WEBVTT - Second Cup: Waste time better

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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 waste time better. We all have low

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<v Speaker 1>energy time that is hard to use well. If some

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<v Speaker 1>wasted time is inevitable, it might be wise to figure

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<v Speaker 1>out how to waste this time in ways that are

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<v Speaker 1>at least mostly satisfying. Longtime listeners have probably heard me

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<v Speaker 1>talking about getting a new iPhone a few months ago.

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<v Speaker 1>None of my apps transferred, and so I needed to

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<v Speaker 1>make an active decision about whether to put social media

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<v Speaker 1>apps back on my phone. I elected not to. I

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<v Speaker 1>eventually wound up returning to that site formerly known as

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<v Speaker 1>Twitter x now because there's just been so much breaking

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<v Speaker 1>news lately. I am still off the other apps, though

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<v Speaker 1>I wish I could say that I have been incredibly

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<v Speaker 1>productive with all the time I have found, but unfortunately

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<v Speaker 1>that is not the case. If anything, my screen time

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<v Speaker 1>tallies have gone up. I'm not looking at photos on Instagram,

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<v Speaker 1>but I'm looking at my own old photos. I'm not

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<v Speaker 1>looking at people's screeds on Facebook, but I am reading

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<v Speaker 1>the comments on posts at The New York Times and

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<v Speaker 1>on some well trafficked blogs. It seems I have a

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<v Speaker 1>pretty strong desire to scroll around, and apparently I am

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<v Speaker 1>agnostic about where I am doing that scrolling. I am

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<v Speaker 1>pretty sure most of us have some inclination to waste time.

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<v Speaker 1>I have seen thousands of time logs over the years,

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<v Speaker 1>and I have never seen one where every single minute

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<v Speaker 1>was devoted to something meaningful or even enjoyable for the

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<v Speaker 1>person or the people they care about. Oh well, but

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<v Speaker 1>given that this is the case, the question is not

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<v Speaker 1>necessarily how to stop wasting time, It is how to

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<v Speaker 1>waste time better. Of course, there are a few things

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<v Speaker 1>we can do to make sure that there is only

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<v Speaker 1>so much time to waste. Being engaged in your job

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<v Speaker 1>makes working hours feel better, so might be worth doing

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<v Speaker 1>an audit on that. Spending hours with friends and family

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<v Speaker 1>enjoying each other's company is definitely not wasted time. Hobbies

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<v Speaker 1>make down time feel a lot more satisfying. But even

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<v Speaker 1>though I love singing and running and playing the piano,

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<v Speaker 1>I am not going to spend all my down time

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<v Speaker 1>on these things. I'm just not, so how can I

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<v Speaker 1>spend low energy time better? This is one reason I

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<v Speaker 1>try to borrow a lot of coffee table books from

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<v Speaker 1>the library. Looking at someone's lovely living room with a

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<v Speaker 1>view of the ocean is a lot like looking at Instagram.

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<v Speaker 1>But I can't get sucked into some other influencer's really

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<v Speaker 1>horrible take on modern medicine by accident. I subscribe to

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of magazines to at least try to limit

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<v Speaker 1>the time spin online. I will reread books I have

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<v Speaker 1>read before, because well, if I know what's going to happen,

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<v Speaker 1>it's a little easier on the brain. I go for

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<v Speaker 1>meandering walks while listening to music if that is an option.

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<v Speaker 1>Even online time probably can be improved. I'm a fan

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<v Speaker 1>of closed communities spots on the Internet where people have

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<v Speaker 1>to pay to join, or at least have to be

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<v Speaker 1>approved to join. Having to use real names is a

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<v Speaker 1>huge plus. It means people feel like they have a

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<v Speaker 1>relationship with everyone else, and there are real downsides to

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<v Speaker 1>behaving badly. People will know who you are. That is

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<v Speaker 1>not the case with a lot of places. If you

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<v Speaker 1>approach time knowing you will waste time, you can figure

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<v Speaker 1>out ways to make this downtime better. Indeed, I would

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<v Speaker 1>recommend making a list. If you can choose how to

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<v Speaker 1>spend your time, how do you like to spend your time.

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<v Speaker 1>What about time that's sort of discretionary but not entirely,

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<v Speaker 1>like downtime at work, or while watching children, or even

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<v Speaker 1>while standing in line. What can you do during those times?

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<v Speaker 1>Make a list of things that feel most meaningful or

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<v Speaker 1>enjoyable that might still be possible during these windows. Then

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<v Speaker 1>train yourself to do those things. First, If you are

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<v Speaker 1>getting bored at work but you aren't chained to your chair,

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<v Speaker 1>go for a walk. If you're puttering around the house

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<v Speaker 1>waiting for a kid to come home, listen to some music.

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<v Speaker 1>If you're planning to scroll while waiting in a TSA

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<v Speaker 1>line at the airport, log into that private group instead

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<v Speaker 1>of regular social media and read the threads there. Not

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<v Speaker 1>all time can be spent perfectly by any means, but

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<v Speaker 1>given that everyone wastes time, figuring out how to waste

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<v Speaker 1>time in ways that feel more enjoyable can be a

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<v Speaker 1>big win. It's worth putting some thought into it. In

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<v Speaker 1>the meantime, This is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's

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<v Speaker 1>to making the most of our time. Thanks for listening

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<v Speaker 1>to before breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback,

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<v Speaker 1>you can reach me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts

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