WEBVTT - Bank time 

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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 it's too bank time. Just as you save

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<v Speaker 1>money for unexpected expenses, you can create a time cushion

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<v Speaker 1>in case your future self has more demands in her

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<v Speaker 1>schedule than you expected. If you read personal finance literature

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<v Speaker 1>or listen to personal finance podcasts like my favorite How

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<v Speaker 1>to Money, you know how important it is to have

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<v Speaker 1>an emergency fund. Keeping six months of living expenses in

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<v Speaker 1>liquid accounts means that you can deal with almost any

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<v Speaker 1>unexpected expense hole in the roof, medical bill, need to

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<v Speaker 1>fly to visit a sick relative. You'll be able to

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<v Speaker 1>handle these things without going into debt. If you lose

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<v Speaker 1>your job, you'll be able to cover your regular living

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<v Speaker 1>expenses until you find a new job. Stuff happens, and

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<v Speaker 1>a financial cushion softens the blow. Having money in the

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<v Speaker 1>bank means you can feel calm about events that might

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<v Speaker 1>otherwise lead to some serious anxiety. Time and money are

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<v Speaker 1>similar in many ways. They are both limited resources, so

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<v Speaker 1>you probably won't be surprised to hear me say that

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<v Speaker 1>you need a time emergency fund too. Of course, while

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<v Speaker 1>money in the bank stays in the bank until you

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<v Speaker 1>need it, banking time isn't quite so straightforward. Once a

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<v Speaker 1>second is gone, it is gone and you cannot buy

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<v Speaker 1>it back. But it is possible to bank time in

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<v Speaker 1>certain ways that can be helpful when you have future

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<v Speaker 1>unexpected demands, like needing to cover for a sick colleague

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<v Speaker 1>or take care of a sick kid, or if you

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<v Speaker 1>need to deal with the burst pipe that requires you

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<v Speaker 1>to schedule plumbers visits during the day, or you know,

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<v Speaker 1>the emergencies could be good things too, like an unexpected

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<v Speaker 1>invitation that you'd like to accept when something comes up,

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<v Speaker 1>it's helpful to have banked investments of time that you

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<v Speaker 1>can draw on so you don't fall behind. One of

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<v Speaker 1>the most straightforward ways to do this is to bank

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<v Speaker 1>extras of anything you're regularly required to produce. I work

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<v Speaker 1>ahead on both my podcasts, so my schedule is more flexible.

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<v Speaker 1>A teacher or trainer might have some banked lesson plans.

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<v Speaker 1>Magazines and newspapers have evergreen features that they can slot

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<v Speaker 1>in should things go awry. The key here is evergreen.

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<v Speaker 1>A teacher wouldn't know for sure that he'd be absent

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<v Speaker 1>on the day he planned to cover Act three of Hamlet.

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<v Speaker 1>But a standalone lesson on let's say a T. S.

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<v Speaker 1>Eliott poem could work. A blog post on a great

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<v Speaker 1>chocolate cake works better than a blog post on a

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<v Speaker 1>Fourth of July themed cake because the latter is too specific.

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<v Speaker 1>You can bank time with personal tasks by working ahead too.

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<v Speaker 1>For example, whenever you cook lasagna, make two, one to eat,

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<v Speaker 1>one to freeze. Voila, you have banked time for a

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<v Speaker 1>busy night when you need to make dinner for your

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<v Speaker 1>family or take food to a friend but are short

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<v Speaker 1>on time. Similarly, by keeping plenty of pantry and freezer

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<v Speaker 1>staples on hand, you can skip a planned trip to

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<v Speaker 1>the grocery store when you need to use the time

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<v Speaker 1>you would have spent going to the grocery store for

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<v Speaker 1>something else. Perhaps the most effective way to bank time

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<v Speaker 1>is by leaving time open. I try not to schedule

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<v Speaker 1>too much for Friday's. That way, when stuff comes up,

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<v Speaker 1>it's got a spot to go. Friday. The time seldom

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<v Speaker 1>winds up staying completely open as and I won't be

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<v Speaker 1>staring at the walls twiddling my thumbs. Instead, it's about

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<v Speaker 1>recognizing that my time estimates aren't always accurate. Leave time

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<v Speaker 1>open and I won't fall behind. I'd also recommend banking

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<v Speaker 1>time with other people when you can do favors big ones,

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<v Speaker 1>little ones. It's a nice thing to do, of course,

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<v Speaker 1>but it's also about recognizing that humans are reciprocal creatures.

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<v Speaker 1>If you have helped your colleague out when he's swamped,

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<v Speaker 1>he will happily help you out when you are swamped too.

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<v Speaker 1>How do you bank time to cope with unexpected demands

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<v Speaker 1>on your schedule? You can let me know at Laura

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<v Speaker 1>at Laura Vanderkamp dot com. In the meantime, this is Laura.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of

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

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

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

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast pod. That's b 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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<v Speaker 1>more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the I heart

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