WEBVTT - But first this

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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 for those moments when your work it's

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<v Speaker 1>hard and you're tempted to turn your attention elsewhere, You

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<v Speaker 1>can do that after you persist a little longer on

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<v Speaker 1>the task at hand, Identify a natural stopping point you'll

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<v Speaker 1>reach before you take a break, and then persist until

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<v Speaker 1>you get there, telling yourself but first this, we'll keep

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<v Speaker 1>you going just a little bit more. Anyone who set

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<v Speaker 1>exercise goals is familiar with the idea of pushing in

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<v Speaker 1>the face of a little discomfort. If you're running a

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<v Speaker 1>half marathon and you're tired at mile eleven, well you

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<v Speaker 1>don't sit down on the curb or head over to

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<v Speaker 1>a nearby restaurant. Somehow you pace yourself to get through

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<v Speaker 1>to the end. Most people who lift weights won't stop

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<v Speaker 1>at rep eleven. They'll somehow push to twelve. And yet

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<v Speaker 1>in many cases we don't feel the same urge toward

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<v Speaker 1>a natural stopping point with other kinds of work that

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<v Speaker 1>bookcases assembled. But we hit a tricky part and well,

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<v Speaker 1>is it time to go grab a cup of coffee?

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<v Speaker 1>I could have a podcast script for this show or

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<v Speaker 1>the New Corner Office almost written, and get stuck on

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<v Speaker 1>the closing and go check my email. I bet you

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<v Speaker 1>can recall when you've also stopped in the middle of

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<v Speaker 1>a task. For those of us who work at computers,

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<v Speaker 1>what usually happens is that we're deep in a project

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<v Speaker 1>and then hit a roadblock, something is challenging, or we

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<v Speaker 1>briefly get knocked out of a state of flow. We

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<v Speaker 1>could keep going, pushing through the challenge until we hit

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<v Speaker 1>a natural stopping point, but it's so tempting to just

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<v Speaker 1>check email instead, ease off the pressure, just see what's there.

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<v Speaker 1>Except here's the problem. That roadblock, it's still there, and

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<v Speaker 1>when you go back to it, because of course eventually

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<v Speaker 1>you do have to go back to it, you're starting

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<v Speaker 1>from zero, whereas before you had a running start, it's

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<v Speaker 1>not going to be easier to deal with Now it

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<v Speaker 1>will probably be harder. You'll have to get back into

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<v Speaker 1>the project, figure out where you were, regain momentum, and

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<v Speaker 1>then tackle the issue. It's often better to persist just

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<v Speaker 1>a little longer and then take a brain break. Instead

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<v Speaker 1>of switching gears as soon as work gets hard, try

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<v Speaker 1>telling yourself. But first this you don't have to resist

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<v Speaker 1>checking email or headlines, or getting a glass of water

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<v Speaker 1>or whatever you do when your mind needs a rest.

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<v Speaker 1>Just delay your mental break until you've finished writing the

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<v Speaker 1>next paragraph, responding to the final question in your client's email,

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<v Speaker 1>or whatever the challenging task, complete the next step. That way,

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<v Speaker 1>you'll maintain momentum and get more done. This is a

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<v Speaker 1>much better option than giving up, even unintentionally, every time

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<v Speaker 1>something gets hard. You may find that by the time

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<v Speaker 1>you finished writing the next paragraph for creating the next slide,

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<v Speaker 1>you're able to keep going, even beyond the spot where

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<v Speaker 1>you gave yourself permission to stop. But even if not,

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<v Speaker 1>when you take your break, you'll have a ready spot

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<v Speaker 1>to come back to. Getting back in the groove won't

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<v Speaker 1>be quite so hard. So today, if you find yourself

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<v Speaker 1>tempted to check email when the going gets rough, persist

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<v Speaker 1>just a little longer. First get to a natural stopping point.

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<v Speaker 1>But first this, you may be surprised at just how

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<v Speaker 1>far you go. In the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks

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<v Speaker 1>for listening, and 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 E 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 i heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much,

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<v Speaker 1>I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is

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<v Speaker 1>a production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from

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<v Speaker 1>my 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.