Would you be excited to do it tonight?

How to know if you want to add something into your life

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning.
This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
tip is about how to figure out if something is
interesting to you or if it is just something you

(00:25):
feel like you should do. How would you feel about
doing it tonight? This can provide some useful information about
the lots of different ways that we could spend our time.
So in recent episodes, I have suggested making a list

(00:45):
of things you are into. Several people wrote me to
share their lists, which is amazing. But I also had
some people tell me that they couldn't really tell if
they were into something or if it was just something
they felt like they should be into. They should exercise more,
they should volunteer at the school more. They should hang

(01:09):
out with that old acquaintance who keeps suggesting getting together.
So here is one way to tell if you are
truly excited about something or if it just sounds good
in theory, ask yourself this, would you be excited to
do this thing tonight? Now, to be clear, I know
lots of people have logistical challenges to doing various things tonight,

(01:33):
as in actually tonight, So let's put some parameters on
this scenario, your boss says you can go home early,
and actually the office is going to be closed until
eleven am tomorrow, so there is no need to get
up at the crack of dawn to commute in. Someone
has booked a babysitter for you, or your spouse says

(01:57):
he or she has the kids tonight and we'll get
them up and off to school or daycare tomorrow morning.
Someone has arranged the details of whatever hobby or activity
it is, so you just have to say yes. With
all of that squared away, would you be excited to

(02:20):
do this thing tonight? I think that for things where
you truly do want to do something, the answer is that, yes,
you would be excited to do it tonight. Yes you
would go to that improv class. Yes you would play
the piano. Yes you would go to that artsy film
with your friend Colleen. But with everything squared away, would

(02:41):
you actually want to go to that CrossFit class that
your friend keeps raving about or would you feel like
all things considered, you would rather go for a walk.
Does thinking about the CrossFit class make you excited or
do you not feel energized when you think about doing it?
Would you go hang out with that friend who always
seems sour about everything, Or do you realize that you're

(03:05):
constantly telling this person you are busy is because you
actually find time together kind of draining. In general, I
find that we draw energy from things we enjoy doing.
We feel more energized after doing these things, even though
they take energy to do. We feel excited about the

(03:28):
possibility of doing them even tonight. If the obvious logistics
are taken care of, it can be hard to know
what we truly want versus just what sounds good. Figuring
out our real interests is a skill, like anything else.
You might think it would be obvious, and certainly when

(03:50):
I first started writing about time, I thought it would be.
My original view was that I could help people find
time for their passions because they would already know what
their passions were. Then I talked to enough people to
realize that this wasn't universally true. Plenty of people just

(04:10):
assume they are so busy that there is no point
even figuring out what they like. We do whatever is
right in front of us. Making a list can be helpful,
but even a list can be subject to other impulses
to looking like something A good person would share with
the world to making us seem more sophisticated than we are.

(04:37):
For instance, I put on multiple versions of my list
of one hundred dreams that I wanted to see Casablanca.
It is supposedly the best movie ever made, and I
am the sort of person who likes great art, so
I should see it right Well, I can tell you
that since I have made that list, there have been

(04:58):
hundreds of days where I could have watched that movie
if I wanted to. It never felt like something I
wanted to do tonight, which means that I probably don't
have a huge desire to do it. Good to know
you may find the same. So as you make a

(05:20):
list of your interests, think about whether you would be
excited to do these things tonight. If so, great, If not,
maybe it's not a real priority in your life, and
that is totally fine as well. In the meantime, this

(05:42):
is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the
most of our time. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast.
If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach
me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast

(06:11):
is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia,
please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
listen to your favorite shows.