WEBVTT - Make it rare to make it special

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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 things that happen rarely in life tend

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<v Speaker 1>to feel more special. So if you want to preserve

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<v Speaker 1>that feeling that something is a treat, do it a

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<v Speaker 1>little less often than you otherwise would. Today's tip was

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<v Speaker 1>partly inspired by my recent interview with Elizabeth Dunn and

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<v Speaker 1>Jiaying Zhao, co-authors of the book Leave the Lights On.

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<v Speaker 1>This book is about small and generally happiness-inducing ways to

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<v Speaker 1>make environmentally friendly choices. Liz and Jay Z noted that

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<v Speaker 1>eating steak is a particularly carbon-intense activity, but you don't

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<v Speaker 1>have to give your steaks up. you can use the

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<v Speaker 1>principle of the hedonic treadmill to make sure you really

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<v Speaker 1>enjoy those steaks that you do choose to eat. The

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<v Speaker 1>hedonic treadmill is the phenomenon where anything we do frequently

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<v Speaker 1>becomes a little less pleasurable because of the frequency. By

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<v Speaker 1>doing something a little less frequently, we can preserve that

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<v Speaker 1>feeling of specialness. A great steak dinner at a restaurant

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<v Speaker 1>once a month might be more exciting than burgers and

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<v Speaker 1>other red meat four times a week. And you might

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<v Speaker 1>be fine with eating chicken more frequently as a weeknight

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<v Speaker 1>meal instead of beef. That doesn't feel like a huge trade-off.

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<v Speaker 1>So it goes for anything in life. I was thinking

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<v Speaker 1>of this as my family is recently back from our

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<v Speaker 1>annual beach trip. I love the spot we visit on

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<v Speaker 1>the Jersey Shore. We have rented the same house for

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<v Speaker 1>eight years in a row now, often for two weeks.

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<v Speaker 1>I really look forward to those two weeks. I am

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<v Speaker 1>sad to see them be over. And so I ponder

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<v Speaker 1>each year that maybe I should try to spend more

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<v Speaker 1>of my summer at the beach. Maybe we should buy

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<v Speaker 1>a place there. But I know that part of the

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<v Speaker 1>reason these two weeks are so magical for me is

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<v Speaker 1>that they are only two weeks. I treat those days

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<v Speaker 1>like little jewels. I am quite sure I wouldn't do

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<v Speaker 1>that if I was there all the time. While we

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<v Speaker 1>are at the beach, we often get ice cream at

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<v Speaker 1>one of the ice cream parlors in town. For years,

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<v Speaker 1>it was just at one place, and now the town

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<v Speaker 1>has several options that we have been trying. We eat

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of ice cream in two weeks. But I

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<v Speaker 1>almost never go to ice cream parlors outside those two weeks.

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<v Speaker 1>So scooped ice cream in a cone remains a treat

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<v Speaker 1>for me. Maybe you have something like that in your

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<v Speaker 1>life that you really enjoy. Now, you could make it

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<v Speaker 1>a regular component of your life, and sometimes that is

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<v Speaker 1>the right answer. If you enjoy getting together with a

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<v Speaker 1>particular friend, I would suggest doing that more often rather

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<v Speaker 1>than less. There is no need to worry about the

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<v Speaker 1>time becoming less special. Indeed, the more you hang out,

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<v Speaker 1>the more things you will have to talk about. It

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<v Speaker 1>will be great. But for other things, keeping them a

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<v Speaker 1>little more rare than you theoretically could can keep them

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<v Speaker 1>in the category of fun treats. Maybe you only order

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<v Speaker 1>a drink when you are out at a restaurant or bar,

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<v Speaker 1>and you don't drink alcohol at home. Maybe you only

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<v Speaker 1>have dessert once a week, and so it really feels

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<v Speaker 1>like a treat for you, and not just like it's

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<v Speaker 1>Tuesday night and Wednesday night and Thursday night and so forth.

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<v Speaker 1>When things are rare, they feel special. And we can

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<v Speaker 1>choose how often we indulge, with an eye toward keeping

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<v Speaker 1>that special feeling, rather than losing it. 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 lauravandercam.com. Before Breakfast is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of iHeart Media. For more podcasts from iHeart Media, please

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<v Speaker 1>visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

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<v Speaker 1>listen to your favorite shows.