A Simple Energy Audit to Extend Your Emotional Runway

In business, we measure a lot: revenue, results, time spent, goals hit. But one metric that rarely gets tracked, even though it impacts everything, is your energy. Not just how busy you are. But how drained or nourished you feel. Because sometimes the real bottleneck in your business isn’t strategy or time. It’s running out of energy.

And the longer that goes unnoticed, the harder it becomes to stay connected to your work, your purpose, and your capacity to lead.

What Are You Really Spending Your Energy On?

You might be doing all the right things but still ending the week feeling foggy or low-key resentful. Not because you're falling behind, but because you're constantly pouring out more energy than you're getting back.

This isn't just about burnout. It's about emotional sustainability, the often-overlooked system underneath everything else in your business.

When burnout goes unaddressed, it doesn’t just wear you down, it unravels your ability to lead effectively. Emotional sustainability is the system behind the system, the foundation that determines whether your growth can actually last.

That’s why it’s important take note of your emotional runway.

How long can you keep going at your current pace before burnout hits? Because no matter how well your operations run or how strong your offer is, if you are constantly overriding your own limits, something will eventually break. You are not separate from your business. You are its most important system.

And the first step to strengthening it? An energy audit.

The Energy Audit

Take a moment to reflect and write down your answers. There's no rush to fix anything right now, just notice where the friction is.

• What tasks feel heavier than they used to?

• What parts of your day feel scattered, rushed, or draining?

• What roles are you performing out of obligation, not alignment?

• Where are you spending energy just to hold things together?

  
  

When you name what’s depleting you, you create the opportunity to respond, not just react. Even small shifts here can ripple into your focus and capacity.

A More Sustainable Way Forward

Emotional sustainability isn’t about avoiding discomfort or never getting tired. It’s about building rhythms that support your nervous system and your values. It’s about making decisions that don’t just look good from the outside, they feel good from the inside too.

So pause and ask:

• What would a sustainable week look like for me?

• What decisions would protect my energy instead of draining it?

• What would I let go of if I trusted that ease was productive too?

  
  

You don’t have to wait for burnout to start making changes. You just have to be willing to listen when something feels off.

Take This With You

You don’t have to power through. You don’t have to earn your rest. You don’t have to keep building in a way that burns you out. You’re allowed to recalibrate. You’re allowed to create a business that gives back as much as it asks. Let this be your reminder: emotional sustainability is not a luxury. It’s a requirement for lasting impact.

About The Author

Jae Johnson is StitchCrew Program Coordinator. As a Native American entrepreneur, Jae understands the power of networks, mentorship, and resourcefulness. She plays a key role in program coordination as well as alumni recruitment and engagement, ensuring participants receive the support needed to grow. Jae has also contributed to the development of StitchCrew’s Indigenous Women Accelerator and Indigenous Beauty Accelerator in Canada, strengthening relationships with Tribal Governments, capital providers, and key stakeholders. Connect with Jae on LinkedIn