249. 168-Hour Week: Take Control of Time & Upgrade Your Life with Laura Vanderkam #WellnessWednesdays

May 3, 2023

Laura Vanderkam, a time-management expert and author of "Tranquility by Tuesday," shares her insights on reclaiming time. She introduces the concept of viewing your time on a weekly basis, advocating a 168-hour mindset that helps prioritize what truly matters. Listeners learn practical tips like planning their week on Fridays and scheduling activities based on energy levels. Laura's nine rules for time management, including 'effortful before effortless' leisure and committing to weekly adventures, empower everyone to optimize their time and enjoy life more fully.

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ANECDOTE

Parenting Sparked Her Time Focus

Laura's interest in time sharpened after having her first child and noticing how parenting reshaped priorities.
She studied successful people's schedules and wrote 168 Hours to explore how time use defines life.

INSIGHT

Think In 168-Hour Weeks

Thinking in weeks (168 hours) makes time feel more abundant than thinking in days.
Reframing time to weeks reveals space for family, exercise, and hobbies outside work and sleep.

ADVICE

Track One Week To Ground Decisions

Track your time for a week to see what your life actually looks like instead of telling yourself a story.
Use that data to decide what to spend more or less time on and make targeted tweaks.

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Today's guest is Laura Vanderkam. She's the author of several time management productivity books, and her TED Talk garnered over 13 million views. Her newest book, Tranquility by Tuesday, gives us nine ways to calm the chaos and make time for what matters most.

In today's podcast episode, you are going to learn how to look at your time in weeks, in the 168 hours you have in a week, versus your days. This allows us to prioritize the things that are most important to us, make meaningful memories and take time for ourselves. Laura also shares the research and data behind her nine rules for time management, and provides tangible ways we can upgrade our lives by being more intentional with our time.

When you think about women who have multiple hats to wear, whether they're at their job or with their family life and friends, it’s easy to become reactive throughout the day. Taking control of your schedule and living the life that you want to is so important to so many of us, and yet we don't have the tools to do it. I love everything that Laura teaches and I'm so excited to have her on the show to give us what we want most, and that is time.

We also cover…

00:02:00 — The Biggest Time Management Life Hack

How time management became Laura’s speciality
Key takeaways for time management early on in her career
Thinking about time in terms of weeks instead of days
Tips for being intentional and mindful of how you spend your time
Recommendations for how to plan out your week in advance

00:17:00 — Benefits of Having Blank Space & Fun in Your Schedule

Laura’s 9 rules for time management
How to commit to making time for yourself, especially when you have a family
Benefits of having a backup time slot or open space in your calendar
How many hours of your day should be scheduled for productivity?
Tips for entrepreneurs who feel like they’re pouring from an empty cup

00:32:00 — How to Make Time Memorable & Intentional

The importance of planning things in your week that are memorable
How to have fulfilling and nourishing leisure time
Tips for winding down before bed
Motivational science and data behind time management and productivity Laura’s learned

Resources:

Website: lauravanderkam.com
TED Talk: How to Take Control of Your Free Time
Read: Tranquility by Tuesday: 9 Ways to Calm the Chaos and Make Time for What Matters by Laura Vanderkam
Read: Laura Vanderkam
Instagram: @lvanderkam
Twitter: @lvanderkam
Podcast: Best of Both Worlds
Podcast: Before Breakfast

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