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 take the break you need. Work, family,
Speaker 1: and life maintenance tasks may feel unrelenting right now, after
Speaker 1: almost no variation in the last five months, and unfortunately,
Speaker 1: with travel limitations and uncertainty, this may not be the
Speaker 1: summer for that epic tropical vacation that would let you
Speaker 1: fully relax. So what do you do when you feel
Speaker 1: like you could really use a break? The best approach
Speaker 1: is to figure out exactly what it is that you
Speaker 1: need a break from and find a way to make
Speaker 1: that happen. For many parents, the biggest need is for
Speaker 1: some kid free time. If this sounds like you, well,
Speaker 1: time to do some brainstorming. Could you trade off with
Speaker 1: your partner? Maybe this Saturday you leave home before the
Speaker 1: kids wake up, and you spend the day hiking or kayaking,
Speaker 1: or going for a long drive, or even just working
Speaker 1: at your office while it's empty. Then next Saturday you
Speaker 1: could give your partner the day off. You may both
Speaker 1: really want the solitude, but if no one asks, it
Speaker 1: won't happen and you'll both feel vaguely stressed and unhappy,
Speaker 1: be the bold one to make it work. If trading
Speaker 1: off with a partner isn't an option, maybe another adult
Speaker 1: in your life would make the same swap, a neighbor
Speaker 1: family with whom you could trade long weekly plateates, or
Speaker 1: a relative with kids the same ages. If your kid's
Speaker 1: grandparents are comfortable with it, maybe you can send your
Speaker 1: kids on a trip to camp Grandma's for a few
Speaker 1: days or possibly even a week. You definitely feel like
Speaker 1: you've gotten a break at the end of that, Or
Speaker 1: maybe it's household chores you need a break from. Are
Speaker 1: you at the point where you just cannot cook dinner
Speaker 1: or unload the dishwasher for the hundred the first consecutive day,
Speaker 1: then don't This could be a great time to swap
Speaker 1: chores with a family member. You can also give yourself
Speaker 1: permission to skip some chores once in a while. Your
Speaker 1: home will not become unsafe for human habitation if you
Speaker 1: skip vacuuming this week. Ordering in from a local restaurant
Speaker 1: is a great thing to do at a time when
Speaker 1: many restaurants have seen their in person revenue dwindle. Or
Speaker 1: maybe you need a break from work. Do you need
Speaker 1: a day without any video calls. That's doable. Just find
Speaker 1: a day with no meetings scheduled yet and block off
Speaker 1: the time for a specific project so you'll have other
Speaker 1: plans if a colleague suggests that time for a call,
Speaker 1: or and here's an idea, take a vacation day even
Speaker 1: if you don't go anywhere. Just because you can work
Speaker 1: from home doesn't mean you have to work from home
Speaker 1: every single day. Or maybe it's not that you need
Speaker 1: a break from anything in particular, You just need a
Speaker 1: break from doing the same thing every day. If that's
Speaker 1: the case, translate the special things you miss into something
Speaker 1: feasible within current constraints. Do you miss going out to
Speaker 1: nice restaurants? Then cook a special dinner or order from
Speaker 1: that special restaurant, Put flowers on the table, and turn
Speaker 1: on some music. Do you miss going to the movies?
Speaker 1: Choose a movie you really want to watch, rearrange the
Speaker 1: furniture for theater style seating, and pop some popcorn. Do
Speaker 1: you miss being with friends? Have a backyard cocktail party.
Speaker 1: Will a restorative weekend or afternoon refresh you as much
Speaker 1: as a full vacation will. Probably not, but by paying
Speaker 1: attention to what you need, a break from and what
Speaker 1: special things you miss. You'll be able to lift your
Speaker 1: mood a bit and start the week with some extra energy.
Speaker 1: In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and
Speaker 1: here's to making the most of our time. M Hey everybody,
Speaker 1: I'd love to hear from you. You can send me
Speaker 1: your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with
Speaker 1: me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod
Speaker 1: that's B the number four, then Breakfast p o D.
Speaker 1: You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast
Speaker 1: podcast at i heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast
Speaker 1: is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much,
Speaker 1: I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is
Speaker 1: a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from
Speaker 1: my heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,
Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.