1 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:09,320 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning, 2 00:00:10,720 --> 00:00:16,480 Speaker 1: This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's 3 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:20,600 Speaker 1: tip is to make your calendar your to do list. 4 00:00:22,000 --> 00:00:24,639 Speaker 1: Many people make to do lists that have little to 5 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:30,560 Speaker 1: do with reality. Tying your intended tasks to specific times 6 00:00:30,600 --> 00:00:33,839 Speaker 1: on the calendar forces you to figure out what is 7 00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:40,320 Speaker 1: reasonable and what isn't. Today's tip comes from Jamie Sears's 8 00:00:40,360 --> 00:00:45,240 Speaker 1: new book, How to Love Teaching Again. This productivity book 9 00:00:45,320 --> 00:00:48,840 Speaker 1: is specifically aimed at teachers who want to spend more 10 00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:52,040 Speaker 1: time helping kids and less time getting caught up in 11 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 1: administrative work, but there are tips that people in lots 12 00:00:55,960 --> 00:01:00,680 Speaker 1: of different professions can use. Jamie point out that for 13 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:06,560 Speaker 1: many people, to do lists are not terribly effective. People 14 00:01:06,600 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 1: put down everything that they might like to do in life, 15 00:01:10,200 --> 00:01:13,880 Speaker 1: and much of it appears very vague. I mean they'll 16 00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:17,240 Speaker 1: put things like math grading for teachers, or maybe think 17 00:01:17,280 --> 00:01:21,440 Speaker 1: about new clients or staffing problems with a question mark 18 00:01:22,319 --> 00:01:26,600 Speaker 1: what does that even mean? Here is the real psychology 19 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:30,640 Speaker 1: of to do lists, Jamie writes. The list becomes so 20 00:01:31,000 --> 00:01:34,800 Speaker 1: overwhelming that your brain decides there is no way that 21 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:38,399 Speaker 1: it can complete everything. That's when you end up using 22 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:42,120 Speaker 1: your plan time to gossip with your teacher bestie, or 23 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:44,639 Speaker 1: you use your grading time to scroll through social media. 24 00:01:45,640 --> 00:01:48,720 Speaker 1: In other words, your to do list isn't a plan 25 00:01:48,800 --> 00:01:54,480 Speaker 1: for action. Instead, it's an excuse to procrastinate or set 26 00:01:54,520 --> 00:02:00,160 Speaker 1: yourself up to fail. Now, contrast a poorly constructed to 27 00:02:00,200 --> 00:02:04,640 Speaker 1: do list with a calendar. As Jamie notes, a calendar 28 00:02:04,720 --> 00:02:07,400 Speaker 1: is a list of things to do at a specific 29 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:11,640 Speaker 1: hour or within a defined window of time on a 30 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:14,960 Speaker 1: teacher's calendar. If it is time for teaching reading, the 31 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:17,920 Speaker 1: teacher will teach reading. If it is time for a 32 00:02:17,960 --> 00:02:20,840 Speaker 1: meeting with a parent, the teacher will meet with a parent. 33 00:02:22,120 --> 00:02:25,359 Speaker 1: As a general rule, people do these things that are 34 00:02:25,360 --> 00:02:29,280 Speaker 1: on their calendars, whereas there is pretty good evidence that 35 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:32,079 Speaker 1: people do not do a great many things that they 36 00:02:32,080 --> 00:02:35,440 Speaker 1: put on their to do lists. So why not use 37 00:02:35,480 --> 00:02:40,320 Speaker 1: your calendar as your to do list? Longtime listeners know 38 00:02:40,440 --> 00:02:44,560 Speaker 1: that I advocate carving out time on Friday for planning 39 00:02:44,600 --> 00:02:48,680 Speaker 1: the upcoming week. On Friday, you make your priority list 40 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:52,040 Speaker 1: for the upcoming week. But then, rather than just saying 41 00:02:52,080 --> 00:02:55,360 Speaker 1: you want to research a potential client, you put it 42 00:02:55,400 --> 00:03:00,840 Speaker 1: on your calendar for eleven to twelve On Tuesday, rather 43 00:03:00,919 --> 00:03:03,240 Speaker 1: than saying you want to reach out to Bob, you 44 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:05,280 Speaker 1: note that you will do that, along with a few 45 00:03:05,360 --> 00:03:11,079 Speaker 1: other exploratory emails, on Friday at one pm. This habit 46 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:18,079 Speaker 1: does a few good things. One it acknowledges this truth. Basically, 47 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:24,480 Speaker 1: every task takes some amount of time, So if you 48 00:03:24,520 --> 00:03:27,400 Speaker 1: are not willing to give the task a specific time, 49 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:31,840 Speaker 1: that is a pretty good indication that you aren't serious 50 00:03:31,880 --> 00:03:35,440 Speaker 1: about doing it. So you might migrate that to do 51 00:03:35,800 --> 00:03:38,880 Speaker 1: that you don't intend to actually do over to what 52 00:03:39,040 --> 00:03:42,880 Speaker 1: David Allen calls a someday maybe list. It is not 53 00:03:43,040 --> 00:03:48,320 Speaker 1: an active intention anymore. This also forces you to think 54 00:03:48,320 --> 00:03:51,760 Speaker 1: about how long things will take. If you have never 55 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,280 Speaker 1: managed to write a certain report in less than two hours, 56 00:03:56,240 --> 00:04:01,080 Speaker 1: then you will need to give that task two hours now. 57 00:04:01,080 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: Of course, at some point it might become challenging to 58 00:04:04,080 --> 00:04:07,000 Speaker 1: find spots for tasks amid the other things that are 59 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:10,960 Speaker 1: on your calendar, like meetings, which turn out to be 60 00:04:11,040 --> 00:04:14,960 Speaker 1: tasks in and of themselves. If these aren't tasks that 61 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:17,200 Speaker 1: you value, well, maybe take a good look and see 62 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:21,000 Speaker 1: if they need to be there. Maybe they do, maybe 63 00:04:21,000 --> 00:04:24,560 Speaker 1: they don't. But using your calendar as your to do 64 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:28,440 Speaker 1: list forces you to see that you cannot do eight 65 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:34,160 Speaker 1: one hour tasks plus attend three one hour meetings. If 66 00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:36,840 Speaker 1: you arrive at work at nine and need to leave 67 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:40,240 Speaker 1: at five pm for a daycare pickup. That is not 68 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:43,279 Speaker 1: a matter of how motivated you are or how good 69 00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:46,559 Speaker 1: you are at your job. It is just a matter 70 00:04:47,040 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 1: of physics. Now to be sure, Jamie adds the caveat 71 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:53,960 Speaker 1: that you are going to need to be somewhat flexible 72 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:58,719 Speaker 1: here life happens. A teacher might plan to do something 73 00:04:58,760 --> 00:05:02,039 Speaker 1: before school, but a parent asks to meet about a 74 00:05:02,120 --> 00:05:05,280 Speaker 1: child who is floundering, and the teacher wants to take 75 00:05:05,320 --> 00:05:09,400 Speaker 1: the opportunity to brainstorm together. Or maybe the fire alarm 76 00:05:09,480 --> 00:05:13,640 Speaker 1: goes off during a planning period. People in any job 77 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:18,120 Speaker 1: can experience the unexpected, So Jamie recommends building in a 78 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:21,760 Speaker 1: few open slots on the calendar thirty minutes here and 79 00:05:21,800 --> 00:05:25,760 Speaker 1: there to absorb tasks that need to move or unexpected 80 00:05:25,760 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 1: ones that come up. She, like me, tries to leave 81 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:36,000 Speaker 1: Friday's available slots as open as possible. I think this 82 00:05:36,160 --> 00:05:38,400 Speaker 1: idea can work for a great many people who have 83 00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:42,760 Speaker 1: fairly set schedules, like teachers, or many people in corporate 84 00:05:42,839 --> 00:05:46,159 Speaker 1: roles with a lot of meetings. It can also be 85 00:05:46,200 --> 00:05:48,359 Speaker 1: helpful for people in any sort of role who have 86 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:52,160 Speaker 1: trouble making short to do lists. Now, if you are 87 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:55,480 Speaker 1: a self employed podcaster who has more control over her 88 00:05:55,560 --> 00:05:58,680 Speaker 1: calendar and who has been tracking her time for eight 89 00:05:58,760 --> 00:06:01,839 Speaker 1: straight years, maybe you can do things a little differently. 90 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:06,320 Speaker 1: But even if I don't calender my tasks, when I 91 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:09,760 Speaker 1: make to do lists for a day, I never put 92 00:06:09,800 --> 00:06:13,400 Speaker 1: anything on there that I do not truly intend to 93 00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:17,599 Speaker 1: do and the hours I have. That is the point 94 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:20,200 Speaker 1: of using your calendar as a to do list, and 95 00:06:20,279 --> 00:06:22,600 Speaker 1: so we are really all getting at the same thing. 96 00:06:24,279 --> 00:06:26,760 Speaker 1: If you try using your calendar as a to do list, 97 00:06:27,600 --> 00:06:30,400 Speaker 1: let me know how it goes. And if you are 98 00:06:30,440 --> 00:06:35,159 Speaker 1: a teacher or just like productivity strategies in general, please 99 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:38,040 Speaker 1: check out Jamie Sears's book How To Love Teaching Again, 100 00:06:38,640 --> 00:06:42,960 Speaker 1: which is newly out this month. In the meantime, this 101 00:06:43,120 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 1: is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the 102 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:56,520 Speaker 1: most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear 103 00:06:56,520 --> 00:06:59,280 Speaker 1: from you. You can send me your tips, your questions, 104 00:06:59,440 --> 00:07:03,200 Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook 105 00:07:03,279 --> 00:07:08,080 Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod. That's b E. The 106 00:07:08,200 --> 00:07:12,440 Speaker 1: number four then Breakfast p o D. You can also 107 00:07:12,440 --> 00:07:16,520 Speaker 1: shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcasts at iHeartMedia 108 00:07:16,560 --> 00:07:19,200 Speaker 1: dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out with all 109 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:21,760 Speaker 1: the letters, Thanks so much, should I look forward to 110 00:07:21,760 --> 00:07:30,720 Speaker 1: staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartRadio. 111 00:07:31,280 --> 00:07:36,560 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 112 00:07:36,800 --> 00:07:41,160 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.