Leave a night open

How not to be over scheduled

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of my Heart Radio.
Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Today's tip is to leave a night open. Even a
busy family schedule can feel far more manageable when there

(00:24):
is one night without a lot going on. I have
five children, including four who are in school and doing activities,
and so that back to school season is always a
time of intensity. I try to figure out a schedule
that works for each family member but also works for
the family overall. Some stuff happens when it happens, but

(00:50):
with other activities, we have a choice about which day
we go. So as much as possible, I try to
create one night with nothing going on. If that's not possible,
maybe it's a night with just one short thing after
school and the rest of the evening completely open. This way,

(01:13):
we know we have one night where we could have
dinner together. Kids will have one night during the week
when they can concentrate on homework or do longer school projects,
or get caught up on instrument practice. People can relax
without running around anywhere. I have found that it is
worth being a little busier on the other nights in

(01:36):
order to keep one night clear. We have often aimed
for Wednesdays in our family as the open night, because
even if Monday and Tuesday feel busy, we know that well,
Wednesday is coming up and that will be more low key.
Then Thursday can be a little busier, but Friday tends

(01:58):
to be relatively relaxed as well. It all evens out
whether you have children or not. I find it helps
to have one night per week where you plan to
be a little more relaxed. If you often work late,
maybe you can choose one night where you consciously plan
to come home earlier. It might be worth working a

(02:20):
little later on the already late nights to make that happen.
You'll get more quality time with your family coming home
at four pm one or two days a week and
nine pm on the other days, then coming home right
when kids go to bed every single night. If you
have kid activities, having one night off from them can

(02:41):
change the entire rhythm of the week. In general, it
helps to think of our lives in terms of weeks
rather than days. When we keep one night open, we
are taking advantage of our lives. Having this weekly rhythm
rather than having something on every night. We experience time differently.

(03:03):
By having some longer nights and some shorter nights, we
get both intensity and rest. We can also manage our
energy through the week. A long day gets taken in
context because we know it is not the only kind
of day. We have shorter ones coming up to. So

(03:26):
as you build your schedule or your family scheduled this
back to school season, try to keep this strategy in mind.
Look at when things happen and which nights seem like
they might naturally be lighter than others. Then see if
you can consciously move things out of the lightest night

(03:47):
in order to make it open. Then protect this time.
If someone wants to sign up for rock climbing lessons
and Wednesday is the open night. When you see lessons
happen on Mondays and Wednesdays, you know to push for
the Monday option. You can build the schedule more mindfully

(04:10):
rather than making choices without any guidelines at all. In
the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's
to making the most of our time. Hey everybody, I'd

(04:32):
love to hear from you. You can send me your tips,
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 iHeart

(04:52):
media dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out 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 I heart Radio, visit
the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

(05:13):
listen to your favorite shows.