WEBVTT - Don't plan a work dinner on Valentine's Day

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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 if you are scheduling an event, think

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<v Speaker 1>about what is happening in the broader world at the

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<v Speaker 1>time you are scheduling. At four we never schedule in

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<v Speaker 1>a vacuum, so even if the time seems fine to you,

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<v Speaker 1>make sure that there isn't something else going on that

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<v Speaker 1>you should know about. So I am guessing we have

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<v Speaker 1>all had meetings scheduled for shockingly bad times. Think early

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<v Speaker 1>morning after the super Bowl or a close presidential election,

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<v Speaker 1>or some other night when people were likely to have

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<v Speaker 1>been up too late. Or maybe it is four thirty

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<v Speaker 1>pm on Halloween or New Year's Eve or frankly, any Friday.

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<v Speaker 1>Then there are the awkwardly scheduled social events, like a

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<v Speaker 1>book club brunch on Mother's Day or a wedding the

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<v Speaker 1>day after Thanksgiving. When you are scheduling for a group,

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<v Speaker 1>it is always possible that a given time won't work

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<v Speaker 1>for everyone. But if you think about the broader context

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<v Speaker 1>when you are scheduling and put yourself in your attendee's shoes,

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<v Speaker 1>you will be more likely to find a time that

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<v Speaker 1>will be workable and not irritating for more people. So

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<v Speaker 1>how exactly do you know if something will be a

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<v Speaker 1>bad time for starters? Even if you don't watch TV

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<v Speaker 1>or participate in major cultural events, if something is big

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<v Speaker 1>enough that you have heard of it, then maybe just

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<v Speaker 1>be weary of the morning after. I agree that maybe

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<v Speaker 1>people shouldn't be up until midnight watching the super Bowl,

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<v Speaker 1>but if they are going to be unproductive at your

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<v Speaker 1>seventh thirty meeting that Monday, you still need to deal

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<v Speaker 1>with that reality. You also don't want to schedule much

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<v Speaker 1>for the day after a big holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas,

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<v Speaker 1>since a lot of people will be hoping to take

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<v Speaker 1>those days off even if your office is open, or

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<v Speaker 1>the day after extended school vacations. If you work with

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of parents, some people may end up being

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<v Speaker 1>unexpectedly absent because of flight delays. Other people may have

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<v Speaker 1>been up late traveling home and getting unpacked, and no

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<v Speaker 1>one is likely to have done much prep for the meeting.

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<v Speaker 1>Much better to let people have a day in the

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<v Speaker 1>office before you schedule something that truly matters. You don't

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<v Speaker 1>want to schedule for the day before big holidays either.

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<v Speaker 1>Some people may be out of the office already, and

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<v Speaker 1>other people may be on vacation mentally, even if they

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<v Speaker 1>are there physically. What's more, a meeting the last day

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<v Speaker 1>in the office will probably mean that people don't do

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<v Speaker 1>any need follow up immediately after the meeting. You may

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<v Speaker 1>also want to be aware of dates that are weighty

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<v Speaker 1>for some people, even if they are not particularly important

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<v Speaker 1>for you. So don't schedule a work dinner on Valentine's

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<v Speaker 1>Day even if you don't care about it. Your colleagues

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<v Speaker 1>and their partners may care about the day. Now. I

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<v Speaker 1>totally understand that the day can creep up on you

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<v Speaker 1>if you happen to be single, or if you and

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<v Speaker 1>your partner have a compact to avoid manufactured and overly

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<v Speaker 1>commercial holidays, but it's just highly likely to be a

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<v Speaker 1>problem for someone else. We probably don't love our colleagues

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<v Speaker 1>that much, so be aware. Make sure your calendar has

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<v Speaker 1>major holidays on it, and if you don't have kids,

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<v Speaker 1>ask about the local school schedules so you have some

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<v Speaker 1>idea of when every parent in your office is going

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<v Speaker 1>to want to take off. Basically, when you are scheduling gathering,

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<v Speaker 1>whether professional or social, you want to think through whether

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<v Speaker 1>people are likely to be available, both physically and mentally.

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<v Speaker 1>Put yourself in other people's future shoes and in your

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<v Speaker 1>own future self shoes, and imagine what it would be

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<v Speaker 1>like to attend the gathering at a given day and time.

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<v Speaker 1>That way, you can schedule for a time when people

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<v Speaker 1>will be able to do the gathering justice. 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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