Do life’s mundane tasks like paying bills, answering emails or booking appointments feel like a whole other job? The stuff of life never ends. It piles up in junk drawers, steals our time, weighs on our minds and, if avoided for too long, can have painful consequences. We are all drowning in things to do and it is a major stressor on our bodies – impacting our health, wellbeing and the quality of our relationships.  A big part of the problem is that this “life admin” is invisible: we forget it exists, and the people around us don’t value the labour involved. Not only that, but the constant bombardment of unwanted work gets in the way of our big life goals and our self-care. This week, I talk to professor of law and author of ‘The Art of Life Admin’, Elizabeth Emens, about how we can make this work visible, better manageable and fairer. She gives some brilliant tips on how we can all steal back some time to do the things we want to and bring more calm into our lives. I hope you enjoy the conversation!

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Episode Highlights:

• What is Life Admin?
• What problems does Elizabeth see that life admin is causing?
• Hear Elizabeth’s top tips on how she prioritises her to do list.
• Why does recognising the things that fall into Life Admin help reduce the stress they cause?
• Hear Elizabeth’s thoughts on multi-tasking and how best to schedule tasks in.
• How can we get pleasure from completing Life Admin?
• Has improved technology made us more efficient or eroded our leisure time?
• How has Elizabeth’s career in Law helped her identify where business models can be improved?
• What strategies does Elizabeth use to reduce personal and social admin?
• What are Elizabeth’s top tips?

Find out more about Elizabeth:

Website    Instagram   Facebook   Twitter

Elizabeth’s book:

The Art of Life Admin: How To Do Less, Do It Better, and Live More

Further learning:

• fastcompany.com – This is why you can’t seem to tackle your admin tasks list
• thetimes.co.uk – Goodbye admin, hello more free time
• theguardian.com – Life admin is boring and ceaseless but these tricks can help
• Tara Brach
• The Zeigarnik Effect

Dr Chatterjee’s resources:

• Blog – How to Steal Back Some Me-Time
• Podcast – How Social Media Could Be Making You Ill with Cal Newport
• Find Dr Chatterjee’s 4 Pillar of Health in The 4 Pillar Plan
• Available in the US & Canada with the title How to Make Disease Disappear
• Read about Micro Stress Doses in Dr Chatterjee’s book The Stress Solution.

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DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.