Go back to school (without going back to school)

Monthly projects during the school year can improve anyone’s life.

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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.
This week we've been talking about tips from Gretchen Reuben,
the host of the podcast Happier. In particular, we've been
looking at tips from her most recent book, Outer Order

(00:24):
inter Calm, But today I'd like to talk about one
tip inspired by her first self help book, The Happiness Project.
This tip is about how you can go sort of
back to school as an adult, but without actually going
back to school and with all the tuition and homework
that entails. A great many years ago, Gretchen looked around
at her very good life and wondered why she didn't

(00:46):
feel blissful. She decided to undertake a year long project
to become happier. Each month she would examine a different
aspect of life and take a few concrete steps that
existing research suggested should improve her mood. She did not
become a complete bluebird. That's really just not in her temperament,
but at the end of the year, she did feel

(01:08):
like life felt better. In any case, it's back to
school season here in the US. Most districts have either
started classes or we'll start in the next two weeks.
As adults, we don't necessarily get to indulge in all
the school supply shopping, in the excitement mixed with trepidation
that novel schedules bring. But I think all of us
could capture the feeling of a fresh start with our

(01:31):
own school year projects. If from now until June you
gave yourself a self improvement project each month, what could
you accomplish a month? About thirty days is long enough
to make change possible, but short enough that you can
stick with the change you choose. That's one reason challenges
such as the whole thirty eating program are popular, and

(01:54):
maybe you do want to borrow from some existing challenges.
In November, for the past few years, I've participated in
National Novel Writing Month, where you commit to writing a
fifty thousand word novel in thirty days. Indeed, my time
management fable Juliette School of Possibilities was written almost entirely
in November. But you can also make up your own challenges.

(02:17):
In October, for instance, I set and met my goal
to read War and Peace by the end of the month.
Each December, I create a holiday fun list of activities
such as eating breakfast with Santa at Longwood Gardens, and
putting my kids in a Christmas pageant. These activities make
this season feel festive to me. In January, with the
energy of New Year's behind you, you might try exercising

(02:40):
every single day, or maybe you try the Dry January
challenge of abstaining from alcohol for a month. If you
play a musical instrument recreationally, you could choose a month
to get serious about the practicing and schedule in an
hour a day or at least thirty hours total over
the month. For improving at your craft, you could take
another month to write a thank you note every single day.

(03:03):
If you're serious about starting a blog or a podcast,
you could choose a month to create a new post
or episode every day. You might get romantic in February
and figure out a new way to show your love
for your partner each day. In any case, you'd probably
learn a lot, and you'd accomplish some interesting things. You'd
find new opportunities, and by June you'd probably feel like

(03:25):
you've moved forward. The equivalent of a grade in life,
perhaps more so than in a traditional classroom. The fact
that adult life often lacks the structure of a classroom
is one thing that makes it so disorienting for some people.
But we can always create our own structure. Going back
to school with eight to nine months of projects is
one way to do that. So what projects will you

(03:47):
undertake this school year? You can let me know at
Before Breakfast podcast at iHeart media dot com. In the meantime,
this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making
the most of our time. Yeah, hey, everybody, I'd love
to hear from you. You can send me your tips,

(04:08):
your questions, 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

(04:29):
with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward
to staying 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.