WEBVTT - Second Cup: Add an extra hour

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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 ramp up the amount of time you

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<v Speaker 1>spend on something that matters to you. Add one more hour.

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<v Speaker 1>You will become better at just about anything by doing

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<v Speaker 1>more of it. Not perfect by any means, but better,

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<v Speaker 1>and in many cases the improvement won't be small. So

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<v Speaker 1>when I first started blogging many years ago, it wasn't

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<v Speaker 1>always easy to come up with an idea and write

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<v Speaker 1>a few hundred words about it in a short period

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<v Speaker 1>of time. But I kept doing it. I kept doing

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of it. Instead of doing the bare minimum

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<v Speaker 1>one to two posts per week that people suggested at

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<v Speaker 1>the time, I spent another hour or so per week

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<v Speaker 1>on it and posted about four times per week. Then,

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<v Speaker 1>at some point a few years later, I took a

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<v Speaker 1>gig that involved writing quick pieces about newsy topics. I

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<v Speaker 1>was amazed at how quickly I could crank out a

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<v Speaker 1>few hundred words. It seems that writing two hundred five

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<v Speaker 1>hundred word posts per year makes it easy to write

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<v Speaker 1>five hundred words on command. Seems straightforward, right, And yet

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<v Speaker 1>much of the time when we are trying to get

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<v Speaker 1>better at something, we overlook an obvious tactic, which is

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<v Speaker 1>to start doing more of whatever it is we are

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<v Speaker 1>aiming to improve at. Even just an extra hour a

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<v Speaker 1>week can make a big difference. If you are a

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<v Speaker 1>normal speed runner and you want to be a faster runner,

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<v Speaker 1>there are various types of speed work you can do,

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<v Speaker 1>and probably some strength training and such that will help.

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<v Speaker 1>But if you were running fifteen miles a week and

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<v Speaker 1>you work up to running twenty one miles a week

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<v Speaker 1>by running six more ten minute miles, so that's another hour,

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<v Speaker 1>you will probably start to get faster just through sheer repetition.

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<v Speaker 1>Your body will figure out ways to move more efficiently,

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<v Speaker 1>and your aerobic capacity will increase. I would like to

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<v Speaker 1>improve as a singer. I have thought about taking voice lessons,

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<v Speaker 1>and I know that would be helpful because I've done

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<v Speaker 1>it in the past. But I have also realized that

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<v Speaker 1>if I practice various vocal exercises and breathing exercises and

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<v Speaker 1>simple songs for another hour each week beyond my choier practices,

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<v Speaker 1>that will help too. I can add an extra hour

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<v Speaker 1>of practice. Whether I find the right teacher and work

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<v Speaker 1>that into my schedule or not. Now, none of this

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<v Speaker 1>is meant to diminish the importance of smart practice or

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<v Speaker 1>seeking the advice of professionals, But volume itself is a

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<v Speaker 1>pretty efficient teacher, and given that most of us aren't

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<v Speaker 1>devoting forty hours a week to our various hobbies or

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<v Speaker 1>even to the professional skills we'd like to improve at,

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<v Speaker 1>an extra hour can be a lot. One hour out

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<v Speaker 1>of the one hundred and sixty eight hours we all

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<v Speaker 1>have each week isn't much, But spending an extra hour

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<v Speaker 1>each week learning a foreign language would get you to

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<v Speaker 1>fluency much faster. Spending an hour a week speaking in

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<v Speaker 1>front of people would make you a good public speaker

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<v Speaker 1>pretty quickly. Spending an extra hour practicing a musical instrument

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<v Speaker 1>would likewise make learning difficult music feel far more doable.

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<v Speaker 1>We often have grand designs for getting better at things,

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<v Speaker 1>and those are fine, but if it is taking a

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<v Speaker 1>long time to bring those plans to fruition, start with

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<v Speaker 1>just adding an hour to your schedule. See how it goes.

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<v Speaker 1>My guess is that the improvements won't be small, and

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<v Speaker 1>that just might motivate you to take the next step.

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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. Hey everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your question or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod.

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

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<v Speaker 1>can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcast

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<v Speaker 1>at iHeartMedia dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled out

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<v Speaker 1>with all the letters. Thanks so much. Should I look

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<v Speaker 1>forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app,

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<v Speaker 1>Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.