WEBVTT - Open space invites opportunity

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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 start looking at open space differently. Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>you have so much you could be doing with that time,

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<v Speaker 1>but open space invites opportunity, often opportunities that don't appear

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<v Speaker 1>when you cram your schedule full. One of my cardinal

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<v Speaker 1>rules of time management is to leave some open space

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<v Speaker 1>in a schedule. That is, because stuff comes up, things

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<v Speaker 1>take longer than expected, things go wrong. When you have

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<v Speaker 1>open space, you can deal with these inevitable emergencies without

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<v Speaker 1>taking time away from other things that you care about.

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<v Speaker 1>If you've got two hours open at the end of

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<v Speaker 1>the workday, a client's new questions don't derail your planned

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<v Speaker 1>after work workout. You can fit both. If you've got

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<v Speaker 1>Friday open, then Thursday's unproductive team brainstorming session that has

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<v Speaker 1>to be redone doesn't force you to cancel next week's activities.

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<v Speaker 1>There is slack to absorb the overflow. But even if

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<v Speaker 1>things don't go wrong, this open space can still be useful.

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<v Speaker 1>Many of us don't have a whole lot of time

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<v Speaker 1>to think or to follow threads in our lives, or

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<v Speaker 1>even read articles all the way to the end. I

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<v Speaker 1>was speaking with a woman recently who mentioned that when

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<v Speaker 1>she had left a Friday open and didn't schedule any

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<v Speaker 1>meetings or calls, she decided to use the time to

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<v Speaker 1>analyze the previous year's sales. The resulting report has proved

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<v Speaker 1>incredibly useful for her team and company. If she had

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<v Speaker 1>a day full of meetings, that probably wouldn't have happened.

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<v Speaker 1>She also came up with an idea for a podcast

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<v Speaker 1>guest for her show, someone unexpected for her field, but

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<v Speaker 1>who would work great. Without the space to think, she

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<v Speaker 1>wouldn't have been pondering that question. Open space invites opportunity

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<v Speaker 1>in a way a cluttered calendar. Can't you get an

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<v Speaker 1>email from someone you enjoy talking to, so you pick

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<v Speaker 1>up the phone and call and come up with some

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<v Speaker 1>great ideas. Together, you read an article all the way

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<v Speaker 1>to the end and come up with other good ideas.

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<v Speaker 1>I know that it is hard to leave open space

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<v Speaker 1>when there is so much going on. People often tell

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<v Speaker 1>me that it feels irresponsible to leave time open. If

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<v Speaker 1>someone has been trying to meet with you for two

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<v Speaker 1>weeks and you see that Friday is open, it seems

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<v Speaker 1>wrong to tell them guess what not this week either.

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<v Speaker 1>But here's the thing. If you really wanted that meeting

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<v Speaker 1>to happen, my guess is that you would have made

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<v Speaker 1>it happen. If you don't, then it is mostly someone

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<v Speaker 1>else's agenda, and putting it during your open time we'll

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<v Speaker 1>keep you from thinking up stuff that might prove far

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<v Speaker 1>more useful. Open space doesn't stay open, but it can't

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<v Speaker 1>be filled with the useful stuff if you fill it

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<v Speaker 1>with less useful stuff. So today, think about your schedule

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<v Speaker 1>and think about where you can force in a bit

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<v Speaker 1>more open space. Can you schedule an open hour after

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<v Speaker 1>lunch or before quitting time? Can you leave a morning

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<v Speaker 1>open each week, or maybe an afternoon? How about all

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<v Speaker 1>day Fridays tend to be good for this. It can

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<v Speaker 1>be hard at first, but over time it might get easier,

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<v Speaker 1>and as you start coming up with great ideas, you'll

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<v Speaker 1>become more motivated to leave the space open. You get

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<v Speaker 1>a meeting request and think, hey, is this worth foregoing

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<v Speaker 1>my really good ideas to have Chances are no, so

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<v Speaker 1>you move it elsewhere and you feel less busy while

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<v Speaker 1>getting more done 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.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey everybody, I'd love to hear from you. You can

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<v Speaker 1>send me your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just

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<v Speaker 1>connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before

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<v Speaker 1>Breakfast pod. That's b E the number four, then Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>p o D. You can also shoot me an email

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<v Speaker 1>at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot com

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<v Speaker 1>that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For

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