WEBVTT - Mondays aren't for deciding

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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 that Monday mornings aren't a great time

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<v Speaker 1>for figuring out your week. When you track your time,

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<v Speaker 1>Ideally you should see a big chunk of time on

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<v Speaker 1>Monday morning devoted to your most important projects. If there's

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of running around or dithering, then maybe something

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<v Speaker 1>needs to change. When this episode is first airing in January,

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<v Speaker 1>I am leading a time tracking challenge where hundreds of

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<v Speaker 1>people are logging their time for a week. We are

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<v Speaker 1>all trying to figure out where the time really goes

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<v Speaker 1>so we can make wise decisions. If that sounds good

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<v Speaker 1>to you, then feel free to join in. You just

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<v Speaker 1>write down what you're doing as often as you remember,

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<v Speaker 1>and keep going for a week. Then you can celebrate,

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<v Speaker 1>reflect or change. My weekly time logs start on Mondays

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<v Speaker 1>at five am. Now. I know that Monday is seldom

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<v Speaker 1>anyone's favorite day of the week, but what you write

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<v Speaker 1>down about how you spent Monday morning can provide important

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<v Speaker 1>clues to whether you are maximizing time or whether there

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<v Speaker 1>is an opportunity to make steadier progress toward your goals.

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<v Speaker 1>Many people show up at work on Monday morning and

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<v Speaker 1>then figure out what they intend to do with the day.

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<v Speaker 1>Some industrious folks use this time to figure out the

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<v Speaker 1>rest of the week as well, and it makes sense.

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<v Speaker 1>But here's the problem. Most people have more energy at

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<v Speaker 1>the start of things then later on. If you make

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<v Speaker 1>a New Year's resolution to go to the gym, you

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<v Speaker 1>go more times during the first two weeks of January

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<v Speaker 1>than you do any other fortnight. If you decide to

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<v Speaker 1>clean out the garage, you tend not to gain momentum

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<v Speaker 1>as you go. Instead, you start strong and then have

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<v Speaker 1>to keep yourself motivated through heavy bribery later. This means

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<v Speaker 1>that even though many people show up Monday morning a

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<v Speaker 1>bit sleep deprived, they still have more energy for executing

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<v Speaker 1>on things than they will on say, Friday afternoon. If

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<v Speaker 1>you spend Monday morning deciding what you need to do

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<v Speaker 1>for the week, you will miss out on that initial

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<v Speaker 1>burst of motivation. Plus you just have less time to

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<v Speaker 1>work with. If Friday afternoon will be a bit of

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<v Speaker 1>a wash, then losing Monday morning for execution too really

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<v Speaker 1>starts to trim down the work week. The solution is

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<v Speaker 1>to decide how you will spend your time during a

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<v Speaker 1>low energy time. I recommend Friday afternoons. It's during business

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<v Speaker 1>hours so you can make appointments and send meeting requests.

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<v Speaker 1>But most people aren't doing much of consequence during this time.

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<v Speaker 1>It is hard to start anything new. It is easier

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<v Speaker 1>to start something new on Monday morning. So choose on

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<v Speaker 1>Friday what you will tackle on Monday morning. That way

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<v Speaker 1>you can make the most of both blocks of time.

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<v Speaker 1>And if you really want to level up your game,

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<v Speaker 1>assign yourself either your toughest task or your most important

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<v Speaker 1>task for Monday morning. That way you can use that

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<v Speaker 1>start up momentum to plow through it and then it

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<v Speaker 1>is done. You have already won the week by lunch time.

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<v Speaker 1>So as you track your time, look at how you

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<v Speaker 1>spend Monday morning. Is a big, solid chunk devoted to

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<v Speaker 1>one substantial task or are you all over the place?

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<v Speaker 1>Choosing the former rather than the latter can make you

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<v Speaker 1>a lot more productive. It's worth giving it a try.

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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 I

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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.