Pave the desire paths

Honor the way you actually live

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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 to pave the desire paths. In other words,
recognize how you actually live and set up your life

(00:25):
to embrace your customary choices. So, desire paths, as I
recently learned, are the unofficial footpaths worn by people walking them,
that is, by taking the route they desire rather than
a formal paved path. You know the look of these
desire paths, the warren spots and the grass, showing how

(00:47):
people actually get from the street corner to a building's entrance,
or how they might cross a university quad. Sometimes after
a building is built, wise urban or university planners will
wait to construct paths until they see where the desire
paths are, where do people actually walk. Once these desire

(01:10):
paths have been worn, the developers may lay bricks or
build sidewalks to formalize these choices. By paving the desire paths,
planners guide people on two paths that already feel attractive
and natural, and they avoid having official paths that people
reject in favor of walking on the grass or through
flower beds. Where their steps are kind of unwelcome. Just

(01:35):
as planners can pave the desire paths that pedestrians create,
we can pave the metaphorical desire paths in our own
lives too, by recognizing and honoring the ways of being
that suit us. This way, we can optimize our circumstances
for how we actually live. For instance, if you always

(01:59):
find yourself in front of the fireplace in the winter,
arrange the space so it's conducive to everything you do there.
Perhaps the couch is great for curling up with or
a book or having family time, but you may want
to add a table so you can use the space
for remote work during the day or for doing puzzles
in the evenings. Pave this desire path so you are

(02:21):
not hunched awkwardly on the sofa trying to work scrolling
instead of doing puzzles because you don't want to leave
the fire We can pave the desire paths with our
wardrobes too. If you live in jeans and sneakers, then
that is what you should buy, not dressy pants and heels.
Invest the time and money in finding good genes that

(02:42):
you really like to honor this wardrobe reality in terms
of time. If you have always been a night owl
your whole life, don't try to convince yourself that you
need to build an elaborate early morning routine. Instead, pave
the desire paths by recognizing that you will feel fine

(03:04):
exercising after work, having a later dinner, and reading into
the evening. Instead, build an evening routine schedule that makes
space for all those things that other people aim to
find space for in the morning. Let go of your
assumptions and ideas about what you ought to do. That
is where the official paths are supposed to be. It

(03:26):
is a waste of time and resources to pave a
path that no one takes. Instead, make your life conducive
to what you actually do, and you will create smooth
paths wherever you tread in the meantime. This is Laura.
Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of

(03:49):
our time. Hey, everybody, I'd 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 E the number four then

(04:10):
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 in touch.
Before Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For

(04:32):
more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit the i heart
Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your
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