WEBVTT - Make it worth the commute

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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 that if you are going to go into

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<v Speaker 1>the office, make it worth the commute. Use your in

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<v Speaker 1>office time for relationship building and collaboration. You don't want

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<v Speaker 1>to spend time and energy getting somewhere just to email

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<v Speaker 1>and call people in other places, because you can do

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<v Speaker 1>that from home. So a few years post pandemic, lots

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<v Speaker 1>more information workers are working from home at least occasionally.

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<v Speaker 1>I think this is great. It is often way more efficient.

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<v Speaker 1>Of course, some sorts of work are more efficient to

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<v Speaker 1>do in person, So as organizations are figuring out the

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<v Speaker 1>mix of in office and remote work, I hear from

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of people who have hybrid schedules. They want

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<v Speaker 1>guidance on how to make the most of their in

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<v Speaker 1>office days. On a recent episode of my other podcast,

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<v Speaker 1>Best of Both Worlds, my co host Sarah Hartunger and

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<v Speaker 1>I discussed getting a hybrid schedule. Rite Sarah's advice for

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<v Speaker 1>if you are in the office, make it worth the commute.

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<v Speaker 1>I love this framing because it's about matching the right

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<v Speaker 1>work to the right place, collaborating to come up with

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<v Speaker 1>ideas is definitely best on in person. I know Sarah

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<v Speaker 1>and I generate more and better podcast ideas when we

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<v Speaker 1>meet up. We've probably all been on awkward zoom calls

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<v Speaker 1>where no one is offering any ideas and the team

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<v Speaker 1>just can't seem to generate momentum. Then there are the

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<v Speaker 1>times when people inadvertently interrupt each other because it's hard

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<v Speaker 1>to tell when someone is starting to speak on calls

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<v Speaker 1>when there is some engagement, there's sometimes the parallel conversation issue,

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<v Speaker 1>when one conversation is taking place out loud and another

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<v Speaker 1>in the chat. Zoom calls are not the best forum

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<v Speaker 1>for developing plans and getting everybody invested in them, so

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<v Speaker 1>when possible, schedule collaboration for in office days. It is

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<v Speaker 1>much easier to connect with each other and develop excitement

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<v Speaker 1>about working together when you are in fact together. You

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<v Speaker 1>can also make in office days worth your commute by

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<v Speaker 1>prioritizing important one on one conversations. If you need to

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<v Speaker 1>have a difficult conversation with a colleague, do it in

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<v Speaker 1>person if possible. It is much easier to make sure

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<v Speaker 1>you are understanding each other when you are in the

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<v Speaker 1>same room. When you're just getting to know a new colleague,

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<v Speaker 1>or or working with someone on a technical or complicated topic.

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<v Speaker 1>In person conversations can be valuable too. Office days also

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<v Speaker 1>create opportunities for relationship building. Spending intentional time with your

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<v Speaker 1>coworkers is a great way to make the most of

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<v Speaker 1>your commute. Schedule lunch or coffee with a colleague on

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<v Speaker 1>in office days whenever you can. You could even create

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<v Speaker 1>a recurring calendar event for lunch with colleague on every

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<v Speaker 1>in office day. That way, you're less likely to have

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<v Speaker 1>meetings scheduled midday. Don't think of these coffees and longer

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<v Speaker 1>lunches as a waste of time. Honestly, your in office

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<v Speaker 1>days should be mostly social because you can do basic

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<v Speaker 1>status meetings by zoom. You can also do a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of the basic work of emailing and calling people and

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<v Speaker 1>in individual planning and much individual deliverable work. At home

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<v Speaker 1>offices can be very distracting places. When I need to

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<v Speaker 1>get something done, it is almost impossible if someone is

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<v Speaker 1>talking loudly next to me. That is unlikely to happen

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<v Speaker 1>in your home office. I think it's too bad that

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<v Speaker 1>some organizations are calling for five days a week in

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<v Speaker 1>the office. There is definitely some work that is best

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<v Speaker 1>done in person, but five days a week is overkill

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<v Speaker 1>for a lot of information jobs. I am sad that

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<v Speaker 1>people are wasting time and wasting gas commuting when they

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<v Speaker 1>are just on zooms with teams and other places. When

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<v Speaker 1>people are commuting, the work should be worth the commute.

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<v Speaker 1>If you have some say over how you do your

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<v Speaker 1>work and where you do your work, make sure that

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<v Speaker 1>is how you're setting it up. 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 Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia,

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<v Speaker 1>please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

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<v Speaker 1>listen to your favorite shows.