Does anyone remember that old love song anymore? The one about the yo-yo? I think it was by Perry Como and it went something like this:

First you pick me up. Then you put me down.
Suddenly aloft. Like a puppet clown…
You’re makin’ a yo-yo outta me.

I know it’s meant to be a love song, but to me, it also describes the holidays quite perfectly. We prepare, forecast, purchase, sometimes even hire and train for the holidays. Then the big sales days arrive and everyone is fired up and ready to go. Everything sparkles and vibrates with energy! Then, quite suddenly, it’s time to shift your focus and energy on family, friends, home, bright lights and big dinners, and then, quite suddenly again, it’s January and everything has slowed down and every one is on a budget or a diet and it feels like winter has really truly arrived. The fun and energy of the holidays becomes a distant memory in a few quick, gray days.

Where does all the energy go?

Well, according to the Law of Conservation of Energy, it hasn’t gone anywhere. It may have transformed into a different (and less, well, energizing) kind of energy. Or it could have moved from one place in the organization to another (hopefully not from the inside to the outside!). But it ain’t gone. If you’re not cognizant of it, though, and not intentionally managing it, it sure can feel like it snuck out of the back door and upped and left when you weren’t looking. Kind of like you wish some of your cousins had during Christmas dinner!

Ari started talking to us about intentionally managing our energy a couple of years ago. He wrote a good bit about it and it made so much sense to all of us, that we re-structured the Zingerman’s Experience Seminar to include the idea of energy, particularly in relation to 12 Natural Laws of Business which he talks about in his book: Guide to Good Leading – Part 1 : A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Building a Great Business.

When I first started thinking of Energy as a business attribute, a bunch of seemingly random but commonly occurring phenomenon started making sense to me. Businesses have an energy, right? People have an energy. Ever had a boss, or co-worker or employee that made you wonder – why do I feel so exhausted after a meeting with him/her? When I was the manager of the Retail department at Zingerman’s Deli – January was always the mystery month to me. There you are on the floor – almost-bored, looking-for-anything-to-do and instead of eagerly serving that customer who finally walks through the door on a blustery, snowy day, you can barely put on a smile. Or you think you’re going to be excited about finally having the time to do all those projects you’d put on the back burner but here you are, staring at your computer screen, hoping that another cup of coffee is going to get those juices flowing.

Yes, it is natural. But it doesn’t have to be this way. With a little mindfulness, and barely any extra effort, you can bring all that great energy back from those dark corners it’s hiding in. And when you try it, and see how incredibly easy and rewarding it is, you’ll get addicted to the idea. You’ll know the energy hasn’t gone anywhere. It was just in places where it couldn’t be accessed and it couldn’t get anyone else energized and excited.

Sounds great, you’re saying to me with a wry smile and a mental eye roll. Sure.

It can be. It really can. There are not one, not two but three essays on it in Ari’s new book (coming this spring!). There is even a recipe for managing your own and your business’ energy.

In the meanwhile, here’s a useful little exercise you can try. Better yet, try it with three people in your office. Or ten. Or start your next meeting with it. Or go crazy, and make it an office field trip! It’ll be energizing.

Step 1 : Imagine a business you love going in to. They’ve got mojo. The place has a happy buzz. It makes you happy to be in there. Describe, in a sentence or two, what was happening around you and what it felt like to be there.

Step 2 : Now imagine a business or organization that is as blah as it gets. We’ve all been to those places. You can’t wait to leave, right? Describe, in a sentence or two, what was happening around you and what it felt like to be there.

Step 3 : Now for each business, write a sentence or two to describe what you think: the leadership is like in that business? A new staff member feels like when they come to work?

Step 4 : Now imagine this – if you were a new manager in Business Blah, what three things could you do to make it feel more like Business Buzz?
(Click here for a list of brainstorm ideas from front line staff, managers and partners here at Zingerman’s)

Step 5 : Can you pick one of those three things to do in your business within the next hour? Bet you can!

I hope you try this exercise. I was a bit of a skeptic but it really can be a revelation. Some of the things we come up with are big – Buzz businesses are selling products they believe in. Buzz businesses are on a mission. They have a Vision. A great organizational culture. Mojo, as Bo Burlingham calls it in his book, Small Giants.

But sometimes the ideas we come up with are small. Funky music. Or someone wearing a silly hat. Someone else put a personalized and quirky sign on one of the products. Someone is telling a funny story. It can be that easy.

I’d love it if you shared what you came up with when you did the exercise. In fact, I would really, really appreciate it. You can email me and I’ll compile everyones ideas and share them with you.

Happy New Year. I hope your 2012 is filled with good, infectious energy.