WEBVTT - Ask for more convenient appointments

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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 ask for more convenient appointments. While sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>you need to take the time slot you are offered,

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<v Speaker 1>in many cases you can ask what else is available

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<v Speaker 1>and find something that's more convenient for you. Recently, I

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<v Speaker 1>went back through my time logs from twenty twenty four.

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<v Speaker 1>Longtime listeners know that I have tracked my time in

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<v Speaker 1>half hour increments since twenty fifteen. Perhaps that makes me

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<v Speaker 1>sound a little eccentric, but the upside is that I

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<v Speaker 1>do know where my time has gone, and I can

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<v Speaker 1>see patterns. One thing I saw clearly is that I

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<v Speaker 1>have I had few uninterrupted work weeks between my five kids,

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<v Speaker 1>various doctor and dentist appointments, and my own appointments. It

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<v Speaker 1>was the rare week without something. I've realized for my

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<v Speaker 1>older kids that I really need to ask for early

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<v Speaker 1>in the day or late in the afternoon, because it

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<v Speaker 1>has become a lot harder for them to miss school.

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<v Speaker 1>But I realized that I wasn't giving myself the same courtesy,

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<v Speaker 1>particularly in the first few months of the year. I

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<v Speaker 1>was going to multiple physical therapy sessions each week. They

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<v Speaker 1>would offer me a time of let's say eleven am

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<v Speaker 1>on Tuesday, and I would take it. After all, I

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<v Speaker 1>was technically available, and it's certainly easier to make that

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<v Speaker 1>time work than say eight am, when I'm rushing to

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<v Speaker 1>get people out the door. But the net result was

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<v Speaker 1>that my work time was quite chopped up. I am

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<v Speaker 1>an efficient person, but there is a limit to how

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<v Speaker 1>much deep thinking you can do when you are stopping

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<v Speaker 1>and starting all the time. And then there are the

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<v Speaker 1>contractor visits. Now, on some level, if I'm working from home,

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<v Speaker 1>it seems costless to have the HVAC guys come by

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<v Speaker 1>at some point between eight am and noon, but it isn't.

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<v Speaker 1>I won't want to schedule stuff that can't be interrupted

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<v Speaker 1>right when they might come in, and no doubt they

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<v Speaker 1>will have questions and I'll need to pay them, and whoops,

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<v Speaker 1>there's another morning with limited focused work time. Perhaps you

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<v Speaker 1>have discovered the same thing. If so know this, you

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<v Speaker 1>can ask for more convenient appointments. A lot of service

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<v Speaker 1>providers have early morning slots or late afternoon slots. Some

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<v Speaker 1>people even have evening or weekend availability, or at least

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<v Speaker 1>they're open until five thirty or six. You may have

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<v Speaker 1>to wait slightly longer to get an appointment, but your

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<v Speaker 1>teeth will probably be fine if you make it to

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<v Speaker 1>the dentist at seven months instead of six. As for

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<v Speaker 1>contractor visits, sometimes this can be tricky. Some people who

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<v Speaker 1>work in offices and can't get time off easily actually

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<v Speaker 1>pay someone to come sit in their homes to meet

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<v Speaker 1>these people, it might be worth paying fifteen to twenty

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<v Speaker 1>dollars an hour to have someone sit there for four

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<v Speaker 1>hours if you really need something repaired right then, versus

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<v Speaker 1>taking that time off work. But even if you work

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<v Speaker 1>from home, you can try to push all contractor visits

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<v Speaker 1>to certain times. Maybe you decide that Friday is the day.

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<v Speaker 1>If the contractor gives you a window of Wednesday at

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<v Speaker 1>eight am to noon, you can say, no one's available then,

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<v Speaker 1>and you really need Friday now. Maybe it won't be

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<v Speaker 1>this Friday, but if it is not urgent then that

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<v Speaker 1>can be okay. Attention and focus are valuable in their

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<v Speaker 1>own right, especially if your schedule is flexible. It's easy

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<v Speaker 1>to see that you aren't booked for a certain slot

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<v Speaker 1>and say yes, but no doubt you can do amazing

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<v Speaker 1>and valuable things when your attention isn't fragmented, so ask

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<v Speaker 1>for more convenient appointments and give yourself the gift of space.

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<v Speaker 1>In the meantime, This is Laura. Thanks for listening, and

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<v Speaker 1>here's to making the most of our time. Thanks for

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<v Speaker 1>listening to Before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback,

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<v Speaker 1>you can reach me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts

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<v Speaker 1>from iHeartMedia, please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or

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