WEBVTT - What not to track

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of My 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 about what not to track while measuring

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<v Speaker 1>various dimensions of your life can be useful. It is

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<v Speaker 1>good to know yourself if tracking some aspect of your

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<v Speaker 1>life is going to make you feel guilty or trigger

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<v Speaker 1>unhealthy behaviors, then you might be better off setting broad

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<v Speaker 1>safeguards and then not worrying about the particulars. Long Time

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast listeners know that I have been tracking my

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<v Speaker 1>time for a long time. It will be eight years

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<v Speaker 1>this spring. Yes, I know how I have spent every

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<v Speaker 1>half hour for the past eight years of my life.

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<v Speaker 1>Some people hearing at might think that is a wee

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<v Speaker 1>bit obsessive, but there are certainly folks who have tracked

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<v Speaker 1>their spending pretty religiously for years. There are folks who

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<v Speaker 1>have tracked all their workouts, and people who are trying

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<v Speaker 1>to eat more healthfully who have tracked their food intake

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<v Speaker 1>for a long time too. I do track my workouts,

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<v Speaker 1>but I don't track those other categories. Sometimes people are

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<v Speaker 1>surprised to hear that I don't track spending closely, because

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<v Speaker 1>money and time are closely related, but I have certain

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<v Speaker 1>obsessive frugal tendencies that I know will kick in. If

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<v Speaker 1>I start monitoring and recording every detail of household spending,

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<v Speaker 1>I will start feeling bad that we didn't buy the

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<v Speaker 1>generic laundry detergent, and I will be tracking the price

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<v Speaker 1>of eggs at each of several different grocery stores to

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<v Speaker 1>be sure we are getting the best deal. All of

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<v Speaker 1>this will take a lot of time. It would be

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<v Speaker 1>better spent growing my business or hanging out with my kids.

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<v Speaker 1>I am not saying that there isn't merit to tracking spending.

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<v Speaker 1>If one is in crisis or trying to get out

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<v Speaker 1>of debt, it's critical. But instead I have chosen to

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<v Speaker 1>put broad safeguards in place. We spend lower percentages of

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<v Speaker 1>our income on recurring expenses such as housing than we

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<v Speaker 1>theoretically could. That frees up space to be a bit

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<v Speaker 1>less careful with other things. We put the maximum allowable

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<v Speaker 1>amount into our retirement accounts, and after that, as long

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<v Speaker 1>as the money coming in is more than the money

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<v Speaker 1>going out, then I am better off not devoting headspace

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<v Speaker 1>to reducing my grocery bill by ten dollars a week,

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<v Speaker 1>which I know I would totally spend time doing I

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<v Speaker 1>have heard similar things about time tracking from various listeners.

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<v Speaker 1>One person mentioned that she had been tracking screen time,

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<v Speaker 1>but seeing the number just made her feel guilty. As

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<v Speaker 1>long as she was doing well at work and enjoying

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<v Speaker 1>her family life and spending time with friends and on

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<v Speaker 1>various community activities, then it was probably not worth feeling

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<v Speaker 1>guilty about. She could watch ninety minutes of TV a

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<v Speaker 1>day or sixty minutes of TV a day, and it

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<v Speaker 1>really didn't matter which she wasn't watching twelve hours a day.

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<v Speaker 1>The safeguards were in place, so it was all good.

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<v Speaker 1>I know I probably could eat a more healthy diet,

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<v Speaker 1>but I also don't want to devote mental energy to

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<v Speaker 1>tracking every calorie. I prefer to set broad guidelines like

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<v Speaker 1>keeping the junk I find tempting out of the house,

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<v Speaker 1>limiting alcohol, and eating veggies at least twice a day.

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<v Speaker 1>As I am not looking to start a new career

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<v Speaker 1>as a swimsuit model, that is probably fine. Tracking various

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<v Speaker 1>things in life can be incredibly useful. I like to

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<v Speaker 1>see where my time goes, and most importantly, I don't

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<v Speaker 1>really judge myself harshly on it. I find it interesting,

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<v Speaker 1>not an indictment. I heartily encourage people to try time

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<v Speaker 1>tracking for at least a week. But past that, if

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<v Speaker 1>you find tracking time, or calories, or spending or anything

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<v Speaker 1>else makes you feel bad about yourself or encourages you

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<v Speaker 1>to pace around the house for thirty minutes when you'd

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<v Speaker 1>like to go to bed, just to get your step

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<v Speaker 1>counter up to the right number, well maybe it is

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<v Speaker 1>worth rethinking this. You don't have to track everything, only

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<v Speaker 1>track what serves you, not what doesn't. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>this is law. Uh. Thanks for listening, and here's to

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<v Speaker 1>making the most of our time. Hey everybody, I'd love

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<v Speaker 1>to hear from you. You can send me your tips,

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<v Speaker 1>your questions, or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter,

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<v Speaker 1>the number four then Breakfast p o D. You can

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<v Speaker 1>out with all the letters. Thanks so much, 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 I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio,

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<v Speaker 1>visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever

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<v Speaker 1>you listen to your favorite shows. Okay, can I get