WEBVTT - Second Cup: Run into people

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>tip is to create occasions to run into people. Nobody

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<v Speaker 1>wants to live an isolated life, and while you can

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<v Speaker 1>and should make plans with the people you are close to,

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<v Speaker 1>there is much to be said for allowing some serendipitous

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<v Speaker 1>connection as well. So if you work in an office

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<v Speaker 1>miss days, spend lots of time on the sidelines of

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<v Speaker 1>soccer games, show up at worship services each weekend, and

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<v Speaker 1>regularly groom the local trails as a volunteer. You probably

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<v Speaker 1>cross paths with lots of people that you sort of

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<v Speaker 1>know every day, but many people don't have as many

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<v Speaker 1>occasions for socializing with people who we might call week ties.

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<v Speaker 1>That means you're friendly but not best friends. You're not

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<v Speaker 1>going to call these people frequently, but you like to

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<v Speaker 1>see them when you do. Sometimes, over time, relationships can

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<v Speaker 1>become closer or weak. Ties can introduce you to other

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<v Speaker 1>people or share information like a great camp for your

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<v Speaker 1>kids that's not sold out by October, or who to

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<v Speaker 1>talk to if you have a problem with your trash

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<v Speaker 1>collection service. Your best friends already know a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>the same stuff you do. The people you run into

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<v Speaker 1>occasionally move in different circles, so they have more new

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<v Speaker 1>stuff to offer. So how can you run into more people?

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<v Speaker 1>One option is to be a little less efficient with

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<v Speaker 1>the things you have to do. Yes, grocery delivery is

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<v Speaker 1>great if you are on a tight schedule, but are

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<v Speaker 1>you always Maybe some days you could go to the

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<v Speaker 1>grocery store at five fifteen pm, when absolutely everyone else

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<v Speaker 1>is there, or on Saturday afternoons. If you have lived

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<v Speaker 1>in your town for a while, the odds that you

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<v Speaker 1>bump into someone you know are large. Same for shopping

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<v Speaker 1>for gifts. Stop by the bookstore and see what's there

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<v Speaker 1>and just as importantly, who is there. Another great way

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<v Speaker 1>to cross paths with people is to exercise out in

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<v Speaker 1>the world instead of just at home. Run outside, or

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<v Speaker 1>go to the gym instead of running on the treadmill

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<v Speaker 1>in your basement. If you start going to the gym

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<v Speaker 1>at around the same time most days, not only will

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<v Speaker 1>you bump into people you know from elsewhere, you might

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<v Speaker 1>start getting to know the other regulars. That is a

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<v Speaker 1>win all around. If you are a remote worker, consider

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<v Speaker 1>working away from home one to two days a week.

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<v Speaker 1>There's no need to add on a long commute. But

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<v Speaker 1>if you've got a bustling coffee shop nearby, you could

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<v Speaker 1>go work there for two hours two afternoons a week

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<v Speaker 1>and feel a lot less isolated. Of course, if you

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<v Speaker 1>are arranging your life to run into people, you should

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<v Speaker 1>be prepared to spend a little time with the people

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<v Speaker 1>you run into. While you are doing this, build in

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<v Speaker 1>a little extra time for things if you don't need

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<v Speaker 1>to be somewhere immediately afterwards, you can have a conversation

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<v Speaker 1>with people rather than racing off, and consider joining groups

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<v Speaker 1>or organizations where you're likely to see a lot of folks.

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<v Speaker 1>There are a great many reasons to volunteer, but feeling

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<v Speaker 1>like you are part of a community is a big one.

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<v Speaker 1>Professional groups can also be great. You don't have to

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<v Speaker 1>go to everything, but going to some things allows you

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<v Speaker 1>to run into people. It's interesting in our digital age,

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<v Speaker 1>how removed from everyone else we can be. I remember

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<v Speaker 1>when services like grub hub or uber eats first became

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<v Speaker 1>a thing. How odd it was to order food and

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<v Speaker 1>not deal with a single other human being. The food

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<v Speaker 1>just appeared on the doorstep. I didn't even have to

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<v Speaker 1>call the restaurant. And talk to the person at the counter.

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<v Speaker 1>And in many ways this is amazing. My order is

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<v Speaker 1>less likely to get garbled in the process. But sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>we can go a little too far and walling ourselves off.

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<v Speaker 1>The world is full of wonderful people. It's nice to

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<v Speaker 1>say hello on occasion. In the meantime, this is Laura.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of

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<v Speaker 1>our times. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast. If you've

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<v Speaker 1>got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach me at

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<v Speaker 1>Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast is a

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<v Speaker 1>production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia, please visit

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<v Speaker 1>the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to

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<v Speaker 1>your favorite shows.