WEBVTT - Choose the bigger life

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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 to choose the bigger life. When we

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<v Speaker 1>think about how we want to spend our time, keeping

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<v Speaker 1>this phrase in mind opens up possibilities. In a recent

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast episode, I talked about figuring out how many

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<v Speaker 1>hours were in a life. If you plan to live

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<v Speaker 1>to be ninety or so, that means life has about

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<v Speaker 1>eight hundred thousand hours. Some chunk has come and gone

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<v Speaker 1>depending on your age, but that isn't meant to be morbid.

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<v Speaker 1>I think looking rationally at our portfolio of ours can

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<v Speaker 1>help us see time as both precious and plentiful. Part

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<v Speaker 1>of being rational about time means recognizing that all time

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<v Speaker 1>involves trade offs. Here's a phrase to remember. Expectations are infinite.

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<v Speaker 1>Time is finite. We are always choosing choose well. So

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<v Speaker 1>when figuring out how to allocate the hours we have left,

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<v Speaker 1>how can we choose well? Gretchen Reuben, author of The

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<v Speaker 1>Happiness Project, has written that her insight for time decisions

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<v Speaker 1>is choose the bigger Life. I think this is a

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<v Speaker 1>good one for a few reasons. First, it takes us

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<v Speaker 1>outside how we happen to feel at any given moment

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<v Speaker 1>in life. It's often easier not to do things. If

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<v Speaker 1>we only listen to how we felt in the present,

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<v Speaker 1>we might spend our entire lives sitting on the couch

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<v Speaker 1>watching television. The things we would like to say we

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<v Speaker 1>have done are not always the easiest things to do

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<v Speaker 1>at any given moment. This question nudges us to look

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<v Speaker 1>at life as a whole. It nudges us to consider

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<v Speaker 1>our future selves and how we might tell the worry

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<v Speaker 1>of our existence. Many of my international trips were challenging

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<v Speaker 1>in the moment, but I'm so glad I've done them,

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<v Speaker 1>particularly now when such travel is limited, and second, many

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<v Speaker 1>of us need the nudge to think bigger now. I

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<v Speaker 1>know there are some narcissistic types out there who feel

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<v Speaker 1>entitled to anything and everything, but my guess is that

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<v Speaker 1>most listeners of this podcast are incredibly careful sorts. We

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<v Speaker 1>are conscientious. We never want to take on more than

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<v Speaker 1>we can handle. That is a great way to go

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<v Speaker 1>through life. I personally love this personality, but sometimes we

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<v Speaker 1>can handle more than we think we can. You have

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<v Speaker 1>some ideas about how your town should run, but isn't

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<v Speaker 1>politics for people with more time and money? Well maybe,

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<v Speaker 1>but we won't find out until you run for office.

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<v Speaker 1>And in choosing the bigger life, change the conversation whether

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<v Speaker 1>you win or not. You have a good job, but

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<v Speaker 1>you've always wanted to start your own business. Choosing the

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<v Speaker 1>bigger life might mean figuring out how to start your

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<v Speaker 1>entrepreneurship journey, perhaps carefully as a side hustle at first,

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<v Speaker 1>knowing that life is too short not to be happy

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<v Speaker 1>with your work. Choosing the bigger life takes energy, but really,

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<v Speaker 1>what are you saving your energy for? Time is plentiful,

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<v Speaker 1>but time is all so precious. I'm not sure we'll

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<v Speaker 1>get to the end and say, thank goodness, I was

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<v Speaker 1>never tired. Thank goodness, I never pushed hard on anything.

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<v Speaker 1>A good life is worth the trouble. So as you

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<v Speaker 1>think about how to spend your time to day and

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<v Speaker 1>looking forward, try repeating this phrase, choose the bigger life.

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<v Speaker 1>It just might change how you allocate however many hours

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<v Speaker 1>you have left 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 podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>At i heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast is

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

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

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

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<v Speaker 1>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. Kay get