“Energetic Profit” as an outcome

When we think of “profit,” the first thing that comes to mind is likely money. It’s concrete. You can see it on a P&L statement and in your bank account. Most systems in our culture optimize for it in complex ways.

There’s another type of profit I call “Energetic Profit” that uses the same mechanisms that material profit does with inputs and yield, but the equation is powered by relationships and heart connections. Material goods and money can play a role in the input and the yield of Energetic Profit but they are not what’s being optimized for. The goal of Energetic Profit is not goods or money; it’s quality of connection.

To understand how Energetic Profit can work, let’s take the example of Reva and Genevieve. They are both my friends, one from a yoga retreat in Mexico who lives on the Upper West Side, and the other is my neighbor whose office I can see from my office. Each of them lives their own lives, and I have relationships with each of them.

Reva is developing a dream journal, which she has given me to test and offer feedback on. Because I know her passion for dreaming, I tell her I am reading a book about dreamwork. She knows the book and when she sees a workshop with its author, we both sign up.

Meanwhile, I go upstate for a ladies’ weekend with Genevieve. We talk about our dreams. I invite her to join Reva and me at the dream workshop – Reva has offered to drive my car since I don’t love driving – and Genevieve says yes.

So now, there are two relationships, each with their own energy (how we interact, things we like to do, what it means to us). Now I decide to connect the three of us by text message, and we start exchanging voice and text messages about our dreams.

Reva offers insights to Genevieve’s dreams’ that bring her peace and perspective. When we’re together at the workshop retreat, we share feedback and reflections of each other. For example, Genevieve shares feedback with me that sometimes my energy can be like “bringing a flamethrower to light a candle,” which shifts my perspective about my volunteer work, which opens up my ability to focus on my creative and soul work and paid work while still supporting my community. Reva tells Genevieve she’d be amazing guiding dream retreats, which lights her up and gets her thinking about fun things she might do in the future.

So the equation of Energetic Profit in this case would be:

Inputs (trust built in relationships; personal introductions; sharing dreams and listening; doing fun things together; reflecting, giving feedback, encouraging)
+
Environment (iMessage, Sarah’s car, retreat center, Rhinebeck restaurant and shops)
=
Yield (gaining a deeper perspective on our lives, appreciating each others' presence and warmth, connection with each other we can rely on and go back to)

Like having a surplus of seeds that feeds yourself and your community after a successful harvest, when you cultivate relationships and deepen heart-connections across your network, it feeds yourself, the people you bring together, and the communities they’re connected to (because whatever perspective they are gaining, they apply to how they exist in their families, their work, etc.). This is energetic profit.

As with material profit, energetic profit needs boundaries to be sustainable and regenerative. If you feel tired, rundown, and drained, it may not be the right time to connect and exchange with others. Restoring yourself might come from spending time alone, in nature, resting, or doing things that feel nourishing for you. To blend with others from a sustainable place, you must be grounded in your own power.

Including a boundary leads us to a revised equation:

Input of heartfelt relationships
+
Environment supporting shared experiences
<Within the boundary of your own grounded power>
=
Energetic Profit of perspective, appreciation, and connection

How to apply this framework in your life:

1. Observe patterns of Energetic Profit that you’re already participating in

2. Appreciate the value you’re creating

3. Notice and respect the boundaries you need to continue this work

It’s not necessary to always choose energetic profit over material profit. We need money to pay our bills. But if material profit is the only kind of profit that’s visible, it’s easy to overvalue, and to dismiss and under-appreciate the value we create through energetic profit. This is about making heart-work visible and valued, for ourselves first.