WEBVTT - Second Cup: Plan it in, do it anyway

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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 a phrase I repeat to myself all the time.

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<v Speaker 1>Plan it in, do it anyway. I find I make

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<v Speaker 1>much better use of my time when I think beyond

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<v Speaker 1>how I feel right now, A better question when I

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<v Speaker 1>think about how I spend my time looking back? Will

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<v Speaker 1>I be happy I did this? Will I be happy

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<v Speaker 1>with this memory? If so, my experiencing self just needs

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<v Speaker 1>to get on board. That phrase experiencing self comes from

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<v Speaker 1>psychologist Daniel Kanneman's work. This Nobel Prize winning researcher noted

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<v Speaker 1>that the self really has multiple identities. There's what we're

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<v Speaker 1>going through right at this instant, the moment when you're

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<v Speaker 1>listening to me tell you about this topic. But much

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<v Speaker 1>of our internal lives actually involve the remembering self, the

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<v Speaker 1>keeper of our memories. You think back to your life

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<v Speaker 1>and the story of what brought you to this moment.

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<v Speaker 1>I actually like to think about this in terms of

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<v Speaker 1>three selves, the experiencing self and the remembering self, but

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<v Speaker 1>also the anticipating self. Another big chunk of our interior

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<v Speaker 1>monologues consists of our plans, hopes, and anxieties about the future.

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<v Speaker 1>You might be commuting on a rainy day, but you're

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<v Speaker 1>thinking about that sunny beach vacation you have planned for August.

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<v Speaker 1>Our brains have an amazing ability to time travel backwards

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<v Speaker 1>and forwards. Here's why this matters as we think about

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<v Speaker 1>how we spend our time. The present is actually an

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<v Speaker 1>incredibly ephemeral moment. In his book The Principles of Psychology,

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<v Speaker 1>William James writes, where is it this present? It has

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<v Speaker 1>melted in our grasp, fled ere, We could touch it,

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<v Speaker 1>gone in the instant of becoming. Back in William James's day,

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<v Speaker 1>there was a lot of strange experimental inquiry into the

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<v Speaker 1>exact length of the present. Our senses can't distinguish between

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<v Speaker 1>things that happen less than about a half second apart,

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<v Speaker 1>and working memory is a maximum of about twelve seconds.

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<v Speaker 1>So the length of the present must be somewhere in there,

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<v Speaker 1>or at least that's what I gather from reading about

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<v Speaker 1>these various experiments. So the present is fleeting. Almost all

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<v Speaker 1>of life is lived by the anticipating and remembering selves.

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<v Speaker 1>We can anticipate for years, we can remember for decades

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<v Speaker 1>The challenge is that the present, the moment occupied by

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<v Speaker 1>the experiencing self, has a disproportionate effect on our actions,

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<v Speaker 1>and frankly, the experiencing self is a little bit lazy.

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<v Speaker 1>The remembering self will be thrilled to have gone on

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<v Speaker 1>that early morning trail run so she can see the

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<v Speaker 1>gorgeous sun rise over that nearby lake. The experiencing self, well,

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<v Speaker 1>she's comfortable in bed, hitting snooze until the sun is

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<v Speaker 1>high in the sky. The anticipating self thought it would

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<v Speaker 1>be fun to go to an art museum on a

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<v Speaker 1>Friday night when admission is free and there's a bar

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<v Speaker 1>and music, and the remembering self will fondly recall the

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<v Speaker 1>masterpieces and chatting with new friends in line for a cocktail.

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<v Speaker 1>But the experiencing self is tired after work. The experiencing

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<v Speaker 1>self is the one who will have to brave the

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<v Speaker 1>cold and the rain and the Friday night traffic. The

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<v Speaker 1>experiencing self is not happy about this split of labor,

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<v Speaker 1>so she rebels. She ignores what the anticipating and remembering

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<v Speaker 1>self want, and justifies this tantrum by pointing out that

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<v Speaker 1>the museum will still be there next Friday, so she's

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<v Speaker 1>just going to watch Netflix instead, immediate pleasure wins out

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<v Speaker 1>over the more effortful sort. One of the best ways

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<v Speaker 1>I've heard this phenomenon described is in philosopher Robert Gruden's

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<v Speaker 1>book Time and the Art of Living. He says, we

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<v Speaker 1>pamper the present like a spoiled child. We indulge its

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<v Speaker 1>whim to scroll through Instagram instead of living a life

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<v Speaker 1>worth taking pictures about. So how do we keep the

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<v Speaker 1>experiencing selfs tyranny in check? It isn't easy. People are

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<v Speaker 1>bad at considering their future selves in general, which is

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<v Speaker 1>why so few people invest properly for retirement. But that's

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<v Speaker 1>where my mantra comes in. Whenever I find myself listening

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<v Speaker 1>too much to the experiencing self, I repeat my phrase,

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<v Speaker 1>plan it in do it anyway. If my anticipating self

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<v Speaker 1>really wanted to do something, my remembering self will probably

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<v Speaker 1>be glad that I did it. I may be tired,

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<v Speaker 1>but guess what, I'll always be tired, and we draw

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<v Speaker 1>energy from meaningful things. Furthermore, all time passes, whether I

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<v Speaker 1>do anything today or not. Eventually today will be gone,

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<v Speaker 1>Tomorrow will be gone too. Time can be filled with

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<v Speaker 1>what amounts to nothing, or it can be filled with

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<v Speaker 1>something more meaningful. So if you'd like to have time

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<v Speaker 1>feel richer and more meaningful, plan in exciting things the

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<v Speaker 1>many adventures we've talked about in previous episodes, and some

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<v Speaker 1>bigger adventures too. And then when you get to the

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<v Speaker 1>moment and you are wavering because your couch seems inviting,

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<v Speaker 1>repeat this phrase. Plan it in. Do it anyway. Your

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<v Speaker 1>remembering self will thank you. In fact, if you want

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<v Speaker 1>to encourage this mindset in the future, take a moment

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<v Speaker 1>right now to thank your past experiencing self for having

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<v Speaker 1>done something difficult that you can now smile upon. I

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<v Speaker 1>just spent some time looking through photos I took a

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<v Speaker 1>few weeks ago of my kids at a botanical garden.

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<v Speaker 1>They did not want to turn off their video games

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<v Speaker 1>and get in the car. My experiencing self did not

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<v Speaker 1>enjoy that battle. But all that is in the past. Now.

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<v Speaker 1>What is left are these images of sunshine and flowers

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<v Speaker 1>and children in a moment of childhood that will be

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<v Speaker 1>gone before I know it. So what will you decide

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<v Speaker 1>to do anyway today? Feel free to let me know

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<v Speaker 1>at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeartMedia dot com. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>this is Laura, thanks for listening and here's to making

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. Hey everybody, I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four then Breakfast pod. You can also shoot me

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<v Speaker 1>an email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeartMedia 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. Should I look forward to staying in touch.

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

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