Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is for those days when nothing is going right,
Speaker 1: you're tempted to give up and just try again tomorrow. Now,
Speaker 1: it is true that tomorrow can look very different, but
Speaker 1: you don't need to throw in the towel. You can
Speaker 1: also decide to take a deep breath and just do
Speaker 1: the best job you can today. We've all had those
Speaker 1: days when, because of circumstances beyond our control, we're not
Speaker 1: at our best. A lot of us are feeling that
Speaker 1: way right now, with anxiety about the coronavirus epidemic and
Speaker 1: so forth. But even in normal times, things can go awry.
Speaker 1: Maybe you're exhausted after being up much of the night
Speaker 1: with the sick child. Maybe you're improvising on a call
Speaker 1: from a random parking lot because a pile up on
Speaker 1: the interstate kept you from getting to your desk and
Speaker 1: you're no on schedule. Or maybe you lost your planning
Speaker 1: period to cover for another teacher who's out and you
Speaker 1: still have to teach your own class without the handouts
Speaker 1: you plan to photocopy. Whatever the situation rather than getting discouraged.
Speaker 1: It's helpful to recognize that the best we can do
Speaker 1: today may not be our best ever, but we still
Speaker 1: need to do the best job we can today. Now,
Speaker 1: there are two insights baked into this tip. The first
Speaker 1: and most obvious one is that when we're faced with
Speaker 1: subpar circumstances, we can recalibrate our expectations. If you're listening
Speaker 1: to this podcast, my guess is that you find it
Speaker 1: challenging to be okay with good enough work. But sometimes
Speaker 1: a B plus will do just fine. Lots of people
Speaker 1: would be happy with a B plus. You can learn
Speaker 1: to be happy too. The second insight in this tip, though,
Speaker 1: is more profound. On rough days, you're best off not
Speaker 1: letting yourself off the hook completely. Now, maybe this is
Speaker 1: not the best call you'll ever have, or the best
Speaker 1: lesson year will ever teach, or the best story you'll
Speaker 1: ever write, but you still need to put in real
Speaker 1: effort and do a good enough job. This is what
Speaker 1: it means to be a professional. The athletes we admire
Speaker 1: most are those committed to helping the team win, even
Speaker 1: on the days they're not setting scoring records. A reporter
Speaker 1: can turn in a decent article, whether he's inspired or not.
Speaker 1: You can be your best self every day, even if
Speaker 1: you acknowledge that sometimes that best self is less wonderful
Speaker 1: than at other times. Distill the job down to the basics,
Speaker 1: but get the basics done. So if you're feeling off
Speaker 1: today and worried about the news, or on any day,
Speaker 1: ask yourself what the best is that you can muster.
Speaker 1: If it's only sending three emails, then send those emails
Speaker 1: and then congratulate yourself on a job well done, because
Speaker 1: three emails is better than nothing. In the meantime, this
Speaker 1: is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the
Speaker 1: most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear
Speaker 1: from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,
Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,
Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod that's b the number four,
Speaker 1: then Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me
Speaker 1: an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media
Speaker 1: dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all
Speaker 1: the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to staying
Speaker 1: in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the i
Speaker 1: heart Radio app Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to
Speaker 1: your favorite shows. A