1 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:09,160 --> 00:00:14,240 Speaker 1: Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. 3 00:00:14,800 --> 00:00:19,280 Speaker 1: Today's tip is to make yourself a haven, some spot 4 00:00:19,280 --> 00:00:22,240 Speaker 1: of your home where you feel calm and you're not 5 00:00:22,360 --> 00:00:26,800 Speaker 1: constantly feeling like you should be doing something else. Back 6 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:30,720 Speaker 1: before two thousand twenty ended Conferences for the Foreseeable Future, 7 00:00:31,320 --> 00:00:34,599 Speaker 1: I gave a lot of time management speeches, and one 8 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:36,880 Speaker 1: of my biggest laugh lines came when I talked about 9 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:41,120 Speaker 1: saving time by lowering your housekeeping standards. I riff that 10 00:00:41,159 --> 00:00:43,279 Speaker 1: people would tell me that they couldn't relax if their 11 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:46,840 Speaker 1: home was a mess. Okay, I said, clean one room, 12 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:50,360 Speaker 1: shut the door, and sit in there. I said it 13 00:00:50,440 --> 00:00:52,400 Speaker 1: as a joke, but I think there is real merit 14 00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:55,680 Speaker 1: to this idea. Lots of people find it hard to 15 00:00:55,720 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 1: relax when they see undone work. Whether that's your laptop 16 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 1: up sitting there, or a pile of dishes or something 17 00:01:03,160 --> 00:01:06,800 Speaker 1: that is clearly in the wrong place. The instinct is 18 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:09,200 Speaker 1: to go deal with the problem so that then you 19 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:12,520 Speaker 1: can fully relax. But you can see how this plays out. 20 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:15,559 Speaker 1: It takes a long time to clean a whole house 21 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:18,320 Speaker 1: or put everything away, and then it might come out again, 22 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:22,039 Speaker 1: raising the very real possibility that you will never relax, 23 00:01:22,920 --> 00:01:26,240 Speaker 1: and that doesn't sound good. So if you know this 24 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:29,919 Speaker 1: is a problem for you, you you might choose one room 25 00:01:29,959 --> 00:01:32,920 Speaker 1: that is relatively easy to put in order, and then 26 00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:37,920 Speaker 1: consciously treat this as your closed door haven. Keep it 27 00:01:37,959 --> 00:01:41,440 Speaker 1: pretty minimalists there's less stuff that way to put away. 28 00:01:41,959 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 1: If you have kids, maybe a master bedroom could be 29 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:47,440 Speaker 1: good for this. Don't make it a magnet for kid toys. 30 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:50,080 Speaker 1: Shove them out as soon as they wind up in there. 31 00:01:50,720 --> 00:01:55,040 Speaker 1: Fold laundry elsewhere. Usually it's possible to keep the clutter 32 00:01:55,120 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 1: under control. When you need a respite, shut the door 33 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:02,160 Speaker 1: and sit in there. If that doesn't work, If you 34 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 1: happen to have a house that's big enough to have 35 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:06,680 Speaker 1: a formal living room, sometimes these get less use and 36 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:11,400 Speaker 1: hence attract fewer active projects that then look undone, so 37 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:15,320 Speaker 1: that room can become your haven. An enclosed porch could 38 00:02:15,320 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: serve this function, as long as you store the outdoor 39 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:21,680 Speaker 1: gear and projects somewhere else. In a pinch, even a 40 00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:25,200 Speaker 1: small apartment could offer some spot. Or you can't see 41 00:02:25,200 --> 00:02:28,360 Speaker 1: the clutter or the work, turn a chair to a 42 00:02:28,360 --> 00:02:31,639 Speaker 1: window and make the space in front of it minimal 43 00:02:31,960 --> 00:02:36,320 Speaker 1: and relatively clear. Maybe put some fresh flowers there, as 44 00:02:36,360 --> 00:02:37,920 Speaker 1: long as that's not going to make you feel like 45 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:40,280 Speaker 1: you need to change the water or trim the stems. 46 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:43,560 Speaker 1: So maybe a house plant that doesn't need much care, 47 00:02:44,520 --> 00:02:48,640 Speaker 1: or a fake plant. We can waste all kinds of 48 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: time puttering around the house picking up things here and 49 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:54,880 Speaker 1: there without any purpose except a vague pursuit of order. 50 00:02:55,919 --> 00:02:59,600 Speaker 1: I suggest people stop doing that, but I know that's 51 00:02:59,639 --> 00:03:02,840 Speaker 1: harder for some folks than others. And if that sounds 52 00:03:02,880 --> 00:03:06,840 Speaker 1: like you, creating a little haven can be a real 53 00:03:06,919 --> 00:03:12,800 Speaker 1: strategy for putting some actual rest into your life, and 54 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:18,360 Speaker 1: that is well worth doing. In the meantime, this is Laura. 55 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:22,480 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of 56 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:32,079 Speaker 1: our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you. 57 00:03:32,080 --> 00:03:34,960 Speaker 1: You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else. 58 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:39,320 Speaker 1: Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at 59 00:03:39,320 --> 00:03:44,200 Speaker 1: Before Breakfast Pod that's b E the number four, then 60 00:03:44,240 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 1: breakfast p O D. You can also shoot me an 61 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:51,480 Speaker 1: email at Before Breakfast Podcast at i heeart media dot 62 00:03:51,480 --> 00:03:54,440 Speaker 1: com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters. 63 00:03:55,040 --> 00:03:57,120 Speaker 1: Thanks so much. I look forward to staying in Touch 64 00:04:02,960 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: Before Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For 65 00:04:06,160 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 1: more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit the i heart 66 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:12,640 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 67 00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:13,320 Speaker 1: favorite shows.