Overcome To-Do List Paralysis

Monday, March 15th, 2010

Check out this fascinating research tidbit from the brand new book, Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard, by Fast Company columnists Chip Heath and Dan Heath:

“A gourmet food store. The store managers have set up a table where customers can sample imported jams for free. One day, the table showcases 6 different jams. Another day, 24 jams. As you’d expect, the 24-jam display attracts more customers to stop by for a sample – but when it comes time to buy, they can’t make a decision. Shoppers who saw only 6 jams on display are 10 times more likely to buy a jar of jam.”

The authors are discussing information overload, decision paralysis, and what writer Barry Schwartz calls The Paradox of Choice. At a certain point, Schwartz says, “choice no longer liberates, it debilitates.”

So what’s the relevance of this to improved productivity? To becoming Time Savvy? It’s this: We all have dozens, if not hundreds, of options on the table of our “to-do list” at any one time. But if we don’t narrow the scope of choices by setting aside time to plan, prioritize, and schedule a subset of those options, we’re more likely to feel overwhelmed by them. And when we feel overwhelmed (even if unconsciously), all kinds of bad things happen. For example, procrastination and stress increase, while confidence and effectiveness decrease.

So start your day by limiting the number jams on your table given your “white space” for the day (i.e., the otherwise unscheduled time on your calendar). You’re far more likely to get more of those things done.

Remember, if you try to keep all of your to-do’s in your head as open loops (instead of narrowing them down realistically), you’re keeping way too many options on the table. You’ll scan them mentally, but it’ll be harder to make the commitment to take action.

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How to Cure “I’m-Often-Late” Syndrome

Monday, February 8th, 2010

What percentage of the time that we’re late for a meeting or a phone call is it truly, fully, outside of our control? Certainly it’s very rarely. The vast majority of the time when we’re late, it’s because we don’t plan well enough. We didn’t leave early enough for our destination. We didn’t enforce time boundaries earlier in the day. Or we didn’t set expectations properly. (Or some other reason over which we could have exercised control but didn’t.)

Here two important questions to ask of yourself:
1. What do I have to do differently to be on time?
2. What can my staff do differently to help me be on time?

And lest the question go unasked: Why should you strive to be on time with clients, prospects, fellow counsel and staff? Because being on time builds credibility and trust. Being on time also builds your confidence to ask and expect it of others. Conversely, being late creates a negative external impression in people outside of your office, and it lowers morale among your colleagues and staff when they can’t trust your word about when you’ll be somewhere or when a meeting will start.

When you’re punctual, you’re less stressed, more organized, and in greater control. And when you’re all of these things, your overall mastery of time-related activities improves as well – (e.g., getting your bills out on time, or estimating how long something’s going to take to complete).

We’re talking here about appointments and meetings that you initiate or agree to with someone, whether in person or by phone, whether formally or informally.

Here are four tips to help you improve your punctuality:
1. Use calendar reminders and alarms in Outlook or whatever you use for your calendar. Some appointments only require a 5 minute reminder (if you’re placing a call, for instance) or a longer reminder depending on the circumstances (such as travel requirements).
2. Let your staff know that you’re working on your punctuality. Have your assistant remind you of what’s coming up on your calendar. Ask your staff how they can help you be more punctual.
3. Check the words that come out of your mouth, and revise them in the moment if necessary. “I’ll call you back in five minutes . . . . I’ll head down to your office at 11:15. . . . I’ll meet you there at 4.” Of course, the goal is to have the first words out of your mouth be accurate and achievable, but better that you adjust right then and there with the person than not meet your commitment later.
4. Don’t schedule appointments back to back without taking into account transition time (whether that’s travel time or prep time).

When you’re scheduling appointments (or making verbal commitments to be somewhere or call someone) on court days, let those folks know it’s a court day for you (or a depo day, etc), and that you might be constrained by those requirements. They’ll understand and accept that if they’re warned in advance.

Finally, what about meetings you don’t initiate but have to attend? If they start late, practice the skill of letting the organizer know that you’ll have to leave at a specific time. While this can be tricky, you can learn to do it graciously and remain in control of your time. Because, as we know, if you’re not in control of your time, other people are.

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How To Use Your Social Networking Time Wisely

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

You probably already know that growing your presence on Facebook, Twitter and in virtual legal communities such as JD Supra can help you better market your practice.  But you’re also wondering where you’re going to find the time to spend on these new outlets and what’s the best use of your limited time.

The answer lies more in how you apportion the time that you have, rather than which social media you choose to use.  New Media Guru Chris Brogan suggests the following formula: (http://pluggedinlawyer.com/2009/11/20/social-media-time-management-for-lawyers/ )

–Spend one-quarter of your time listening to your network (i.e. reading posts, articles etc.)

–Spend one-half of your time engaging within your network (i.e. sharing posts and commenting.)

–Spend one-quarter of your time creating new content (i.e. blogging, creating videos or audio.)

The logic is that the more familiar you are with the community and the issues being discussed, the more you’ll be able to add value to the conversation.  And that, in turn, can lead to getting referrals.

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