabbit hole because one thought feels difficult.

My first 90 minutes are for deep work. Writing. Planning. Creating. Strategy. Workshop design. The work that actually moves my business forward. I can get more meaningful work done in that first 90-minute block than I can in several hours of distracted work later in the day.

After 90 minutes, I stop.

Not because I am lazy.
Not because I am undisciplined.
But because my brain and body need a reset.

I usually take a 20-minute break. I move away from my desk. I might eat something, walk around, do something practical, or simply let my brain breathe. Then I come back for another 90-minute deep dive. Those two blocks are gold for me. This is not just a time-management trick. It is energy management.

We all move through natural energy cycles during the day. These are often called ultradian rhythms, the shorter rhythms that sit inside our 24-hour body clock. For many people, focus rises and falls in roughly 90-minute cycles. But here is the important bit. Your rhythm will not look exactly like mine.

Some people are sharp early. Some come alive later in the morning. Some do their best thinking in the afternoon. Some need shorter focus blocks. That is why I often say your energy rhythm is like your own fingerprint. The aim is not to copy someone else’s perfect morning routine.

The aim is to learn your own. For me, mornings are for high-energy work. Afternoons are for lower-energy work. Emails. Admin. Follow-ups. Tidying loose ends. The tasks that matter, but do not need my sharpest brain. And I still take breaks. Every 90 minutes or so, I step away for 10 to 15 minutes. That small reset can be enough to stop me sliding into that foggy, flat, irritated state where everything starts taking twice as long. This is where so many high-achieving women get caught. They try to push through the whole day at the same pace. They expect themselves to be creative, strategic, responsive, decisive, emotionally steady, and available from the first meeting to the last email.

That is not sustainable leadership. That is energy leakage. And sometimes your focus does not collapse because you are incapable. It collapses because your environment is full of temptation.

The email tab is open.
The phone is beside you.
The notifications are still on.
The browser is waiting.
The “quick check” becomes 25 minutes.

Deep work needs protection. So here is a simple experiment. Tonight, before you finish work, decide what tomorrow morning’s most important piece of work is.

Not the easiest thing.
Not the loudest thing.
Not the thing sitting at the top of your inbox.

The most important thing. Then tomorrow, give it your first focused 90 minutes. Stop giving your best energy to your inbox.

Turn off the noise.
Close the extra tabs.
Put the phone away.
Do not check email first.
Do not let the world walk into your brain before you have used your best energy for your own priorities.

Because once you start working with your energy instead of fighting against it, everything changes. You stop measuring success by how long you sat at your desk. You start measuring it by the quality of the work you were able to do when your energy was at its best. That is the real power of energy management. It is not about doing more. It is about using your best energy for the work that matters most.

If your mornings keep disappearing before your real work gets done, try one protected 90-minute focus block tomorrow. Then notice what changes. With Focus and Intention

Heather

P.S. If this one hit home, you’re not alone. I write for high achieving women in business and leadership who are done with busy and ready for clarity. Follow me Heather Hutchings on LinkedIn for real conversations on leading with energy, not exhaustion.

Enquire about bringing me to speak at your next leadership event at [email protected] or enquire about applications for my “Hidden Advantage” group coaching program.