WEBVTT - What stories does your home tell?

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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 think about the stories your home tells

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<v Speaker 1>you and anyone who visits. By consciously choosing these stories,

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<v Speaker 1>you can create an atmosphere that feels good and that

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<v Speaker 1>reinforces the identities that matter to you. Today's tip, like

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<v Speaker 1>another later this week, comes from Emily Grovenor's book Find

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<v Speaker 1>Yourself at Home, a conscious approach to shaping your space

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<v Speaker 1>and your life. Grovenor starts from the premise that, as

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<v Speaker 1>she puts it, home is a place of great power

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<v Speaker 1>and purpose, and when you shape it consciously, it shapes

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<v Speaker 1>you back. I haven't studied design or fung Shuis as

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<v Speaker 1>Grovenor has, but I do know that our homes can

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<v Speaker 1>have a big impact on how we feel. Now, not

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<v Speaker 1>everyone spends a ton of time or energy thinking about

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<v Speaker 1>their living quarters. Perhaps you have seen that photo that

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<v Speaker 1>occasionally goes viral online of a young man's living room

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<v Speaker 1>featuring a single recliner set a few feet in front

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<v Speaker 1>of a television. But once you have decided to put

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<v Speaker 1>some effort into your home, making sure that the effort

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<v Speaker 1>creates an environment that tells the stories you want it telling,

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<v Speaker 1>just requires a little more thought. For instance, most people

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<v Speaker 1>put something on the wall near their entranceway. What is it?

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<v Speaker 1>It could be something generic, or perhaps it could be

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<v Speaker 1>a photograph of waves on the sand at the beach

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<v Speaker 1>you visited most summers since you were a child. That

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<v Speaker 1>memory sparking photo will tell a more rich story than

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<v Speaker 1>something that is not connected to your past. Plenty of

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<v Speaker 1>people display family photographs, but what stories do those tell?

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<v Speaker 1>A stiff, formal portrait of your grandmother might tell a

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<v Speaker 1>less accurate story than one that shows her a little

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<v Speaker 1>rumpled but laughing in her garden, which is where she

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<v Speaker 1>loved to spend her time. Nick Knacks and things like

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<v Speaker 1>that from your travel can also tell stories. Now, this

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't mean that you need to display a miniature leaning

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<v Speaker 1>tower of Pisa somewhere. Instead, the story of your travels

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<v Speaker 1>in Italy could be evoked by a glass dish holding

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<v Speaker 1>sea glass that you picked up from the beach. There.

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<v Speaker 1>You know what stories the SeaGlass tells, and if a

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<v Speaker 1>guest asks about the sea glass, you can tell her

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<v Speaker 1>those stories too. Even your furniture and room layout Grovener

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<v Speaker 1>says tell stories, a big round table evokes warm gatherings

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<v Speaker 1>over meals, shelves of books that you like to read.

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<v Speaker 1>Grovener also explains the fung Shui perspective that a particular

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<v Speaker 1>part of your home is about influence, fame, or reputation.

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<v Speaker 1>She suggests decorating the area associated with your influencer work

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<v Speaker 1>and ways that embody you as you want to be

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<v Speaker 1>seen as more of us work in our home offices.

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<v Speaker 1>This is more important than ever before. I have a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of bookshelves in my office, but I reserved one

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<v Speaker 1>particular section for my own books to remind me about that.

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<v Speaker 1>Another showcase is my collection of miniatures, which is a

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<v Speaker 1>long standing interest of mine and gives me a thrill

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<v Speaker 1>every time I see it. Anyone coming into my office

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<v Speaker 1>comments on the miniatures too. I mean, we're talking a

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<v Speaker 1>miniature piano, a miniature washer and dryer, a miniature dishwasher

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<v Speaker 1>and refrigerator, and all that. We've probably all been to

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<v Speaker 1>houses that really feel like the people who live there.

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<v Speaker 1>We've probably also been to places like the apartment with

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<v Speaker 1>a single recliner. In addition to wondering where you are

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<v Speaker 1>supposed to sit, it just gives the one dimensional picture

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<v Speaker 1>of whoever's there. This person likes to watch TV great,

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<v Speaker 1>but about what what interests them? Who knows. With some

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<v Speaker 1>attention to the stories your home tells, you can let

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<v Speaker 1>your home be a window into who you are. It

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<v Speaker 1>can also remind you of the parts of your identity

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<v Speaker 1>that you love the most. If you think about stories

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<v Speaker 1>your home or your workspace tells, I'd love to hear

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<v Speaker 1>about it. You can reach me at Laura at Laura

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<v Speaker 1>vandercam dot com. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks

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

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas,

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<v Speaker 1>or feedback, you can reach me at Laura at Laura

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<v Speaker 1>vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia.

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