WEBVTT - Second Cup: If you buy it, will you use it

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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 about how to figure out if you will

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<v Speaker 1>do something once you buy the equipment for it. Lots

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<v Speaker 1>of folks make aspirational purchases, thinking that owning something will

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<v Speaker 1>encourage a certain lifestyle or certain habits. A little reflection

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<v Speaker 1>can let you know whether that is a wise idea

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<v Speaker 1>or not. So in a great many households there is

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<v Speaker 1>a treadmill or stationary bike sitting somewhere gathering dust. This

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<v Speaker 1>piece of exercise equipment was purchased with the goal of

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<v Speaker 1>boosting the owner's physical fitness. But just because you own

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<v Speaker 1>a treadmill doesn't mean you will walk or run on it,

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<v Speaker 1>And so people go from being non runners who at

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<v Speaker 1>least had space in their basements to non runners who

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<v Speaker 1>have to walk past this equipment, clogging up the corner

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<v Speaker 1>over and over again. So perhaps it seems like it

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<v Speaker 1>is futile to make such purchases, but that's not really true.

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<v Speaker 1>Many purchases are necessary for making habits possible. If you

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<v Speaker 1>don't own a bike, you most likely won't ride bikes

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<v Speaker 1>as frequently as if you do own a bike, it

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<v Speaker 1>is hard to get kids outside and off their screens

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<v Speaker 1>if there is nothing fun for them to play with

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<v Speaker 1>out in the yard. It's hard to go camping regularly

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<v Speaker 1>without a tent. So how do we know the difference

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<v Speaker 1>between an aspirational purchase and one that will support desired behavior.

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<v Speaker 1>I have a phrase that I sometimes use, habit first,

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<v Speaker 1>then buy. The idea is that if you do something

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<v Speaker 1>somewhat regularly in your life, then purchasing the equipment will

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<v Speaker 1>make it easier and nudge greater frequency. But if you

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<v Speaker 1>do not regularly do that thing, a purchase will not

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<v Speaker 1>fundamentally change who you are. So, for instance, I don't

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<v Speaker 1>eat a lot of smoothies. I don't buy them when

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<v Speaker 1>I'm out. I might like the idea of having healthy

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<v Speaker 1>smoothies for breakfast, and if someone offered to make me

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<v Speaker 1>one each morning, I am sure I would be thrilled.

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<v Speaker 1>But since I don't buy healthy smoothies when I'm at

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<v Speaker 1>the airport or anything like that, I probably wouldn't use

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<v Speaker 1>a fancy blender all that often. I would walk past

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<v Speaker 1>it on my way to grab the pop tarts. On

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<v Speaker 1>the other hand, I do run We bought a treadmill

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<v Speaker 1>a few years ago when I was already running four

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<v Speaker 1>times a week or so and was looking for a

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<v Speaker 1>way to make running easier when my kids were napping

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<v Speaker 1>or it was raining. The treadmill enabled me to keep

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<v Speaker 1>up a running streak of running at least a mile

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<v Speaker 1>every day for three years. Some stuff is more in

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<v Speaker 1>the middle. We bought a new swing set in April,

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<v Speaker 1>and the kids played on it a lot for the

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<v Speaker 1>first few weeks. Sure enough, they play on it less now. However,

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<v Speaker 1>it does give them something to play on when they

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<v Speaker 1>are sent out into the yard, which I do fairly often.

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<v Speaker 1>Since they have the space and time to play in

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<v Speaker 1>the yard, having the equipment there makes the time more appealing,

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<v Speaker 1>So I do think it's worth it. If you are

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<v Speaker 1>pondering a purchase, here's how to think about it. First.

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<v Speaker 1>Why are you contemplating it? Is it because friends have

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<v Speaker 1>it and they say it's fun? If so, are you

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<v Speaker 1>similar to them or different? A family with older kids

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<v Speaker 1>will get more use out of a fire pit than

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<v Speaker 1>a family with toddlers. If the purchase is meant to

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<v Speaker 1>support a hobby or activity, ask yourself how often you

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<v Speaker 1>do this thing? If you rent snorkeling gear every beach vacation,

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<v Speaker 1>then it might make sense to purchase some of your

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<v Speaker 1>own to bring on an upcoming trip. On the other hand,

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<v Speaker 1>if you usually do other things on your vacations like

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<v Speaker 1>hit the resort shops, but you like the idea of

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<v Speaker 1>being a snorkeler, well maybe try renting the equipment a

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<v Speaker 1>few times and see if you find yourself looking forward

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<v Speaker 1>to the next sea life viewing expedition, then it makes

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<v Speaker 1>sense to buy. If not, well, spend the money in

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<v Speaker 1>the boutiques you prefer. That is perfectly fine. If you

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<v Speaker 1>have gone to the gym to run, or you've run

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<v Speaker 1>outside at least twice a week for the past six months,

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<v Speaker 1>then I can see buying a treadmill. Otherwise it is

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<v Speaker 1>just going to sit there. Of course, it's not the

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<v Speaker 1>end of the world if it does sit there, and

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<v Speaker 1>sometimes the purchases in question are small that if you

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<v Speaker 1>don't wind up using it, oh well. But in general

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<v Speaker 1>it feels better to make purchases that truly will get used.

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<v Speaker 1>That requires knowing yourself, but so does much in life.

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<v Speaker 1>It's good to ask the right questions. In the meantime.

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

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

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

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

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at before Breakfast pod. That's b the number

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<v Speaker 1>four than breakfast pod. You can also shoot me an

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<v Speaker 1>email at Before Breakfast Podcasts at iHeartMedia dot com that

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

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

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts

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