From the Front Porch
Three days after I started managing my energy like a portfolio, something weird happened.
I had energy left over at the end of the day.
Not a lot. But enough that I wasn't collapsing into bed at 9 PM feeling like I'd been hit by a truck.
And it freaked me out.
I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. For someone to need something. For a crisis to emerge. For the exhaustion to catch up.
But it didn't come.
I had capacity. And I had no idea what to do with it.
For years, I'd been running on empty. Exhaustion was my baseline. Being drained was normal.
Now I had space. And space felt... dangerous.
Because space means possibility. And possibility means choice. And choice means I'm responsible for what happens next.
When you're exhausted, you have an excuse. "I'd do that thing I've been thinking about, but I'm too tired." "I'd start that project, but I don't have the energy." "I'd make that change, but I'm barely keeping up as it is."
But when you actually have energy? When you've cut the drains and invested in what compounds and honored your season?
You run out of excuses.
Managing your energy well isn't just about feeling better. It's about facing what you've been avoiding because you were "too tired" to deal with it.
I sat with that capacity for a week. Just... sat with it. Didn't rush to fill it. Didn't immediately start a new project or take on a new obligation.
I let myself feel what it was like to have energy and not spend it.
Turns out, that's harder than being exhausted.
Because exhaustion is familiar. Capacity is terrifying.
This week gave you the tools to reclaim your energy. But here's what's coming next: You're going to have to decide what to do with it.
I still have days when I run on empty. Through this, I'm getting better. Every day. You will too. I promise.
But that decision? That's where the real work begins.
A Hard Truth
You've been hiding behind exhaustion.
"I'm too tired" is the most convenient excuse you have. It protects you from risk. From failure. From having to admit what you actually want.
As long as you're exhausted, you don't have to face the real question: If you had the energy, what would you do with it?
This week gave you the tools to reclaim your energy. To stop bleeding it into things that don't matter. To invest it in things that compound.
But now you have to live with the consequences.
You have capacity. You have space. You have energy.
And you can't hide behind "too tired" anymore.
The exhaustion was never the problem. It was the shield.
Now the shield is gone. And you're going to have to face what's underneath.
Today's Shift
The Complete Energy Portfolio Framework:
This week, you built the foundation for managing energy like an investment:
Identify your investments - What drains you vs. what fills you up. What's circular vs. what's linear.
Track what compounds - The activities that don't just restore energy but multiply your capacity. Your multipliers.
Know your season - Growth, harvest, conservation, or transition. Match your strategy to where you actually are.
Review and rebalance - Your portfolio isn't static. It evolves as you do.
This is your operating system now. Not theory. Not someday. Now.
But here's what nobody tells you: Having the system doesn't mean using it is easy.
You'll have capacity. And capacity means responsibility.
You'll have space. And space means facing what you've been avoiding.
You'll have energy. And energy means you can't hide behind "too tired" anymore.
The framework works. But only if you're willing to live with what it reveals.
This Week's Foundation
This week, you learned to treat your energy like an investment portfolio.
But here's what actually happened when you started doing it:
You realized how much you've been bleeding into things that will never pay back. That hurt.
You identified what compounds. Then you had to face why you haven't been investing there. That was uncomfortable.
You recognized your season. And you had to admit you've been fighting it for months, maybe years. That was humbling.
And now? You have capacity. Space. Energy you didn't have before.
And that's terrifying. Because now you're responsible for what happens next.
The frameworks work. But using them means facing what you've been avoiding.
Next week, we stop avoiding.
Tools in the Commons
This week, you got two tools to build your energy portfolio:
The Multiplier Audit - Identify the activities that don't just restore energy but multiply your capacity for everything else.
Energy Tracker 2.0 (Week 3 Evolution) - Track what creates momentum that lasts beyond the activity itself. Spot your compound energy investments.
Use them this weekend. You'll need them for what's coming next week.
Moving Forward
Your Action Steps This Weekend:
Saturday Morning: Audit your past week. Write down everything that drained you and everything that filled you up. Be brutally honest.
Saturday Afternoon: Pick one major energy loss. The relationship that only takes. The obligation that goes nowhere. The project that's bleeding you dry. Cut it today. Not Monday. Today.
Sunday Morning: Pick one thing that's been compounding. The investment that's working but you've been treating like a side project. Decide how you're doubling down on it this week.
Sunday Evening: Write down your new energy allocation. What gets your energy next week? What doesn't? Make it concrete.
Don't overthink it. Don't wait until you're "ready."
Monday, we go to places I don't talk about often. The stuff that keeps me up at night. The questions I'm still wrestling with.
I'm not holding back anymore. And I need you not to either.
Use this weekend to prove to yourself you're serious.
Invite Your People
Know someone who's been hiding behind exhaustion? Someone who says they're "too tired" but you know there's more to it?
Forward this to them.
The work gets harder from here. But it's easier when you're not doing it alone.
Share The New Era Collective with someone who's ready to stop managing depletion and start building momentum.
What's Next
Next week, we stop preparing and start facing what you've been avoiding.
Monday: The Reckoning - You know what you want. You're just afraid to admit it. Time to stop pretending you don't.
Tuesday: The Cost of Waiting - Every day you wait is a day you don't get back. What is "someday" actually costing you?
Wednesday: The Fear of Wanting - Why admitting what you want feels more dangerous than staying stuck.
Thursday: The Compromise You Never Made - How you ended up in a life you didn't choose, and what it takes to choose differently.
Friday: The Line in the Sand - This is the moment. Go all in or stay comfortable. You can't do both.
This week gave you capacity. Next week asks what you're going to do with it.
It's hard for me too. But we're doing this together.
You ready?
Bottom Line
I still have that capacity. That space at the end of the day where I'm not completely drained.
Some days I use it well. Some days I waste it. Some days it still scares me.
But I'm not hiding behind exhaustion anymore.
And neither can you.
This weekend, make the move. Cut one loss. Double down on one gain.
Monday, we go deeper.
— Damien
