When you understand how to...nurture your personal energy, you will possess the wisdom to unearth the lessons behind [challenges].
![When you understand how to...nurture your personal energy, you will possess the wisdom to unearth the lessons behind [challenges].](https://images.zapnito.com/cdn-cgi/image/metadata=copyright,format=auto,quality=95,fit=scale-down/https://images.zapnito.com/users/584929/posters/2cc05e72-c578-4b0d-879b-8261537c00de_large.jpeg)
Redefining Energy and Well-being: Simon Alexander Ong
November marks National Novel Writing Month, an opportunity to reflect on the leadership lessons we can learn from authors. Simon Alexander Ong, international keynote speaker and bestselling author of "Energize: Make the Most of Every Moment", shares his insights about investing in the self. In this week's quote, Ong reflects on the importance of knowing yourself as a person as well as a leader and how to preserve your energies:

Energising Leadership and Leading through Self-Discovery
Having spent years working in the financial industry, Ong chose a completely different path, choosing to delve into coaching. He has dedicated his life to analysing the mentality and habits of accomplished leaders and thriving organisations. In his book "Energize", Ong explores the importance of managing one's energy, whether physical, mental, emotional or even spiritual. He has worked with brands such as Unilever and Barclays and is a trailblazer for bettering employees' lives and helping them build healthy habits. Managing one's energy, he reflects, will help to bypass disasters in which power is depleted.
Leadership can take hard work and effort: we can encounter challenges. Often, we forget to prioritise ourselves and manage ourselves so that we can flourish as individuals before we grow as leaders. Ong states, 'You are the greatest project you will ever get to work on,' and urges us to make time and go for things that bring us joy and ignite our energy. He reminds us that taking the time to understand ourselves and the things that give us energy is the thing that helps us to face these challenges when we experience them.
Leadership Grounded in Self-Knowledge
Ong's quote resonates with the concept that self-knowledge is key. Knowing what sparks joy and how to protect the energy you have is of paramount importance during personal growth and development so that when challenges arise, you are prepared to face them with the self you have nurtured.
This aligns closely with the Laidlaw values of being #Curious and #Extraordinary. Curiosity means not only being aware and delving into the world around us but also having knowledge and being curious about ourselves and how we can maximise our impact. Being #Extraordinary means investing in and taking care of yourself with the knowledge that this will lead to an extraordinary story.
A Call to Reflect
As we celebrate National Novel Writing Month and take a moment to consider Simon Alexander Ong's leadership insights, let us ask ourselves: what are we doing to preserve our energies? How can we learn more about ourselves and what sparks joy, bringing more energy to our lives? It can be hard to prioritise ourselves during busy times. Leaders often have many priorities and tasks. However, it is crucial to remember that taking the time to nurture and know more about how we work will maximise our impact as leaders and transform our stories for the better.
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