Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is to be prepared for low moments. When
Speaker 1: we pay attention to our lives, we can often foresee
Speaker 1: spots where life will feel rough. When you know that's
Speaker 1: going to happen, though, you can prepare and that can
Speaker 1: make low moments feel more doable. Some time ago, my
Speaker 1: family took a vacation in Florida in August. Now, Florida
Speaker 1: is a lovely place at times, but generally not during August,
Speaker 1: when every day was muggy and ninety degrees. Since we
Speaker 1: were doing the amusement park thing, we were standing in
Speaker 1: long lines in the boiling sun. Most of the time
Speaker 1: it was fine. We had a lot of fun together,
Speaker 1: but every day around three o'clock, the younger kids would
Speaker 1: start melting down. This led to some unhappiness, but once
Speaker 1: we realized the pattern, we were more prepared to deal
Speaker 1: with it. You know what's great at three o'clock ice cream,
Speaker 1: especially if you can buy ice cream or some other
Speaker 1: treat and eat it in an air conditioned restaurant. We
Speaker 1: would eat slowly, lingering in the air conditioning and then
Speaker 1: emerge fortified and into waning heat. The evenings in Florida
Speaker 1: can be lovely, even in August. I try to remind
Speaker 1: myself of this discovery. With little kids, late afternoon can
Speaker 1: often be a witching hour, whatever the weather. On the
Speaker 1: days I am caring for my small kids solo, it
Speaker 1: can be tempting to not plan anything in the post
Speaker 1: nap spot. Three thirty PM isn't that long until dinner
Speaker 1: and bedtime and so forth. But then what happens if
Speaker 1: you don't do anything at three thirty is that by
Speaker 1: four thirty people are melting down and fighting, and you
Speaker 1: are desperately trying to figure out what to do. Knowing
Speaker 1: people are going to add hunger to boredom soon enough,
Speaker 1: best to have a plan for that after nap spot,
Speaker 1: a playground trip, a post nap plate, a quick trip
Speaker 1: to the zoo or museum that doesn't close until five
Speaker 1: or five thirty, some pool time in the summer, zip
Speaker 1: out there, and four PM passes with you doing something
Speaker 1: the board meltdowns won't happen until after dinner, at which
Speaker 1: point it's time to get the little ones bathed and
Speaker 1: into bed. Anyway, Interestingly, if you lead work teams or
Speaker 1: teams of volunteers, you might notice some similarities to long
Speaker 1: days with little kids. Every project goes through a valley
Speaker 1: of despair. Someone misses a deadline, something you thought was
Speaker 1: going to work doesn't during the rehearsal one week before
Speaker 1: the concert. People completely flub two of the major songs.
Speaker 1: These events feel miserable. They are also entirely predictable, and
Speaker 1: so wise leaders plan projects with these valleys of despair
Speaker 1: in mind. You use the bad rehearsal as a nudge
Speaker 1: to get people to meet in small groups to practice
Speaker 1: their parts. You make yourself available for an extra rehearsal
Speaker 1: to help motivate people to work together. And then, rather
Speaker 1: than being overconfident for the concert, you are rushing toward peak.
Speaker 1: Right before perfect timing, you knew the low moment was coming,
Speaker 1: and you were prepared. You even made the most of it.
Speaker 1: As you think about your life, think about where the
Speaker 1: predictable low moments might happen. The academic year might feel
Speaker 1: really rough in November and February. Maybe you run an
Speaker 1: accounting office where a cold, rainy week in March always
Speaker 1: feels like the end of the world. So be prepared
Speaker 1: save the fancy catered lunches for that week, or bring
Speaker 1: in a group that gives ten minute neck and shoulder
Speaker 1: massages to people at their desks. You get the idea.
Speaker 1: Think about where things will feel intolerable. You know these
Speaker 1: moments do pass. You've been through them before. In the moment,
Speaker 1: it can feel like they are interminable, but they probably aren't.
Speaker 1: It won't be three o'clock in the muggy Florida sun forever.
Speaker 1: Tax deadlines will pass. Your job is to figure out
Speaker 1: where the low moments are and prepare for them so
Speaker 1: they don't feel quite so low. If you do that,
Speaker 1: life will feel a lot better in the meantime. This
Speaker 1: is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the
Speaker 1: most of our time. Hey everybody, I'd love to hear
Speaker 1: from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,
Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook
Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod that's b E the
Speaker 1: number four, then breakfast p O D. You can also
Speaker 1: shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcast at i
Speaker 1: heeart media dot com That Before Breakfast is spelled out
Speaker 1: with all the letters. Thanks so much. I look forward
Speaker 1: to staying in touch Before Breakfast is a production of
Speaker 1: I heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio,
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Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite shows.