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 to make sure your actions are serving
Speaker 1: their intended purpose. If they are working as intended, then
Speaker 1: do them, and if they are not, then don't. It
Speaker 1: really is as simple as that we do all kinds
Speaker 1: of things in life for all kinds of reasons, but
Speaker 1: whether our actions are achieving our intended purposes or not
Speaker 1: can be an entirely different matter. When deciding whether to
Speaker 1: do something, an if then decision rule can ensure you
Speaker 1: engage in a behavior only if it has the result
Speaker 1: you intend. Setting up an if then statement prompts you
Speaker 1: to think about why you are doing something. So, for instance,
Speaker 1: let's say you often do your shopping at one of
Speaker 1: those big warehouse stores. Why are you doing that? Presumably
Speaker 1: it's to save money, That's why most people do it.
Speaker 1: But if you end up buying lots of stuff that's
Speaker 1: not on your list, or more than you need of
Speaker 1: things that are on your list, meaning that you spend
Speaker 1: five hundred dollars in the warehouse when you spend two
Speaker 1: dollars at the grocery store, well that's not saving money.
Speaker 1: You can run your shopping habits through the if then rubric.
Speaker 1: If you save money at the warehouse, then you will
Speaker 1: shop there. If you don't, then you won't. Or perhaps
Speaker 1: you are sending Christmas cards and the reason you do
Speaker 1: so is or the enjoyment of sharing family news and
Speaker 1: photos with your friends, but you find that this year
Speaker 1: it feels like a chore. You can use the if
Speaker 1: then rubric to figure out if it's worth it. If
Speaker 1: sending Christmas cards feels joyful, then I will send them.
Speaker 1: If it doesn't feel joyful, then no. Or maybe you've
Speaker 1: started a degree program but are starting to have doubts
Speaker 1: that anyone in the positions you aspire to has that
Speaker 1: particular degree. You can think about it and decide that
Speaker 1: if the degree is obviously useful towards your goals, then
Speaker 1: you will finish the program. If not, time to pursue
Speaker 1: other professional development options now. Of course, it is quite
Speaker 1: possible that you will decide after some analysis that you
Speaker 1: truly are saving money or enjoying the Christmas cards or
Speaker 1: what have you. If so, arey on. There are times
Speaker 1: when actions serve their intended purposes. There are also times
Speaker 1: when we do things out of a vague sense of
Speaker 1: obligation or virtue, but the truth is most likely no
Speaker 1: one really cares. Why are you maintaining an elaborate folder
Speaker 1: system for your emails? Why do you get to your
Speaker 1: desk every day at seven? Why don't you allow your
Speaker 1: kids to watch TV? There may be good reasons for
Speaker 1: these things, and they may be achieving their intended purposes,
Speaker 1: but maybe not. If the lack of TV creates a
Speaker 1: peaceful home and that is your goal, then it is
Speaker 1: probably worthwhile. If it just makes life harder for you,
Speaker 1: then maybe it isn't. Since your ultimate goal probably isn't
Speaker 1: to make life harder, do hard things win and only win,
Speaker 1: they are having a bigger good. Asking the if then
Speaker 1: question helps make that clear. In the meantime, this is Laura.
Speaker 1: Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of
Speaker 1: our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you.
Speaker 1: You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else.
Speaker 1: Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at
Speaker 1: Before Breakfast Pod that's B the number four then Breakfast
Speaker 1: p o D. You can also shoot me an email
Speaker 1: at Before Breakfast Podcast at i heeart media dot com.
Speaker 1: That Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.
Speaker 1: Thanks so much. Should I look forward to staying in touch.
Speaker 1: Before Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For
Speaker 1: more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit the i heart
Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your
Speaker 1: favorite shows. Yea.