Second Cup: Don't let uncertainty hold up your life

0:03Speaker 1:Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's tip is that you don't need to let uncertainty hold up your life. Even if you are unsure what your future holds, you can still make plans. You might need to hold them loosely, but if you are respectful and and transparent, that can be okay. So there are lots of reasons that people become hesitant to make plans for the future. Maybe they're looking for a new job and don't know when an interview opportunity might come up or what their daily rhythms would be at a new organization.

0:53Speaker 1:Maybe they're supporting a relative who is ill and can't predict when they'll need to provide care or be a second set of ears at a medical appointment. I know people who are trying to start a family who've put long-term plans on hold for a long time because, well, is that when there will be a newborn in the house? Is that when the adoption agency will come through and we'll need to drop everything? It is all understandable. And yet, life keeps going. And we only have so much time.

1:27Speaker 1:It would be so much easier to decide to take that long-wished-for trip to California instead if you knew you would find the perfect job in three months. But when you don't know that, the trip planning gets put off. Who knows when it happens? So here's something to remember. Even if you can't carve your plans in stone, you can still plan. You can make plans to spend a weekend with your best friend who lives a few hours away. But let her know that if your mother takes a turn for the worse, you may need to reschedule. You can make plans to have lunch with a friend next month, presuming that you haven't started a new job with a short and inflexible lunch break. But you let your friend know that you are looking, and that she can hold the plans lightly too. You can look for a new job or apply to graduate school, even if you are looking to start a family. If it happens, you'll figure it out. Anywhere that deserves you will be excited for you. Now, perhaps some folks listening to this are wondering what the big deal is. They make plans and cancel them all the time. But I'm guessing perhaps a few more folks

2:44Speaker 1:listening to this fall in the category of what Gretchen Rubin calls upholders. These are folks who aim to meet all inner and outer expectations. I fall in this category and I never want to cancel anything. I am so loathe to cancel things. that I generally won't agree to things, if I think there is even a small chance that I might need to cancel. But the funny part of that is that when other people cancel things and have a legitimate reason to do so, I'm not put out by it. When someone tells me, I'd love to talk with you that day, but just a heads up that I am interviewing for jobs and might need to reschedule, I would totally understand. So if you are facing uncertainty in your life, don't think you have to forego all future planning. I mean, maybe buy the refundable plane tickets.

3:42Speaker 1:But you can buy them. Quite possibly you will get to take your trip, even if life is uncertain. And you will probably be glad that you did. In the meantime, this 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 lauravandercam.com. Before Breakfast 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. Thank you.