Plant seeds to enjoy the harvest

Make time for work that just might lead to something big

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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 plant seeds to enjoy the harvest.
Spend some time on speculative work that you aren't sure

(00:25):
will lead to anything. If you plant enough seeds, something
will grow. Enjoying a harvest requires patience and time, but
couple those with hard work and it's amazing what you
can reap. Later this week, my American listeners will be
celebrating Thanksgiving. Many of us are far removed from our

(00:49):
agrarian roots, but originally this holiday was about gratitude for
the harvest. Seeds sown many months ago sprout over the
spring and summer, then they produce their bounty come fall.
It is something of an annual miracle, but it also
depends on a prescribed order of things. If you want

(01:12):
to enjoy a harvest come fall, you need to plant
those seeds. Life is like that. Too Often, small investments
made years ago suddenly produce copious results, and so one
key part of success is making sure that you are

(01:33):
always planting seeds. You make small investments of time and
effort that won't automatically lead to anything but might. Success
is a numbers game, and the more you plant, the
more you are likely to sew. Building relationships is one

(01:53):
obvious way to plant seeds. One of the fun things
about being in the same business for many years is
that people you met at the beginning go on to
do great things. No doubt you have seen this in
your own life. You get an email out of the
blue from someone you worked with fifteen years ago. This
person has a fantastic opportunity and remembers your name. A

(02:19):
planted seed has sprouted, So how do you plant more
of such seeds? Mentoring is always an excellent idea. Folks
you've helped will certainly remember you. Getting to know colleagues
well and attending conferences and figuring out ways to collaborate
with new people are always of planting seeds. You can

(02:44):
also plant seeds by producing some sort of content that
can be out in the world speaking for you when
you are not around. An article in an industry publication
will be there for years and people will find it
and re it, and someone will want to connect because
of it. That seed grows. You do an interview with

(03:07):
a podcast that people in your industry listen to, someone
will hear something you said and realize you'd be perfect
for an opportunity. That seed grows too. It is wonderful
to do great work, but career growth isn't just about
doing the work in front of you. It's about figuring

(03:29):
out what you can do that might pay off for
future you. The key is might. Since you don't know
what seeds will sprout, it helps to plant a lot
of seeds, and sometimes this can be frustrating. I have
told the story many times of how I got my
first contract to write a time management book. An executive

(03:53):
at the publishing house saw a review I wrote of
a book that they had just published. He realized as
he had seen my name elsewhere too. He wrote me
a note saying that if I wasn't under contract somewhere,
he'd love to discuss book ideas. The result was a
book called sty eight Hours. It sounds like such a

(04:16):
neat story, and yet I had been trying to land
a book contract for about eighteen months. At that point
I had lots of potential proposals out there. Among other things,
I had written an eight part series for the Huffington's
Post on topics in my potential book, something I did

(04:36):
for no compensation, but just to get attention for my ideas.
There were a lot of seeds out there. Eventually, it
was a random book review that did the trick, not
because it was a particularly excellent book review, but because eventually,
if you plant enough, something has to come up. We

(05:02):
are all busy, so it is hard to do work
that you don't know will lead to anything. It's hard
enough to do the work that is a basic part
of the job description. But as with anything, I find
it's helpful to give yourself a reasonable goal. I will
spend two hours this week on speculative work, or I

(05:23):
will do five things that might lead to something, even
if I'm not sure what you keep doing this week
after week and you see what happens. You might even
call this your planting seeds list and see how many
entries you can put on it and when things do

(05:44):
happen well. This episode is about planting seeds to enjoy
the harvest. I find the enjoying part is important here too.
We can get so wrapped up in planting seeds that
we forget to celebrate eight the ones that have sprouted.
Everyone is a little miracle and key for this podcast

(06:07):
represent some pretty massive time savings in our pursuit of
life goals. Those of us who run our own businesses
know that when a potential new client reaches out to
you because they heard you speak somewhere, that is a
much more efficient way to land work then you cold

(06:28):
pitching dozens of people if you'd like an exciting new job.
Hearing from an old colleague that she is now the
CEO of a startup that is hiring like crazy is
much better than sending out resumes into the void. So
celebrate any massive winds like this to enjoy your harvest.

(06:51):
One of my favorite ways to do so is to
give myself back some of the time I have saved.
Take little vacations during the work day. You could take
a walk or bike ride somewhere lovely while it's still
light out. A trip to a museum or boutique with
limited hours can be a treat, and coffee with a

(07:11):
friend could be too. You are probably still far ahead,
and then think about how you can plant more seeds.
Can you set up more conversations, do more favors, create
more content. It's fun to think about the possibilities you

(07:32):
are creating, rather than that this is more work you
are doing. You are planting seeds to enjoy the future harvest,
which you will no doubt reap in time. In the meantime,
this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making

(07:54):
the most of our time. YEA. 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

(08:15):
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 in touch. Before Breakfast is a production

(08:37):
of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio,
visit the i heart Radio apps, Apple Podcasts, or wherever
you listen to your favorite shows.