WEBVTT - One way to make your inbox more fun

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>tip is about how to make your inbox more fun.

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<v Speaker 1>If you send messages to people you like, there is

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<v Speaker 1>a very good chance that they will respond. All of

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<v Speaker 1>a sudden, your inbox is a place you might actually

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<v Speaker 1>enjoy rather than just a chore. A great many people

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<v Speaker 1>complain about email, both the time spent managing it and

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<v Speaker 1>the draining nature of so much of it. But here

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<v Speaker 1>is an experiment. Look at your scent messages from the

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<v Speaker 1>past few days. How many are there that you initiated?

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<v Speaker 1>If you're like a lot of us, the answer is

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<v Speaker 1>probably not that many. You are generally responding to stuff

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<v Speaker 1>that is coming in. Even the stuff you are initiating

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<v Speaker 1>is probably pretty functional, like Hey, I'm going to need

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<v Speaker 1>you to cover the sales meeting on Tuesday because I

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<v Speaker 1>have a dentist appointment. No wonder email feels like a chore.

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<v Speaker 1>But here's an idea. If you start reaching out to

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<v Speaker 1>people you like, admire, or want to be back in

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<v Speaker 1>touch with, a great many of these people will respond.

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<v Speaker 1>Their messages will make your inbox more fun. I was

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<v Speaker 1>thinking of this recently. When I was reaching out to

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<v Speaker 1>some author friends about my upcoming book Big Time. I

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<v Speaker 1>was asking people if I could send advance copies to them.

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<v Speaker 1>A lot of people wrote back with very nice messages.

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<v Speaker 1>How cool to see so many friends in my inbox.

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<v Speaker 1>I feel this way every Friday when I email my

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<v Speaker 1>accountability partner and she responds, I know I have a

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<v Speaker 1>cool message from someone I like waiting for me to read,

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<v Speaker 1>with all the details about her week. It's like a

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<v Speaker 1>little treat now. To be sure, it could feel a

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<v Speaker 1>little strange to reach out to someone with no reason,

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<v Speaker 1>but I am sure you can come up with a

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<v Speaker 1>reason if you want to. You saw something that made

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<v Speaker 1>you think of the person. You realize that X happened

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<v Speaker 1>a year ago, and it made you think of them.

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<v Speaker 1>Something the person said came up in conversation lately, a

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<v Speaker 1>mutual friend talked to you. I think you get the idea.

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<v Speaker 1>This really doesn't have to be hard. Now. Not everyone responds,

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<v Speaker 1>but a lot of people do. Some email exchanges will

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<v Speaker 1>lead to longer conversations or maybe even schemes to get together.

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<v Speaker 1>Others will just lead to something basic, like how nice

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<v Speaker 1>to see your name in my inbox. Yes, that was

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<v Speaker 1>funny year ago. Hope you are doing well. And I

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<v Speaker 1>mean maybe that's not so much more than nothing, but

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<v Speaker 1>it is still better than the vast majority of email

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<v Speaker 1>most of us receive. And my guess is the person,

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<v Speaker 1>we'll keep thinking about you. Something will come of it. Eventually.

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<v Speaker 1>When you put things out into the universe, the universe

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<v Speaker 1>does respond. Email is often terrible because it is just

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<v Speaker 1>whatever is coming in. But you can put positive things

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<v Speaker 1>out there and likely positive things will come back that

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<v Speaker 1>will make your inbox all warm and fuzzy or at

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<v Speaker 1>least not so tedious, and that is also a good thing.

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<v Speaker 1>In the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks for listening, and

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<v Speaker 1>here's to making the most of our time. Thanks for

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<v Speaker 1>listening to Before Breakfast. If you've questions, ideas, or feedback,

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<v Speaker 1>you can reach me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts

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<v Speaker 1>from iHeartMedia, please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or

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