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 think about when everyone else does something,
Speaker 1: and then find another time doing something at the opposite
Speaker 1: time as everybody else. Lets you avoid crowds and get
Speaker 1: more done. A lot of national public radio local affiliates
Speaker 1: do what they call counter programming. After they set the
Speaker 1: program schedule for their main radio station, they'll schedule opposite
Speaker 1: programming on their other stations. So if they're playing classical
Speaker 1: music on the main station, there might be news on
Speaker 1: the other one, and vice versa. That way, if a
Speaker 1: listener doesn't care about the main programming, the counter programming
Speaker 1: might still work. You can counter program in your own
Speaker 1: schedule too, do what you need to do in life
Speaker 1: while everyone else is metaphorically on another station. By doing this,
Speaker 1: you'll encounter smaller crowds end less waiting. If you're tackling
Speaker 1: life maintenance tasks, they'll get done faster, and if you're
Speaker 1: looking for fun, you'll find more of it with less sassle. So,
Speaker 1: for instance, instead of working nine to five and commuting
Speaker 1: during rush hour, see if you can work different hours
Speaker 1: like seven to three or eleven to seven, and get
Speaker 1: to and from work in half the time. You might
Speaker 1: decide to grocery shop on Saturday night or Friday's before
Speaker 1: work instead of weekend afternoons, when you'll be jostling carts
Speaker 1: in front of the milk case. Take an early lunch,
Speaker 1: and go to the gym at eleven am when it's
Speaker 1: empty instead of before or after work when it's packed.
Speaker 1: Because the children's museum is fullest on rainy days, visit
Speaker 1: when it's sunny afore going outside to play in the sun.
Speaker 1: Of course, call medical offices, airlines, and pretty much everyone
Speaker 1: else anytime but Mondays at nine am or lunch hours,
Speaker 1: because that's when everybody else is calling, and you will
Speaker 1: be listening to hold music for what seems like forever.
Speaker 1: You can counter program social events as well. Birthday parties
Speaker 1: and play dates are much easier to schedule for Sunday
Speaker 1: afternoons and evenings than Saturday afternoons. It won't take nearly
Speaker 1: as long to find a Tuesday night when your friends
Speaker 1: are free as it will to find a Friday night.
Speaker 1: You probably already know when most people do things, but
Speaker 1: if not, you can ask the people who work various
Speaker 1: places for their advice. If you find yourself waiting in
Speaker 1: long lines every time you go to the post office,
Speaker 1: ask the clerk about the best time to mail packages.
Speaker 1: The receptionist at your doctor's office can recommend the best
Speaker 1: time to call about your lab results. And sometimes the
Speaker 1: market works. If you notice that hotel prices and air
Speaker 1: affairs are much lower for one week versus another, well
Speaker 1: you've probably hit upon a break between the high season
Speaker 1: and low season. Good to know. In any case, if
Speaker 1: you have some control of your time, it's worth it
Speaker 1: to try counter programming. By varying your timing just a
Speaker 1: little bit from what's most popular, you'll spend less money
Speaker 1: and avoid the crowds too. 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 E the number four than
Speaker 1: breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me an
Speaker 1: email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeartMedia dot com That
Speaker 1: before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters thanks
Speaker 1: so much. I look forward to staying in touch. Before
Speaker 1: Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For more
Speaker 1: podcasts from I heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app,
Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.