Today we move into a new energy. We’re all in it together for the next five days. Let’s get to know the energy of She Can’t Pour From Empty.
I’m very familiar with this energy. I have consistent access to it. And it’s come with some significant life lessons for me.
When you carry this energy, you’re one of the most reliable people anyone in your circle will ever know. You have real willpower. Real work ethic. A real drive to provide for the people you care about. That’s a remarkable strength.
But this energy comes with something like a governor built into it. That’s part of an engine that keeps it from redlining and burning itself out. When this energy is in you, that governor is rest and reciprocity. Skip either one, and there’s nothing left to keep you from running yourself straight into empty. Totally out of gas.
As a professor, there was a time when students really fought to get into my classes. It came from a combination of things. I’d become known as a good instructor who really cared about her students’ learning. I put the terms into as much everyday language as possible. And I was generous with my time with office hours and study sessions. A couple of the other professors who taught the same class were, let’s just say, much more rigid. I wasn’t an easy professor. But I made it easier to learn. My classes were the first to fill, and students begged to get into my sections.
At that time, I was able to give a student an override, permission to get into a class that was technically full. I kept giving seats until there weren’t any left in the classroom. I did this across four sections because I felt for my students and wanted them to succeed. In the end, I taught an additional twenty-eight students, the equivalent of an entire extra section. I didn’t get paid for the extra work. Not a dime. And with all the added grading and additional students to serve, I was wiped out. Completely exhausted before the semester was even over. Ugh. Lesson learned.
There’s a song that perfectly fits this energy: Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5.” It’s about working hard, reliably providing, and not always getting seen or valued the way you deserve for what you do. As I’m recording this, news of Dolly’s passing just broke, and I wanted to pause and acknowledge that. Few people embodied this energy, real work ethic, real generosity, real provision for others, in the way Dolly did. This one’s for her.
This week we’re going to look at all sides of this energy. What happens when the willpower gets treated as an unlimited resource. What it looks like when you build boundaries and rest into everyday life. And what it looks like at its very best, when you provide from your own choice instead of obligation.
Find your happy. Love what you do. Make a difference. Come back to me safely. See ya!
