Park City resident Erin King is one of the world’s leading personal energy researchers, bestselling author, and sought-after keynote speaker who inspires individuals to unlock peak performance using her energy management system. With a passion for empowering people to align their energy with their goals, King delivers actionable strategies to achieve more balance and ignite next-level success. Her approach combines PhD-backed scientific techniques with motivational insights, helping individuals transform stress into productivity and purpose. Whether leading workshops or captivating audiences from the stage, King’s expertise and infectious energy make her a trusted voice in personal and professional growth.
On Unlocking Big Energy
Park City Home: What do you define as Big Energy, and why is it essential for achieving peak performance?
Erin King: Before we talk about what Big Energy is, let’s talk about what it’s not. Big energy isn’t just about bouncing off the walls with enthusiasm, and it’s not about matching someone else’s energy level or mimicking someone else’s energy style. Big energy is the energy that you feel and share when you are operating in your essence, when you’re showing up at your very best. You’re in your Big Energy when you’re bringing your fullest, most aligned, and most contagious energy to the table, whether it’s at work, in relationships, or throughout your personal growth journey.
Big energy is the chief catalyst for peak performance because when you’re feeling and sharing your big energy, you’re naturally more productive, persuasive, and magnetic—the most important qualities essential for being at the top of your game. In fact, when I spent a year working with a team of PhD researchers interviewing thousands of professionals to conduct the largest study on personal human energy management, we posed the question: “What is the #1 reason that a leader that you admire is successful?” We gave them several answers: Was it their intelligence? Their education? Their skillset? Their connections? Was it their creativity, their moral compass? Did they just work more hours than everyone else? Surprisingly, it turned out that the #1 reason a leader they admire is successful, was their “vibe” or their “way of being.”
Park City Home: Can you share some daily habits or routines that help you tap into and maintain high energy levels, even on challenging days?
Erin King: Most energy management advice starts with recommending habits and routines without considering the reality that how we individually power up is as distinct as our DNA. Some of us are extroverts, and some of us are introverts, but our study found that 70% of people consider themselves to be ambiverts—a little bit of both depending on the situation. So, the first step to optimizing your energy management, especially on challenging days, is to learn exactly what kind of unique energy you have. You can learn how the world sees your energy, what charges you up, and what drains you the fastest by going to TheEnergyExam.com. It’s a free, 5-minute, PhD-backed assessment to help you learn more about the scientific shortcuts to the habits and routines that power you up the best.
You’ve probably heard several energy management strategies focus on “recharging” your personal battery. And while recharging is certainly better than nothing at all, our research shows that the real secret to higher personal energy levels is in “pre-charging” or engineering a higher energetic state before high-stakes moments or high-value experiences. You can raise your vibe by plugging into your personal power source before energetically expensive experiences like work presentations or extended family gatherings. We discovered that there are five different energy types, each with their own unique, one word action to engineering your best energy, or what we call your “supercharger.” If you can plug into your supercharger in advance of your potentially draining experiences or exchanges, you can access your big energy which allows you to unlock peak performance both personally and professionally.
On Igniting Peak Performance
Park City Home: What are the key mental or emotional shifts people need to make to reach peak performance consistently?
Erin King: The most critical shift to consistently reaching peak performance is learning to value being present over being perfect. When we focus on being fully present, we transmit our most powerful energy. Our study found that when it comes to what makes someone’s energy “admirable,” participants cited active listening, engaged body language, and authentic empathy as the top three traits—all traits that require being present and showing up firmly in the moment.
By letting go of the need for perfect outcomes and focusing instead on being our best in each moment, we can bring our big energy to the personal and professional situations that matter the most. Embracing presence over perfection allows us to engage fully in the now, unlocking a powerful pathway to consistent peak performance.
Peak performance lives in the present moment, yet we’re often blocked from it. We find ourselves “time-traveling”—either projecting into the future with anxiety or dwelling on the past with regret or self-criticism, sometimes even escaping the present by scrolling away our self-awareness. These habits divide our attention and drain our energy, keeping us from reaching our best. The most successful people know that it’s impossible to be in two places at once.
Park City Home: How do you balance pushing yourself to perform at your best without burning out?
Erin King: Balancing peak performance with well-being starts with listening closely to the signals your body gives you—because you can’t fool it. While the mind might push you to keep going, your body’s signals, like tension, fatigue, or restlessness, reveal when it’s time to step back and recharge. Tuning into these somatic cues is essential; they’re your body’s honest feedback, helping you recognize when you’re nearing burnout. By respecting these signals and taking intentional pauses, you build a sustainable rhythm that keeps you energized and allows you to perform at your best without tipping into burnout.
On Pursuing Aligned Goals
Park City Home: What is the process for identifying whether a goal is truly aligned with your passions and values?
Erin King: Identifying whether a goal aligns with your passions and values involves tuning in to how it resonates with you on a deeper level. The first step is to pay close attention to whether the goal feels heavy or light—regardless of what your mind tells you that you “should” be doing. A truly aligned goal will feel energizing, not burdensome.
Second, reverse-engineer how you want your future to feel by focusing on the “to feels” instead of just the “to dos.” Picture what your ideal day or achievement feels like—whether it’s freedom, connection, or excitement—and let that guide your choices.
Finally, test it out by taking a small, intentional step toward the goal. Notice if this action feels natural and aligns with your core self, rather than something forced or overly taxing. If it does, you’ve likely found a goal that aligns deeply with your passions and values.
Park City Home: Many people struggle with external pressure when setting goals. How do you stay true to your personal goals and avoid being swayed by societal expectations?
Erin King: Staying true to your personal goals takes guts—and it takes guts to go with your gut when the noise of societal expectations can be so loud! At the end of the day, no one else is living your life but you, and there’s a surprising freedom in realizing that people aren’t as invested in your choices per se, but more invested in how your choices make them feel (behind, threatened, outdated, irrelevant, confused, etc.). Flipping to this perspective can be liberating, empowering you to set goals that align with your passions rather than playing it safe to please others. Embracing this truth allows you to be bolder, choosing goals that genuinely resonate with you, because, ultimately, your life is yours to live.
Park City Home: Once someone recognizes that a goal no longer aligns with them, what steps should they take to pivot without feeling like they’ve failed?
Erin King: I like to reframe it as “evolution” rather than failure. Every experience brings us closer to clarity on what we truly want. I suggest celebrating the growth that came from pursuing the goal initially, recognizing that pivoting is a positive choice, and starting to visualize what the new, aligned direction looks like. This helps transform the pivot into a source of motivation.
On Building Resilience
Park City Home: What are some of the key strategies you use to bounce back quickly from setbacks?
Erin King: I focus on “controlling the controllables” and releasing the rest. When I face setbacks, I immediately look for what I can learn and apply next time. It’s also vital for me to tap into my support system. (I highly recommend curating your own personal “board of directors”: truthtellers that have your best interest at heart! Mine is comprised of two people who are junior to me, two people who are peers, and two who are senior to me.) I like to ask them for advice to glean different perspectives to help guide my intuition towards the strongest pivot or deciding what’s next.
Park City Home: How can someone develop resilience in the face of personal or professional challenges that seem overwhelming?
Erin King: Start small. Even small acts of resilience, like showing up and taking one action every day, build confidence over time. Also, remember to give yourself grace—resilience isn’t about being tough all the time; it’s about staying true to yourself and your goals even in the face of setbacks. Lastly, focusing on why you’re passionate about what you’re doing can fuel the fire to keep going.
Park City Home: What role does mindset play in increasing resilience, and how can people strengthen their mental toughness over time?
Erin King: Mindset is everything for resilience. It’s about seeing challenges as growth opportunities rather than barriers. One way to strengthen mental toughness is by training your self-talk to be encouraging and kind, especially during tough times. (I like to put Post-It notes on my mirrors cheering me on.) Visualization also works wonders; when you can picture yourself succeeding, you’re conditioning yourself to believe you can overcome anything. I like to record my voice talking about my manifestations like they’ve already happened, and then listening to it over and over until my mind and body BELIEVES that success is inevitable.
On Overcoming Challenges and Staying Motivated
Park City Home: What advice would you give to someone who feels stuck or unable to move forward in pursuing their goals?
Erin King: Get clear on why you’re feeling stuck—sometimes it’s because the goal itself isn’t aligned, or maybe it’s that you need a recharge or shift in perspective. Once you understand the reason, take one small step forward; action builds momentum. It’s also helpful to find inspiration from others who’ve overcome similar struggles.
Park City Home: Can you share a personal story about a time when you faced significant challenges and how you overcame them to succeed?
Erin King: When I first launched my social media agency back in 2010, no one was hiring us. I was barely scraping by and one day, I couldn’t even pay a $100 cell phone bill. I began journaling, visualizing, and setting a daily, non-negotiable action goal. Every day, I would cold call 50 people via LinkedIn DMs until one day, I got a message back, which lead to a meeting, which led to my agency getting hired to run social media for the world’s largest entertainment event: The Oscars!
It’s about raising your energetic frequency to know what is possible for you, and then backing it up with the action to get “lucky.”
Park City Home: In your experience, how important is community and support in helping people unlock their full potential and stay resilient?
Erin King: Community is everything. It’s easy to think you can go it alone, but there’s nothing as powerful as a support network of people who understand and encourage you. Having mentors, colleagues, and friends who share your values makes all the difference in keeping you resilient and pushing toward your potential.
