WEBVTT - Declutter your schedule

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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 declutter your schedule to leave room for serendipity.

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<v Speaker 1>When you are too tightly scheduled with various have-to-dos, you

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<v Speaker 1>are less likely to notice and experience unexpected delights and opportunities.

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<v Speaker 1>And you are less likely to say yes to things

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<v Speaker 1>that it would probably be wise to do. Today's tip,

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<v Speaker 1>like several others we have explored recently, comes from my

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<v Speaker 1>new book, Big Time, A Simple Path to Time Abundance.

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<v Speaker 1>One of the strategies I advocate in Big Time is

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<v Speaker 1>to be open to serendipity. Sure, you want to plan

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<v Speaker 1>wonderful experiences and you want to schedule in time for

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<v Speaker 1>your priorities at work. But you don't want to plan

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<v Speaker 1>every minute so full that there is no room for

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<v Speaker 1>something fabulous that you weren't expecting. If you're like a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of Before Breakfast listeners, I imagine that your schedule

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<v Speaker 1>is probably full. But unfortunately, it may not be full

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<v Speaker 1>with things that you are incredibly excited to do. So

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<v Speaker 1>today I will offer suggestions for making it a little

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<v Speaker 1>less full of things you don't want to do, so

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<v Speaker 1>you will be capable of saying yes to appealing opportunities

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<v Speaker 1>that come up. To start, take a look at all

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<v Speaker 1>your recurring commitments. These might include that weekly meeting with

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<v Speaker 1>your team at work or with your boss, a monthly

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<v Speaker 1>meeting for a volunteer committee you chair, a spin class

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<v Speaker 1>before work on Fridays that you've signed up for, a

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<v Speaker 1>monthly gathering for your professional association. First, ask yourself, does

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<v Speaker 1>this commitment still need to happen? Sometimes a recurring commitment

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<v Speaker 1>outlives its benefits. So from time to time, it's wise

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<v Speaker 1>to evaluate them. Some commitments you may eliminate altogether. Maybe

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<v Speaker 1>that weekly team meeting for a project that's kind of

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<v Speaker 1>dormant might become a weekly team email. You might also

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<v Speaker 1>be able to shorten the duration of things that you

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<v Speaker 1>plan to keep. Does that weekly one-on-one with your boss

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<v Speaker 1>need to be an hour? Or could it be 30 minutes?

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<v Speaker 1>A half hour reclaimed for other things may not sound

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<v Speaker 1>like much, but over the course of the year, that

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<v Speaker 1>works out to 26 hours for you and your boss

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<v Speaker 1>to do other things. You might also look at your

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<v Speaker 1>schedule and see what makes it more efficient. Let's say

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<v Speaker 1>you want to exercise and you need to drive your

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<v Speaker 1>kid to ballet. Could you find a gym or a

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<v Speaker 1>running trail near the studio? Then, rather than driving 20

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<v Speaker 1>minutes in the car there and back, and then 20

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<v Speaker 1>minutes to pick her up, and needing to find time

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<v Speaker 1>to exercise elsewhere, you combine all these activities. Now, at

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<v Speaker 1>least some time is freed up. You can also declutter

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<v Speaker 1>your schedule by seeing if you spend time on things

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<v Speaker 1>that other people can do. This is certainly true at work.

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<v Speaker 1>Delegating takes time and effort, but hopefully frees up a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of time over the long haul. But it is

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<v Speaker 1>also true at home. And indeed, I find that when

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<v Speaker 1>people really feel their schedules are cluttered, it is often

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<v Speaker 1>their personal lives that are the biggest culprit. I know

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<v Speaker 1>I find myself less likely to take on anything new

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<v Speaker 1>in May, when my kids have all sorts of end-of-school-year events. September,

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<v Speaker 1>when there are a host of back-to-school events. And December,

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<v Speaker 1>which is a lot like May. Now, you probably do

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<v Speaker 1>want to go to your middle schooler's band concert and

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<v Speaker 1>your kindergartner's graduation. But be careful not to spend too

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<v Speaker 1>much time and mental energy on things that matter less.

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<v Speaker 1>You can eat simple meals. You can get groceries delivered

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<v Speaker 1>if that would be helpful. You can order lots of

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<v Speaker 1>things for your life online. You can also be sure

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<v Speaker 1>not to introduce any rules or systems that will require

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of effort on someone's part. For instance, when

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<v Speaker 1>I recently saw another family's elaborate screen time rules, I thought,

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<v Speaker 1>great for them, not for me. I don't want to

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<v Speaker 1>spend time and energy policing this, so we just limit

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<v Speaker 1>the hours when phones and devices are an option. After

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<v Speaker 1>you've gone through your calendar and tasks systematically, I would

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<v Speaker 1>also suggest you get choosier about new commitments. Just because

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<v Speaker 1>your schedule is open at a time you are tasked

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<v Speaker 1>to attend a meeting or an event, that doesn't mean

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<v Speaker 1>you have to do it. If the invitation makes you

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<v Speaker 1>excited or appreciative, it aligns with one of your values,

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<v Speaker 1>then great. Say yes enthusiastically. One of my recent tips

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<v Speaker 1>was to be a person who shows up for things.

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<v Speaker 1>But if it is just calendar clutter, just say no.

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<v Speaker 1>When you review your schedule with an eye toward leaving

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<v Speaker 1>room for serendipity, you can weigh each current item on

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<v Speaker 1>your calendar with other possibilities that might come up. Open

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<v Speaker 1>time isn't valued at zero. On a scale of 1

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<v Speaker 1>to 10, if you have open space, you might be

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<v Speaker 1>able to put an 8, 9, or 10 in there.

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<v Speaker 1>And when you don't feel overwhelmed, you are more likely

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<v Speaker 1>to make choices that introduce the possibility of an 8, 9,

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<v Speaker 1>or 10. Doing something exciting but unexpected, meeting a new friend,

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<v Speaker 1>taking on a big new responsibility at work. All of

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<v Speaker 1>these are better than schedule clutter. In the meantime... This

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<v Speaker 1>is Laura. Thanks for listening. And here's to making the

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<v Speaker 1>most of our time. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast.

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<v Speaker 1>If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach

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<v Speaker 1>me at Laura at LauraVanderkam.com. Before Breakfast is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of iHeart Media. For more podcasts from iHeart Media, please

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<v Speaker 1>visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

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<v Speaker 1>listen to your favorite shows.