Do the best job you can today

Give yourself grace, but still get stuff done

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Today's tip is for those days when nothing is going right,
you're tempted to give up and just try again tomorrow. Now,
it is true that tomorrow can look very different, but

(00:25):
you don't need to throw in the towel. You can
also decide to take a deep breath and just do
the best job you can today. We've all had those
days when, because of circumstances beyond our control, we're not
at our best. A lot of us are feeling that
way right now, with anxiety about the coronavirus epidemic and
so forth. But even in normal times, things can go awry.

(00:49):
Maybe you're exhausted after being up much of the night
with the sick child. Maybe you're improvising on a call
from a random parking lot because a pile up on
the interstate kept you from getting to your desk and
you're no on schedule. Or maybe you lost your planning
period to cover for another teacher who's out and you
still have to teach your own class without the handouts
you plan to photocopy. Whatever the situation rather than getting discouraged.

(01:12):
It's helpful to recognize that the best we can do
today may not be our best ever, but we still
need to do the best job we can today. Now,
there are two insights baked into this tip. The first
and most obvious one is that when we're faced with
subpar circumstances, we can recalibrate our expectations. If you're listening

(01:34):
to this podcast, my guess is that you find it
challenging to be okay with good enough work. But sometimes
a B plus will do just fine. Lots of people
would be happy with a B plus. You can learn
to be happy too. The second insight in this tip, though,
is more profound. On rough days, you're best off not

(01:54):
letting yourself off the hook completely. Now, maybe this is
not the best call you'll ever have, or the best
lesson year will ever teach, or the best story you'll
ever write, but you still need to put in real
effort and do a good enough job. This is what
it means to be a professional. The athletes we admire

(02:14):
most are those committed to helping the team win, even
on the days they're not setting scoring records. A reporter
can turn in a decent article, whether he's inspired or not.
You can be your best self every day, even if
you acknowledge that sometimes that best self is less wonderful
than at other times. Distill the job down to the basics,

(02:38):
but get the basics done. So if you're feeling off
today and worried about the news, or on any day,
ask yourself what the best is that you can muster.
If it's only sending three emails, then send those emails
and then congratulate yourself on a job well done, because

(03:00):
three emails is better than nothing. In the meantime, this
is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the
most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear
from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

(03:20):
or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,
and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod that's b the number four,
then Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me
an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media
dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all
the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to staying

(03:42):
in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio.
For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the i
heart Radio app Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to
your favorite shows. A