1 00:00:03,000 --> 00:00:09,360 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning, 2 00:00:10,680 --> 00:00:16,160 Speaker 1: This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's 3 00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:21,280 Speaker 1: tip is to go on a lunchtime adventure, particularly as 4 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:25,400 Speaker 1: it starts getting darker Earlier. Adventures might be harder to 5 00:00:25,440 --> 00:00:28,920 Speaker 1: have after work than, say, during the summer, but if 6 00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:31,800 Speaker 1: you have a little bit of autonomous time in the 7 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:34,560 Speaker 1: middle of the day, you might be able to use 8 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:40,400 Speaker 1: it for all kinds of interesting things. So in some 9 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:45,040 Speaker 1: kinds of jobs, breaks are formalized and many others they aren't, 10 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:49,800 Speaker 1: but most people take some breaks for no other reason 11 00:00:49,840 --> 00:00:52,360 Speaker 1: than that people need to use the restroom or procure 12 00:00:52,479 --> 00:00:56,280 Speaker 1: things to eat. Handled right, breaks can make you more 13 00:00:56,400 --> 00:01:00,960 Speaker 1: energized for the work ahead, so there are big productivity 14 00:01:01,000 --> 00:01:05,399 Speaker 1: breakthroughs to be had by taking breaks intentionally and actively 15 00:01:05,480 --> 00:01:09,920 Speaker 1: choosing activities for those breaks that boost mood and energy levels. 16 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:15,520 Speaker 1: If you aren't taking regular lunch breaks, commit this week 17 00:01:15,880 --> 00:01:20,200 Speaker 1: to doing so. Then, once you are regularly stepping away 18 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:22,160 Speaker 1: from your workspace for at least a few minutes in 19 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:24,720 Speaker 1: the middle of the day, see if you can increase 20 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:28,360 Speaker 1: the fun factor by going on at least one lunchtime 21 00:01:28,400 --> 00:01:33,360 Speaker 1: adventure a week. A lunchtime adventure is obviously going to 22 00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:36,480 Speaker 1: be short. Most people aren't going to take more than 23 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:39,120 Speaker 1: thirty to forty five minutes or so away from their desks. 24 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:42,479 Speaker 1: But if you have your food ready to go, then 25 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:44,560 Speaker 1: you don't need to spend time standing in line to 26 00:01:44,560 --> 00:01:48,200 Speaker 1: buy it, and you can do something else with these minutes. 27 00:01:49,040 --> 00:01:52,920 Speaker 1: Perhaps you can do something really interesting. It's worth a shot. 28 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 1: Doing so could make a random work day far more memorable. 29 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:01,880 Speaker 1: So wherever you work, look around at places you could 30 00:02:01,920 --> 00:02:04,360 Speaker 1: get to in a very short walk, or, if it's 31 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:07,160 Speaker 1: that sort of place, a quick drive. Make a list 32 00:02:07,200 --> 00:02:11,160 Speaker 1: of potential options. Maybe there are some interesting stores a 33 00:02:11,200 --> 00:02:14,760 Speaker 1: few blocks away that would be fun to peruse. Maybe 34 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:17,400 Speaker 1: there's an indoor garden in the lobby of a nearby 35 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:20,960 Speaker 1: office building. Maybe there are a few food trucks parked 36 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:22,840 Speaker 1: in a parking lot that's a three minute drive from 37 00:02:22,880 --> 00:02:26,160 Speaker 1: your office. If you hauled yourself over there, you'd get 38 00:02:26,200 --> 00:02:30,480 Speaker 1: something more interesting than your cafeteria fair. Maybe there's a 39 00:02:30,520 --> 00:02:34,239 Speaker 1: trail nearby you can walk. Maybe there's an actual destination, 40 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:38,200 Speaker 1: like a museum. Most people won't go to a history 41 00:02:38,280 --> 00:02:41,840 Speaker 1: museum for just twenty minutes, but if you get a membership, 42 00:02:42,400 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 1: you could come back once every week or so and 43 00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:48,960 Speaker 1: see a lot of it. If you have more control 44 00:02:49,040 --> 00:02:51,520 Speaker 1: of your time, then there are lots of other options. 45 00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:55,280 Speaker 1: One of my favorite lunchtime adventures is to go over 46 00:02:55,320 --> 00:02:58,760 Speaker 1: to Chanticleer, a botanical garden that is about a twenty 47 00:02:58,760 --> 00:03:01,600 Speaker 1: minute drive from my house. I have to plan this 48 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:03,800 Speaker 1: out since I'm usually gone about an hour and fifteen 49 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:06,720 Speaker 1: minutes on days I do that, but once every two 50 00:03:06,800 --> 00:03:09,120 Speaker 1: to three weeks during the spring, summer, and fall is 51 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:13,240 Speaker 1: good for seeing something beautiful. If I check the traffic, 52 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:16,400 Speaker 1: sometimes it's only about twenty minutes to the Philadelphia Art 53 00:03:16,480 --> 00:03:19,440 Speaker 1: Museum in the middle of the day. If I go 54 00:03:19,520 --> 00:03:23,360 Speaker 1: for less than an hour, my parking is free. I 55 00:03:23,400 --> 00:03:26,160 Speaker 1: can't do that every day, but can I do it 56 00:03:26,200 --> 00:03:31,320 Speaker 1: once a month. Absolutely. The point here is to shift 57 00:03:31,400 --> 00:03:34,640 Speaker 1: a few mindsets. First, there is the story that you 58 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:37,960 Speaker 1: can't do anything that is not work during work hours. 59 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:40,960 Speaker 1: The truth is that people do things that aren't work 60 00:03:41,040 --> 00:03:44,600 Speaker 1: during work hours. All the time we eat, we go 61 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:48,160 Speaker 1: to the bathroom. Often people read headlines or answer texts 62 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:53,440 Speaker 1: that are not required for their work. The breakthrough is 63 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:56,040 Speaker 1: to decide that since there is going to be time 64 00:03:56,120 --> 00:03:59,880 Speaker 1: spent not working during work hours. It's best to use 65 00:03:59,920 --> 00:04:04,920 Speaker 1: this time intentionally to rejuvenate. This actually allows you to 66 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 1: get more done. Here's another mindset shift. You can do 67 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:12,000 Speaker 1: something occasionally and have it be a fun part of 68 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:16,160 Speaker 1: your life without trying to do things every day. Will 69 00:04:16,200 --> 00:04:21,880 Speaker 1: you go on a lunchtime adventure daily? Probably not. If 70 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:23,599 Speaker 1: you look at your schedule. Could you try to do 71 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:27,600 Speaker 1: something fun and interesting at lunch once a week? You 72 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:34,400 Speaker 1: probably can. These things are not either or. And finally, 73 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:36,159 Speaker 1: I think a lot of us are walking around with 74 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:39,039 Speaker 1: the story that we can't do things, so we don't 75 00:04:39,040 --> 00:04:42,000 Speaker 1: do things. But what if you told yourself the story 76 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:44,480 Speaker 1: that you could get outside and see the fall color 77 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:47,360 Speaker 1: and see the sunshine in the middle of the day, 78 00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:52,200 Speaker 1: Probably at least one day during the next week or two, 79 00:04:52,400 --> 00:04:55,919 Speaker 1: you'll be just puttering around during a thirty minute chunk 80 00:04:56,160 --> 00:04:59,680 Speaker 1: in the middle of your work day. Probably one day 81 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:01,839 Speaker 1: in the next week or two, you could make something 82 00:05:01,920 --> 00:05:08,120 Speaker 1: interesting happen, and then you have an entirely different story. 83 00:05:08,240 --> 00:05:13,280 Speaker 1: I am not starve for time, I am not put upon. 84 00:05:14,440 --> 00:05:17,640 Speaker 1: I am the kind of person who can go browse 85 00:05:17,720 --> 00:05:21,240 Speaker 1: that cool comic bookshop in the middle of the workday. 86 00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:25,719 Speaker 1: It opens up all sorts of possibilities. So look at 87 00:05:25,760 --> 00:05:29,920 Speaker 1: your schedule, look at when you take breaks, Think about 88 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:32,960 Speaker 1: what sort of lunchtime adventures might be possible for you. 89 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:37,600 Speaker 1: Choose a day over the next week to try one. 90 00:05:37,960 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: Choose a backup slot in case the first time is 91 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:43,840 Speaker 1: taken away from you. I'm guessing if you do all that, 92 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:49,520 Speaker 1: you can make it happen and that workday won't be forgotten. 93 00:05:50,600 --> 00:05:53,880 Speaker 1: We don't ask where did the time go when we 94 00:05:54,000 --> 00:05:59,720 Speaker 1: remember where the time went in the meantime. This is 95 00:05:59,760 --> 00:06:04,200 Speaker 1: low Biah. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the 96 00:06:04,200 --> 00:06:14,680 Speaker 1: most of our time. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast. 97 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:18,960 Speaker 1: If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach 98 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:28,720 Speaker 1: me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast 99 00:06:28,760 --> 00:06:33,040 Speaker 1: is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia, 100 00:06:33,080 --> 00:06:37,120 Speaker 1: please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 101 00:06:37,160 --> 00:06:38,400 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.