The Rational Basis® of Happiness Podcast

The conversation revolves around a frazzled parent struggling with an overloaded schedule, balancing childcare, elderly parent care, school, part-time work, and personal life. Jean Maroney, a guest with a background in psychology and engineering, advises prioritizing tasks by writing them out on paper to slow down the thinking process and make informed decisions. She emphasizes the importance of realistic planning and setting boundaries, such as limiting visits to ailing parents. Maroney also promotes her course on "Tackling Hard Thinking" to help individuals manage their lives more effectively. The host, Alan, and another speaker discuss the value of identifying and addressing problems methodically to gain control over one's life.

Action Items

Prioritize tasks and create a list of the 10 most important things that need to be done today.
Call parents in advance and set a specific time limit for visits, enlisting their support to respect the time constraint.
Visit the website www.jeanmaroney.com to learn more about the "tackling hard thinking" course.
Overloaded and Overwhelmed: A Parent's Struggle

Speaker 3 describes feeling overwhelmed with responsibilities, including taking care of children, elderly parents, pursuing a degree, and working part-time. Speaker 3 expresses frustration about her husband's demands for intimacy, adding to her stress. Speaker 3 questions how to organize her life to achieve happiness and avoid feeling constantly overloaded. Speaker 3 seeks advice on managing her busy schedule and finding time for herself.

Introduction of Jean Maroney and Her Expertise

Speaker 3 introduces Jean Maroney, highlighting her educational background and professional experience in psychology, engineering, and philosophy. Jean Maroney is presented as an expert in teaching hard thinking and tackling complex problems. Jean Maroney is welcomed to the show to provide insights on managing an overloaded schedule. Speaker 3 asks Jean Maroney for practical advice on handling the overwhelming responsibilities mentioned earlier.

Jean Maroney's Advice on Prioritization

Jean Maroney suggests that slowing down and thinking on paper can help manage an overloaded schedule. She advises writing out thoughts and plans to slow down the thinking process and make it more manageable. Speaker 3 expresses concern about not having enough time to sit down and write things out. Jean Maroney emphasizes the importance of prioritizing tasks and focusing on the most important ones.

Prioritizing Tasks and Setting Realistic Goals

Jean Maroney discusses the importance of prioritizing tasks and setting realistic goals. She suggests that instead of doing everything, one should focus on the most critical tasks. Speaker 3 gives an example of prioritizing tasks, such as choosing to go to the dentist over participating in a PTA event. Jean Maroney explains that without stopping to think, it's hard to see the big picture and make informed decisions.

Effective Communication and Problem-Solving

Jean Maroney talks about the importance of effective communication in solving problems. She suggests that setting clear goals and communicating them in advance can help manage expectations. Speaker 3 shares an example of how to communicate with her parents to limit visit duration. Jean Maroney emphasizes that problem-solving requires identifying and addressing the root causes of the problem.

The Benefits of Thinking on Paper

Jean Maroney explains the benefits of thinking on paper, including slowing down the thinking process and considering each point carefully. She notes that thinking on paper helps in making more informed decisions and finding effective solutions. Speaker 3 appreciates the advice and thanks Jean Maroney for her insights. Jean Maroney provides information on how to get in touch with her for further guidance.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Speaker 3 thanks Jean Maroney for sharing her expertise and providing practical advice. Jean Maroney reiterates the importance of thinking on paper and planning as key skills for managing a busy schedule. Speaker 3 encourages listeners to visit Jean Maroney's website for more information on her courses. The conversation ends with a brief mention of the Dr. Ellen Kenner podcast and its focus on providing advice on romance, parenting, and family conflicts.

Keywords

overloaded schedule, prioritization problem, thinking on paper, planning skill, realistic time estimation, setting boundaries, problem-solving, hard thinking, course on planning, Jean Maroney, Dr. Kenner podcast, parenting advice, romance guidebook, personal life solutions, business contact

The Selfish Path to Romance

Download chapter one for free at Drkenner.com and Amazon.com

I wonder if he's ever had a day of fun and he has no life. All I want to do is have some fun.

You know, you look at your own life and you say, I just want to be happy, and I don't know why I don't feel happy. And I look at my daily schedule and I'm on overload. I've got the kids to take care of. I've got my elderly parents. I've got going back to school. I want to get I want to get a degree, graduate degree, and I'm trying to work part-time too and I'm just swimming. And then my husband wants sex all the time. I don't know how to handle this. Now, that's a common complaint. How do any of us organize our lives so that they run smoothly for us? How do we do the hard thinking involved with reorganizing our goals so that it brings us happiness, it brings us pleasure, and we're not always on a treadmill? With me today is Jean Maroney. She has her master's degree in psychology from Carnegie Mellon University, and she also has her master's degree in Electrical Engineering from MIT. And then add to that, 10 years experience in the engineering field and graduate training in philosophy from the Ayn Rand Institute. And so she's taken all of this knowledge and made it a specialty: teaching hard thinking, tackling hard thinking. She gives a course on that. Jean, welcome to the show.

Jean Maroney: Thank you, Alan.

Alan: What would you do in this situation, if I'm that frazzled parent and I just feel like I'm running in 50 directions and I'm not enjoying my life, I've got to tell you that.

Jean Maroney: Well, I think this is a classic case where slowing down for a moment is going to make a big difference in speeding up how you're going to get through this overall. The thing that I would suggest, whenever you feel overloaded by too much thinking to do and not enough time, is to stop, sit down with a piece of paper and do what I call thinking on paper. All that means is put the pencil to paper and actually write out the thinking as you're doing it. What this will do is it will actually slow you down and make you go through step by step all those things that are running through your head.

Alan: Okay, the hardest part for me, and I'll pretend I'm this parent, is that there's so much I don't have time to sit down and put things on paper. I mean, you don't understand my day. Every time I'm doing laundry, I have to take care of my parents. I have to visit them all the time and make sure they're in good shape. Then I'm off to school. I'm trying to fit school in here. Then I have a part-time job, and then my husband wants sex at night like you're crazy.

Jean Maroney: Wonderful, wonderful.

Alan: I mean, what you're talking about is a classic prioritization problem when you have too many things to do and not enough time to do them all. One of the things that I like to think about in these kinds of situations is that rather than work harder, you need to prioritize and figure out which are the things that need to get done, which are the most important things, and which are the things that are actually not worth your tremendously precious time.

Alan: So instead of cooking for the PTA, the Parents Teachers Association, instead of doing something for the bake sale, if I have zero time, that may be something that's much lower priority than, say, going to the dentist, taking my kids to the dentist, or studying for an exam the next day.

Jean Maroney: The fact is, unless you actually stop and think, you won't be able to put that together, because the fact is that you're under so much pressure from so many different directions that you're not in a position to look at the big picture when you're flying from one thing to the next. The only way that you can actually take a look at everything that needs to get done and actually make those decisions of what's most important is by taking a breath, sitting yourself down, and listing the 10 things that have to be done today.