1 00:00:03,000 --> 00:00:09,360 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning, 2 00:00:10,880 --> 00:00:16,680 Speaker 1: This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's 3 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:20,080 Speaker 1: tip is that if there is a task on your 4 00:00:20,120 --> 00:00:24,119 Speaker 1: to do list that you keep kicking forward, maybe you 5 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:27,160 Speaker 1: don't actually have to do it at all. And if 6 00:00:27,200 --> 00:00:33,479 Speaker 1: the task can wait, can you eliminate it instead. Longtime 7 00:00:33,520 --> 00:00:36,520 Speaker 1: listeners know that I advocate seeing your to do list 8 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:41,199 Speaker 1: as a contract with yourself. If you put something on 9 00:00:41,240 --> 00:00:44,279 Speaker 1: your list, you are committing to getting it done on 10 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 1: a specific day. I know not everyone agrees with me 11 00:00:48,479 --> 00:00:52,240 Speaker 1: on this, and I also know that life happens even 12 00:00:52,280 --> 00:00:54,520 Speaker 1: if you truly intended to accomplish a task on a 13 00:00:54,520 --> 00:00:57,720 Speaker 1: given day. There are times when unexpected things come up, 14 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:00,279 Speaker 1: when you have a new demand on your time, when 15 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:03,040 Speaker 1: something takes a lot longer than you had any reason 16 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:07,440 Speaker 1: to expect, so you prioritize whatever has to be done 17 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 1: that day and roll forward the rest. There are some 18 00:01:11,880 --> 00:01:16,520 Speaker 1: tasks that are important but not necessarily urgent, like identifying 19 00:01:16,520 --> 00:01:19,880 Speaker 1: your career goals for the year ahead, exploring an idea 20 00:01:19,959 --> 00:01:22,600 Speaker 1: for a new service line for your business, or building 21 00:01:22,640 --> 00:01:26,959 Speaker 1: a relationship with a new colleague. Those should happen, but 22 00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 1: don't have to happen at a specific time. So if 23 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:34,039 Speaker 1: you plan to spend a morning charting out your long 24 00:01:34,160 --> 00:01:36,600 Speaker 1: term career goals, but you have a kid home with 25 00:01:36,640 --> 00:01:39,440 Speaker 1: the flu or an urgent request from your boss or 26 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:43,280 Speaker 1: biggest client, it makes sense to reschedule the career planning 27 00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:47,480 Speaker 1: for another time, So do choose a new time. You 28 00:01:47,560 --> 00:01:51,800 Speaker 1: do want to eventually do these things, but with some 29 00:01:51,880 --> 00:01:53,760 Speaker 1: other tasks. If you don't get to them on the 30 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:56,560 Speaker 1: day you initially plan to do them, you may be 31 00:01:56,640 --> 00:02:01,200 Speaker 1: able to scribble them off the list altogether. Any sort 32 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: of email newsletter that you don't read the day it arrives, 33 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:08,240 Speaker 1: you could probably just delete. If you plan to do 34 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:10,840 Speaker 1: a full clean out of your closet over the weekend 35 00:02:11,440 --> 00:02:14,920 Speaker 1: and you didn't, maybe it really wasn't that important to you. 36 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:18,680 Speaker 1: Maybe you can throw out some ripped items and drop 37 00:02:18,720 --> 00:02:20,839 Speaker 1: a few others in a donation bin and just call 38 00:02:20,880 --> 00:02:25,000 Speaker 1: it a day. Some work tasks that keep getting rescheduled 39 00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:28,640 Speaker 1: make qualify for the cutting block too. Does the binder 40 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:31,840 Speaker 1: you're creating for new board members really need to include 41 00:02:31,880 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 1: an organization history and staff org chart. If you keep 42 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:38,680 Speaker 1: moving these items forward to the next days or the 43 00:02:38,720 --> 00:02:42,839 Speaker 1: next week's priority list. Take the hint that those may 44 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 1: not be the two most important components. It is quite 45 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 1: possible no one will notice they are missing. If you're 46 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,320 Speaker 1: having a hard time with letting go of these tasks, 47 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:54,919 Speaker 1: set a reminder to yourself for next year at this 48 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:58,799 Speaker 1: time to reconsider this decision. If you have managed to 49 00:02:58,840 --> 00:03:02,240 Speaker 1: live your life in the apps of something, probably the 50 00:03:02,280 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: task can be gone for good. If you don't get 51 00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 1: to something the day you would plan to, rather than 52 00:03:08,320 --> 00:03:10,880 Speaker 1: reflexively moving it to the next day or the next day, 53 00:03:11,400 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: consider whether you can just skip the task instead. If 54 00:03:15,400 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: it is not essential that you do a task today, 55 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:24,160 Speaker 1: is it important that you ever do it? Sometimes yes, 56 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:29,000 Speaker 1: but sometimes the answer is actually no, and that is 57 00:03:29,120 --> 00:03:34,840 Speaker 1: pretty liberating to realize. If you eliminate any unnecessary tasks 58 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:37,360 Speaker 1: from your to do list, you can tell me what 59 00:03:37,400 --> 00:03:40,880 Speaker 1: you cross out and how you feel. You can reach 60 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:46,840 Speaker 1: me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. In the meantime, 61 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 1: this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making 62 00:03:51,440 --> 00:04:01,640 Speaker 1: the most of our time. Thanks for listening to before breakfast. 63 00:04:02,200 --> 00:04:05,920 Speaker 1: If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach 64 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:15,680 Speaker 1: me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast 65 00:04:15,720 --> 00:04:20,000 Speaker 1: is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia, 66 00:04:20,040 --> 00:04:24,080 Speaker 1: please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 67 00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:25,400 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.