WEBVTT - Admiring without aspiring

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is that you don't have to do everything

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<v Speaker 1>that anybody else does. You can admire what they do

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<v Speaker 1>without aspiring to it yourself. Humans are social creatures, so

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<v Speaker 1>we take our cues about what we should be doing

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<v Speaker 1>from what we see around us, and when something is

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<v Speaker 1>done very well, it is easy to feel that we

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<v Speaker 1>are just not measuring up. Your neighbors work in their

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<v Speaker 1>yard every Saturday and plant seasonal color in their flower

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<v Speaker 1>beds with astonishing frequency, so that something is blooming in

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<v Speaker 1>their yard nine months of the year. Meanwhile, you are

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<v Speaker 1>doing your best to keep your yard mood and raked.

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<v Speaker 1>Your colleague does aerobic exercise five nights a week, plus

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<v Speaker 1>regular strength training in yoga, and oh, by the way,

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<v Speaker 1>she volunteers for a youth running program twice a week,

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<v Speaker 1>which makes you feel less proud of walking once a

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<v Speaker 1>week and going to yoga every now and then. Your

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<v Speaker 1>friend from book club cooks an amazing spread every time

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<v Speaker 1>it is her turn to host, so you are a

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<v Speaker 1>little sheepish about ordering pizza when it is your turn.

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<v Speaker 1>You know the people I am talking about you look

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<v Speaker 1>at them and are wowed by what they are doing

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<v Speaker 1>and keenly aware of what you are not doing, at

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<v Speaker 1>least not to the same degree. But here's the thing.

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<v Speaker 1>It is quite possible to admire something without thinking you

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<v Speaker 1>should do it. We are well aware of that in

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<v Speaker 1>certain professional realms. I don't watch an NBA game and

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<v Speaker 1>feel bad about myself because my jump shot doesn't look

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<v Speaker 1>like that. I don't walk into an art museum study

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<v Speaker 1>a haunting Andrew Wyath painting and feel sad because I

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<v Speaker 1>can't paint like that. I know these are amazing examples

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<v Speaker 1>that I can be in awe of. I am not

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<v Speaker 1>supposed to be doing anything like that. I am supposed

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<v Speaker 1>to be impressed and inspired that such greatness exists. Of course,

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<v Speaker 1>it makes sense that it is a little harder to

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<v Speaker 1>get our heads around this idea with people who are

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<v Speaker 1>closer to home. Your neighbors are literally your neighbors. Your

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<v Speaker 1>colleague probably has similar workplace demands and skills, your friend

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<v Speaker 1>has a similar life, and so these people's talents and

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<v Speaker 1>skills may feel a little more like they should be

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<v Speaker 1>points of reference. But we can transfer the same mindset

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<v Speaker 1>when people put tons of time and effort into something

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<v Speaker 1>they can do well at it. But we all have

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<v Speaker 1>to make choices about what to put our time and

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<v Speaker 1>effort into. We tend to choose things that we truly

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<v Speaker 1>enjoy or that we find meaningful. These are different things

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<v Speaker 1>for everyone. If your neighbors, colleagues, and friends inspire you

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<v Speaker 1>to take your creativity up a natural, great, But you

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<v Speaker 1>can also remind yourself that just because some one else

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<v Speaker 1>does something doesn't mean you need to. We all have

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<v Speaker 1>our reasons, We all have our seasons. Your neighbors are

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<v Speaker 1>retired empty nesters. The time they have for their yard

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<v Speaker 1>as time you are spending helping with homework and managing

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<v Speaker 1>your work team. Your friend who cooks gourmet meals for

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<v Speaker 1>book club may truly enjoy cooking as her favorite hobby.

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<v Speaker 1>The time you spend reading books beyond the book club

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<v Speaker 1>fair and exercising is the time she spends behind the stove.

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<v Speaker 1>Maybe you've read Ulysses and she hasn't. It is all time,

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<v Speaker 1>and time goes somewhere. People's lives have different shapes, jobs

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<v Speaker 1>of varying intensities, parenting or caregiving responsibilities, more or less

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<v Speaker 1>help at home, hobbies, and volunteer commitments that ask more

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<v Speaker 1>or less of people's time, health challenges, or long commutes

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<v Speaker 1>that shape how much time is available for pursuits beyond

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<v Speaker 1>the necessities. Nobody does it all. You are seeing one

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<v Speaker 1>aspect of people's lives. You are probably not seeing all

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<v Speaker 1>of it, and they aren't seeing all of your life either.

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<v Speaker 1>So you are under no obligation to do everything that

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<v Speaker 1>anyone else does. You have full license to admire what

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<v Speaker 1>others do without aspiring to do it yourself. Probably you

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<v Speaker 1>are doing something that others admire if you think about it.

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<v Speaker 1>In deed, try thinking about it. You probably have your

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<v Speaker 1>greatest hits too. And if you have something that you

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<v Speaker 1>are reasonably proud of, you might try letting any aspirational

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<v Speaker 1>feelings you find yourself indulging allow you to try to

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<v Speaker 1>take that up a notch. We can challenge ourselves, and

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<v Speaker 1>when we do put time and effort into things, we

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<v Speaker 1>often get pretty good results. It's just a matter of

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<v Speaker 1>choosing what we find worthwhile. 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 time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you.

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<v Speaker 1>You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else.

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<v Speaker 1>Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast pod. That's b E the number four, then

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<v Speaker 1>Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me an

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<v Speaker 1>email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeartMedia dot com that

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks

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<v Speaker 1>so much, I look forward to staying in touch. Before

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<v Speaker 1>Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For more

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