Try This at Home

Design your summer. We’ve talked about this idea before, at the beginning of previous summers, in episodes 27, 67, and 118. Figure out what you want from your upcoming season. I was first inspired by this idea when I read a passage by the writer Robertson Davies in his essay “Three Worlds, Three Summers” in the collection The Enthusiasms of Robertson Davies:  

Every man makes his own summer. The season has no character of its own, unless one is a farmer with a professional concern for the weather. Circumstances have not allowed me to make a good summer for myself this year…My summer has been overcast by my own heaviness of spirit. I have not had any adventures, and adventures are what make a summer.

Elizabeth is going to dive into the world of scripted fiction podcasts. She and Sarah want to write their first script over the next few months. I’m planning my Summer of Proust (an item on my “19 for 2019” list). I want a summer with a lot of reading and silence. I mention two books: Alain de Botton’s How Proust Can Change Your Life and Andre Aciman’s The Proust Project.

Happiness Hack

I find that having a term for something that I’ve vaguely noticed or experienced gives me a huge rush of satisfaction—for instance, with the words “humblebrag” or “schadenfreude.” The new word I learned: voluntold. Brilliant! 

Four Tendencies Tip

Allison asks: “I am definitely an Obliger. I have been since I was a kid, but the older I get and the further I want to move along in my career. I don’t I don’t want to be one anymore. So I’m just curious to know if you have any advice for how to change your Tendency.” You can take the free quiz here, to see if you’re an Upholder, Obliger, Questioner, or Rebel. More than two million people have taken this free, quick quiz. You can read the book The Four Tendencies. You can take The Four Tendencies course. If you want to create an Accountability Group, you can do it on the Better app. 

Listener Question

Cat asks: “I‘d love to hear some ideas from listeners about how they trick themselves into better transitions and feel more mindful about how they are moving between tasks and roles in their day.” You can download the Daily Time Log here (scroll down to “Better Than Before”), if you want to track your time. The brilliant time-use expert Laura Vanderkam is a big proponent of time tracking.

Gretchen’s Demerit

A classic demerit! I procrastinated about writing an email. As the saying goes, the “Stewing was worse than the doing,” and when I finally put that item on my calendar, I did it, and of course it took about 45 seconds.

Elizabeth’s Gold Star

Elizabeth gives a gold star to our father, who sent a terrific response when Elizabeth’s ABC TV show The Fix was cancelled. When Elizabeth sent our family an update with the disappointing news, she wrote: “Sad but ok. Moving on.” He wrote back, “A city of stops…and starts.” Those words really put this moment into context. They’re comforting because they’re true.