Method for dissipating the elastically stored energy of a tool operated with an electric motor (20), comprising determining the rotational speed of the electric motor; determining a limit torque for the electric motor (20) using the rotational speed, at which limit torque the energy is converted at least predominantly into copper losses of the electric motor; and driving the electric motor (20) by means of a rotational speed regulation with a decreasing rotational speed, while complying with the limit torque as motor torque upper limit.