WEBVTT - What should you do the night before?

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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 going to sound a little counterintuitive. Don't

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<v Speaker 1>move too much of your morning getting ready routine to

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<v Speaker 1>the night before. It sounds smart to make lunches and

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<v Speaker 1>layout outfits, but in the grand context of time, I'm

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<v Speaker 1>not sure it is. Over the years, I've been interviewed

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<v Speaker 1>for many articles on shaving time off morning routines. People

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<v Speaker 1>have to get ready for work or school most mornings,

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<v Speaker 1>and so being able to compress the routine sounds like

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<v Speaker 1>a great way to save time and sleep later. Inevitably,

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<v Speaker 1>other experts will suggest doing things the night before, prepping lunches, bags, breakfasts, outfits, whatever.

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<v Speaker 1>This is often presented as a time saving technique. But

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<v Speaker 1>here's the thing. This doesn't save time. Minutes at night

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<v Speaker 1>are just as real as minutes in the morning. When

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<v Speaker 1>you do stuff the night before, you don't save time.

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<v Speaker 1>You just spread you're getting ready over the night and

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<v Speaker 1>the morning too, And in fact, you'll probably spend more

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<v Speaker 1>time getting ready. Because all activities have transaction costs. To

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<v Speaker 1>lay out your outfit at night requires two clothing events.

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<v Speaker 1>One to pick out the outfit at night and another

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<v Speaker 1>in the morning to put it on, Whereas if you

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<v Speaker 1>just get dressed in the morning, you've only had one

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<v Speaker 1>clothing event. Similarly, making lunches the night before means you've

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<v Speaker 1>gone into the kitchen to do that. Then you'll likely

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<v Speaker 1>go in the kitchen in the morning to to make breakfast.

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<v Speaker 1>Why not combine the two if you plan to make

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<v Speaker 1>lunches and throw something together while your eggs are cooking

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<v Speaker 1>or your coffee is brewing. This is straightforward enough, but

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<v Speaker 1>I think there's a deeper downside to spending time getting

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<v Speaker 1>ready the night before. It often makes us feel like

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<v Speaker 1>we have no free time, or else it pushes bedtime later.

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<v Speaker 1>A lot of people spend time getting ready for the

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<v Speaker 1>morning after their kids go to bed, but this could

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<v Speaker 1>be time to read or relax or do something else

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<v Speaker 1>you like. We all like to read or relax, And

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<v Speaker 1>if you go through a whole routine of morning prep,

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<v Speaker 1>you'll start the reading and relaxing later in order to

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<v Speaker 1>get enough me time to feel satisfied. You'll stay up later,

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<v Speaker 1>and then your morning will start off on the wrong

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<v Speaker 1>foot because you didn't get enough sleep, or else you

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<v Speaker 1>won't be able to get up a little bit before

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<v Speaker 1>your family to exercise or journal or something else you'd

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<v Speaker 1>really like to do. Perhaps it would be better to

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<v Speaker 1>get enough sleep and get ready in the morning when

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<v Speaker 1>you're actually you know, getting ready in the morning. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>I know that mornings can be chaotic. Longtime listeners know

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<v Speaker 1>I have four school aged children, so I know they

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<v Speaker 1>can be chaotic, which maybe one reason people move stuff

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<v Speaker 1>to the night before. If you have to hunt for

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<v Speaker 1>shoes the night before, you go to bed late or

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<v Speaker 1>cut unto leisure time, Whereas if you hunt for shoes

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<v Speaker 1>in the morning, you might be late to school or work,

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<v Speaker 1>and this has more obvious consequences. But rather than moving

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<v Speaker 1>things to the night before, it might be wise to

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<v Speaker 1>for ways to simplify. Do you really need to make lunches?

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<v Speaker 1>My kids buy school lunch and it works great for us.

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<v Speaker 1>It's gotten a lot healthier and better in recent years.

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<v Speaker 1>Do your kids need to lay out their outfits? Why?

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<v Speaker 1>If they're old enough to dress themselves, then this probably

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't need to involve you. You can control what comes

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<v Speaker 1>into the house, but once it's there, this can be

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<v Speaker 1>a matter of personal expression. As for your own outfits,

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<v Speaker 1>why not pare down your wardrobe to a smaller number

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<v Speaker 1>of outfits that you know fit and are flattering than

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<v Speaker 1>anything you pull out in the morning will be an

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<v Speaker 1>excellent choice rather than pack bags at night, Maybe you

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<v Speaker 1>just don't ever unpack them. I have one person a

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<v Speaker 1>neutral color that always has my stuff in it. My

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<v Speaker 1>kids homework is either in their backpacks or actively being done.

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<v Speaker 1>There is no place else to hunt for it. Their

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<v Speaker 1>shoes and coats are also always in the mudroom. By

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<v Speaker 1>simplifying the get out the door process, we by which

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<v Speaker 1>I mean I don't have to spend my pressure, is

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<v Speaker 1>free time the night before getting ready for the morning. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm guessing of all the episodes Before Breakfast I've recorded,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm going to hear from the most people about this one.

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<v Speaker 1>I bet a lot of people swear that spending time

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<v Speaker 1>getting ready the night before is key to a better morning,

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<v Speaker 1>or even that it saves some time. So feel free

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<v Speaker 1>to use a stop watch and let me know. I'd

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<v Speaker 1>love to hear from you. You can reach me at

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast podcast at iHeart Media dot com. I will

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<v Speaker 1>be happy to do an episode on the reasons people

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<v Speaker 1>do get ready the night before or the situations in

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<v Speaker 1>which it might potentially save time. But I also want

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<v Speaker 1>to share what works for me. I love that I

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<v Speaker 1>get to spend my evenings relaxing or reading, and none

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<v Speaker 1>of my kids missed the bus this year either. If

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<v Speaker 1>you spend a lot of time at night getting ready

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<v Speaker 1>for the morning, maybe you want to try pairing that

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<v Speaker 1>back a bit and see how it goes in the meantime.

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

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>here from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod that's B the number four,

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<v Speaker 1>then Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me

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<v Speaker 1>an email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeart media dot

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<v Speaker 1>com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio. For

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