WEBVTT - Don't waste those minutes before a call

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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>Today's tip is to not lose those minutes right before

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<v Speaker 1>a phone call or meeting. These minutes are incredibly easy

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<v Speaker 1>to waste, but with a little thought, they don't need

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<v Speaker 1>to be spent on things that don't matter. I know

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<v Speaker 1>many people are working from home at least occasionally these days,

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<v Speaker 1>and work from home days can wind up with various

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<v Speaker 1>virtual meetings scattered all over the calendar. You don't need

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<v Speaker 1>to go anywhere, so you don't need to stop what

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<v Speaker 1>you're doing too long before the meeting, but you do

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<v Speaker 1>need to stop other things at some point in order

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<v Speaker 1>to start promptly. So in my case, an eleven o'clock

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<v Speaker 1>call on the calendar means that by ten fifty five

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<v Speaker 1>I have stopped doing much of Note. I pull up

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<v Speaker 1>the link and then fiddle around until it is the

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<v Speaker 1>right time to click in. Now, to be sure this

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<v Speaker 1>isn't a ton of fiddling. Wasting three or four minutes

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<v Speaker 1>a few times a day is not going to be

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<v Speaker 1>the difference between a well lived life and one that

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<v Speaker 1>is squandered. Still, I do believe that even mere minutes

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<v Speaker 1>are worth honoring by using them. Well. That doesn't mean

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<v Speaker 1>doing more stuff just to do more stuff. It means

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<v Speaker 1>recognizing that small bits of time can allow for good

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<v Speaker 1>habits that over time add up. For instance, I have

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<v Speaker 1>been trying to do a few more abdominal strengthening exercises

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<v Speaker 1>after I realize some back pain I've been dealing with

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<v Speaker 1>probably stemmed from a weak core. It turns out that

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<v Speaker 1>a plank pose and some bicycle crunches only take two

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<v Speaker 1>to three minutes to do. That fits perfectly in the

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<v Speaker 1>time between when I have found the link and when

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<v Speaker 1>I click in. By tying these exercises to this specific

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<v Speaker 1>found time, I make them happen, and the more I

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<v Speaker 1>do them, the stronger I become. Now, of course, I

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<v Speaker 1>probably wouldn't be doing these crunches if I were in

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<v Speaker 1>a cubicle. But the good news is that exercise is

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<v Speaker 1>far from the only thing you can do in these

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<v Speaker 1>chunks of time. Maybe it is consciously focusing on your

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<v Speaker 1>breathing for two minutes when you are concentrating and doing

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<v Speaker 1>nothing else. Two minutes can feel like quite a long time,

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<v Speaker 1>but this is an opportunity to warm up your discipline

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<v Speaker 1>and willpower. Before you begin your meeting, you could write

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<v Speaker 1>a few words in a journal. You can read a

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<v Speaker 1>poem if you've got a book of poetry on your desk.

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<v Speaker 1>You can look over your eating agenda again, or think

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<v Speaker 1>about the other people who will be in your meeting

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<v Speaker 1>and maybe think about one thing you admire about each

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<v Speaker 1>of them. Having those thoughts in mind will definitely put

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<v Speaker 1>you in a more constructive place for your tenth zoom

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<v Speaker 1>call of the day. In person meetings require going somewhere,

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<v Speaker 1>but I have found that the same dynamic often plays

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<v Speaker 1>out at least for people who make a point of

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<v Speaker 1>being punctual. If you've got a meeting in a nearby

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<v Speaker 1>conference room at noon, you stop other work a few

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<v Speaker 1>minutes before, But since it doesn't actually take ten minutes

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<v Speaker 1>to walk to the conference room, and since you don't

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<v Speaker 1>want to arrive too early, you pause for a few minutes,

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<v Speaker 1>using this time for something else. For what likely another

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<v Speaker 1>glance at the inbox, But your inbox will always be there.

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<v Speaker 1>Consciously building other habits can let you use this time

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<v Speaker 1>to make ress on bigger things. It does add up,

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<v Speaker 1>so as you go about your day, make a point

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<v Speaker 1>of not wasting those few minutes before a phone caller meeting.

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<v Speaker 1>Figure out what small action you can tie to this

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<v Speaker 1>time and that you can do repeatedly. This will allow

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<v Speaker 1>you to make the most of these little minutes rather

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<v Speaker 1>than seeing them slip through your hands like sand through

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<v Speaker 1>an hour glass. No doubt your meetings already feel like that.

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<v Speaker 1>Sometimes no need to lose the minutes before them. Two.

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<v Speaker 1>In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and

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<v Speaker 1>here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod.

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<v Speaker 1>That's B the number four, then Breakfast p o D.

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<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

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

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<v Speaker 1>spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much, I

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<v Speaker 1>look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a

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<v Speaker 1>production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my

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<v Speaker 1>heart Radio, visit the i Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.