WEBVTT - The world's best productivity hack

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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 that the world's best productivity hack is to

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<v Speaker 1>let go of perfectionism. If you want to get more done,

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<v Speaker 1>the surest way to do that is to stop aiming

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<v Speaker 1>for perfection on every front. So I realize that not

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<v Speaker 1>everyone finds it easy to do less than their best

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<v Speaker 1>on any given task, but doing your best at every

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<v Speaker 1>single thing can be stressful and time consuming. Frankly, it

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<v Speaker 1>is also impossible as time and energy are limited, you're

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<v Speaker 1>going to do less than your best at something. I

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<v Speaker 1>don't want you to make your life smaller so that

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<v Speaker 1>perfectionism seems more attainable. Instead, you are best off recognizing

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<v Speaker 1>when good enough is good enough you can use to

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<v Speaker 1>save time to build a bigger life and have fun too.

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<v Speaker 1>Now I know this is easier said than done, but

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<v Speaker 1>since we aim to be practical here Before Breakfast, I

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<v Speaker 1>think there are three questions you can ask yourself to

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<v Speaker 1>help in this pursuit. Whenever you are considering spending more

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<v Speaker 1>time on something, ask yourself these three things. First, how

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<v Speaker 1>much better is this project going to get? Second? What

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<v Speaker 1>else would I like to get done? And? Third, what

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<v Speaker 1>am I giving up to get this closer to perfect?

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<v Speaker 1>The first question, how much better is this going to get?

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<v Speaker 1>Helps you realize when the marginal improvements start to get

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<v Speaker 1>pretty small. If you are rehearsing a twenty minute presentation,

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<v Speaker 1>the first two to three hours probably improve your presentation

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<v Speaker 1>a lot. The tenth hour perhaps not so much. If

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<v Speaker 1>you are crafting a cover letter for a job you

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<v Speaker 1>are excited about, the second draft is likely better than

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<v Speaker 1>the first, but the sixth draft may be virtually identical

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<v Speaker 1>to the fifth. If you are creating an invitation to

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<v Speaker 1>your partner's fiftieth birthday party, at a certain point, your

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<v Speaker 1>tweaks aren't making it better, they are just making it different.

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<v Speaker 1>Before you work on something longer or revise one more time,

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<v Speaker 1>ask yourself how much better it will realistically be after

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<v Speaker 1>the additional effort. If the answer is not much, then

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<v Speaker 1>it is good enough already. The second question to ask

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<v Speaker 1>yourself is what else would I like to get done?

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<v Speaker 1>If whatever you are attempting to make perfect isn't the

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<v Speaker 1>only thing on your to do list, the sooner you

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<v Speaker 1>call it done, the sooner you can move on to

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<v Speaker 1>the next thing. Finally, ask yourself what am I giving

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<v Speaker 1>up to get this closer to perfect? In other words,

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<v Speaker 1>if you decided you were adequately prepared for your presentation,

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<v Speaker 1>or that you are ready to send the invitation to

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<v Speaker 1>the birthday party, what would you do next? Is there

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<v Speaker 1>a speculative project you've been wanting to explore? Would you

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<v Speaker 1>curl up with a book you've been eager to read?

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<v Speaker 1>Consider in specific terms, what your perfectionism is costing you.

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<v Speaker 1>You may decide that the benefits of getting the task

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<v Speaker 1>closer to perfect pale in comparison to what you could

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<v Speaker 1>do if you realized it was good enough already. So

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<v Speaker 1>if you are plagued by perfectionism, try asking these three questions.

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<v Speaker 1>How much better is this project going to get? What

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<v Speaker 1>else would I like to get done? And what am

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<v Speaker 1>I giving up to get this closer to perfect? I

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<v Speaker 1>really do think that deciding goodenough is good enough is

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<v Speaker 1>the ultimate productivity hack. Some things are worth our best efforts,

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<v Speaker 1>but not everything. Choosing wisely allows us to live bigger

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<v Speaker 1>lives where we get a lot more done. 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. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast.

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<v Speaker 1>If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach

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<v Speaker 1>me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia,

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<v Speaker 1>please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

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<v Speaker 1>listen to your favorite shows.