WEBVTT - Try a "Power Hour"

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I 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>This week we've been discussing strategies from Gretchen Ruben's new

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<v Speaker 1>book Outer Order in her Calm. Today's tip is to

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<v Speaker 1>observe what Gretchen calls a power hour. She explains, most

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<v Speaker 1>of us have a long list of unpleasant chores that

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<v Speaker 1>aren't urgent, so we just keep postponing them. Over time,

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<v Speaker 1>this procrastination drains us. So to tackle this problem, Gretchen

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<v Speaker 1>suggests scheduling a power hour. Make a list of all

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<v Speaker 1>the tasks you'd like to accomplish, and once a week,

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<v Speaker 1>for just one hour, steadily work on these chores, she says.

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<v Speaker 1>Gretchen reports that recent items on my power our list

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<v Speaker 1>included getting pants tailored, choosing a guide to hikes in

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<v Speaker 1>the Hudson Valley, and looking for a book that I'd

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<v Speaker 1>maddeningly misplaced somewhere in my apartment. Here's why I, Laura,

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<v Speaker 1>love the idea of a nagging tasks power our. First,

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<v Speaker 1>to intentionally allocate these tasks to a particular hour, you

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<v Speaker 1>have to know what the tasks are, and that means

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<v Speaker 1>you keep a list. Writing down a list of nagging

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<v Speaker 1>tasks gets them out of your head and somewhere you

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<v Speaker 1>can actually do something about them. Otherwise, you'll be trying

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<v Speaker 1>to concentrate on a client's problem and all of a sudden,

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<v Speaker 1>the thought that wow, I'm pretty sure I never sent

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<v Speaker 1>in those reimbursement forms will pop into your brain. Second.

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<v Speaker 1>Assigning these tasks a specific hour keeps them from cluttering

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<v Speaker 1>your entire schedule. Theoretically, you could take a few minutes

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<v Speaker 1>to fill out and send in those forms at any point,

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<v Speaker 1>but if it's always a possibility, you'll always feel somewhat

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<v Speaker 1>guilty that you're not doing it. Now. You might think

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<v Speaker 1>you shouldn't carve out twenty minutes over your lunch break

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<v Speaker 1>to read a novel because you have so much to do,

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<v Speaker 1>and that would be a shame. So think about what

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<v Speaker 1>tasks can go on your nagging task list, then think

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<v Speaker 1>about what hour might work to tackle them. I like

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<v Speaker 1>the idea of Friday right after lunch. Friday's tend to

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<v Speaker 1>be a low opportunity cost time. After lunch, your energy

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<v Speaker 1>might be flagging, so it's hard to do more important tasks,

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<v Speaker 1>but it's still business hours. So if you need to

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<v Speaker 1>call your banks customer service line or visit the post office,

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<v Speaker 1>you can still do it. An hour isn't much, but

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<v Speaker 1>a few tasks a week can make life feel doable, or,

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<v Speaker 1>as Gretchen says, little by little, hour by hour, we

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<v Speaker 1>can get a lot accomplished in the meantime. This is Laura.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of

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<v Speaker 1>our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you.

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<v Speaker 1>You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else.

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<v Speaker 1>Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at

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<v Speaker 1>beef for Breakfast pod that's B the number four, then

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<v Speaker 1>Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me an

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<v Speaker 1>email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeart media dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>That before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio. For

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