WEBVTT - Embrace work/life integration

0:00:03.440 --> 0:00:06.720
<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of my Heart Radio.

0:00:08.880 --> 0:00:15.200
<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

0:00:16.320 --> 0:00:22.080
<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to embrace work life integration, especially if

0:00:22.120 --> 0:00:24.200
<v Speaker 1>you are still working from home at least some of

0:00:24.200 --> 0:00:28.080
<v Speaker 1>the time. There is real happiness to be gained by

0:00:28.120 --> 0:00:33.680
<v Speaker 1>being a little more flexible about when things happen. I

0:00:33.720 --> 0:00:37.320
<v Speaker 1>am writing podcast scripts at ten am on Sunday morning.

0:00:38.479 --> 0:00:41.199
<v Speaker 1>My todd learns off somewhere else right now, so it

0:00:41.280 --> 0:00:44.440
<v Speaker 1>was possible to get a little focused work time. I

0:00:44.479 --> 0:00:47.559
<v Speaker 1>am making the most of it. I also worked what

0:00:47.640 --> 0:00:50.320
<v Speaker 1>I call a split shift a few nights this week,

0:00:51.440 --> 0:00:55.600
<v Speaker 1>doing work after the toddler went to bed. But the

0:00:55.680 --> 0:00:58.520
<v Speaker 1>reason was that I did a lot of non work

0:00:58.640 --> 0:01:01.080
<v Speaker 1>stuff between the hours of nine to five. Over the

0:01:01.160 --> 0:01:04.319
<v Speaker 1>last few work days, I went in the pool in

0:01:04.360 --> 0:01:08.000
<v Speaker 1>the afternoon when a family friend came over. I spent

0:01:08.120 --> 0:01:10.959
<v Speaker 1>some time playing with the toddler while our sitter took

0:01:11.000 --> 0:01:14.440
<v Speaker 1>the older kids to something else. I went for a run.

0:01:14.880 --> 0:01:18.960
<v Speaker 1>During the day, I had a long phone conversation with

0:01:19.040 --> 0:01:23.640
<v Speaker 1>an old friend. I know from years of studying people's

0:01:23.640 --> 0:01:29.080
<v Speaker 1>schedules that some people prefer strict separation between work and home.

0:01:30.280 --> 0:01:33.640
<v Speaker 1>If they ever have to do anything professional during random

0:01:33.720 --> 0:01:36.840
<v Speaker 1>non work hours, it makes them feel like something is

0:01:37.080 --> 0:01:43.480
<v Speaker 1>greatly wrong. And correspondingly, when something non work related happens

0:01:43.560 --> 0:01:47.080
<v Speaker 1>during the work day, it feels terrible and awful, like

0:01:47.160 --> 0:01:51.520
<v Speaker 1>a huge distraction from everything. Or people do their absolute

0:01:51.560 --> 0:01:55.640
<v Speaker 1>best to make sure this scenario never comes up. But

0:01:55.800 --> 0:01:59.360
<v Speaker 1>is that the only approach. There are a lot of

0:01:59.400 --> 0:02:03.040
<v Speaker 1>fun things that can happen during the work day and

0:02:03.080 --> 0:02:06.920
<v Speaker 1>that are hard to pull off at other times. Personally,

0:02:07.000 --> 0:02:10.040
<v Speaker 1>I would rather go in the pool at three pm

0:02:10.080 --> 0:02:13.720
<v Speaker 1>and then work at nine pm, then not go in

0:02:13.760 --> 0:02:15.840
<v Speaker 1>the pool out of some sense that it is wrong

0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:18.120
<v Speaker 1>to be in the pool at three pm and wrong

0:02:18.160 --> 0:02:21.079
<v Speaker 1>to be working at nine pm. I mean, why is

0:02:21.120 --> 0:02:26.000
<v Speaker 1>it wrong time? It's time. We can use it for anything,

0:02:26.760 --> 0:02:30.280
<v Speaker 1>as long as the work gets done. Now, to be clear,

0:02:30.360 --> 0:02:33.720
<v Speaker 1>I know I work for myself. I have control over

0:02:33.760 --> 0:02:37.760
<v Speaker 1>my schedule. But with millions more people working from home

0:02:37.800 --> 0:02:40.880
<v Speaker 1>than did a few years ago, a great many more

0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:46.120
<v Speaker 1>people have similar levels of control over their time. Once

0:02:46.160 --> 0:02:50.000
<v Speaker 1>you remove the commute, you remove a great many of

0:02:50.040 --> 0:02:53.200
<v Speaker 1>the time norms that keep people at their desks from

0:02:53.280 --> 0:02:58.080
<v Speaker 1>nine to five. Work and effectiveness in general have to

0:02:58.120 --> 0:03:01.480
<v Speaker 1>be measured in terms of ta asks rather than time,

0:03:02.560 --> 0:03:05.840
<v Speaker 1>and once that's the case, you see that time can

0:03:05.880 --> 0:03:10.000
<v Speaker 1>be a lot more malleable. Now, I don't recommend flitting

0:03:10.040 --> 0:03:15.960
<v Speaker 1>back and forth constantly. Much work does require concentration, and

0:03:16.040 --> 0:03:18.000
<v Speaker 1>that means ours when you are not trying to do

0:03:18.120 --> 0:03:22.000
<v Speaker 1>something else. It is also nice to spend long stretches

0:03:22.000 --> 0:03:25.720
<v Speaker 1>of time on a weekend not thinking about anything work related.

0:03:27.120 --> 0:03:30.840
<v Speaker 1>But even with the broad standard structure in place, we

0:03:30.880 --> 0:03:34.800
<v Speaker 1>can be a bit more flexible on the margins. So

0:03:35.280 --> 0:03:37.320
<v Speaker 1>if there is something that you would like to do

0:03:37.400 --> 0:03:40.560
<v Speaker 1>during the work day that you haven't considered doing in

0:03:40.600 --> 0:03:46.120
<v Speaker 1>the past, why not try it just one day, just

0:03:46.320 --> 0:03:49.520
<v Speaker 1>this once. Go for a run in the middle of

0:03:49.520 --> 0:03:52.440
<v Speaker 1>the work day, take a long lunch with a kid

0:03:52.440 --> 0:03:55.440
<v Speaker 1>who is home from school, Go out to lunch with

0:03:55.480 --> 0:03:59.600
<v Speaker 1>your spouse, Go for a quick trip to an art museum.

0:03:59.640 --> 0:04:03.720
<v Speaker 1>That is this at four pm. Just make sure that

0:04:03.800 --> 0:04:07.840
<v Speaker 1>you get done what needs to get done. That means

0:04:07.880 --> 0:04:12.040
<v Speaker 1>being clear on what needs to be done, figure out

0:04:12.120 --> 0:04:17.839
<v Speaker 1>your priorities, figure out deadlines, be on track, get ahead.

0:04:18.920 --> 0:04:23.279
<v Speaker 1>But when you are feel free to embrace work life integration.

0:04:24.240 --> 0:04:26.080
<v Speaker 1>It is the best way to put in the time

0:04:26.080 --> 0:04:30.040
<v Speaker 1>you need to at work while having a full life

0:04:30.440 --> 0:04:36.080
<v Speaker 1>as well. In the meantime, This is Laura. Thanks for

0:04:36.160 --> 0:04:47.320
<v Speaker 1>listening and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

0:04:47.520 --> 0:04:49.640
<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

0:04:49.680 --> 0:04:53.320
<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

0:04:53.360 --> 0:04:57.719
<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod

0:04:58.440 --> 0:05:02.760
<v Speaker 1>that's b the Numb Before Then Breakfast p o D.

0:05:03.640 --> 0:05:06.480
<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

0:05:06.560 --> 0:05:09.960
<v Speaker 1>podcast at i heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast

0:05:10.080 --> 0:05:12.719
<v Speaker 1>is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much,

0:05:12.839 --> 0:05:20.960
<v Speaker 1>I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is

0:05:20.960 --> 0:05:24.200
<v Speaker 1>a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from

0:05:24.240 --> 0:05:28.240
<v Speaker 1>I heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

0:05:28.480 --> 0:05:30.360
<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.