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My current productivity set-up

June 13, 2018 by
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I have a lot of lists in my productivity arsenal but two are most important. The first is “today” (@today)–tasks I plan to accomplish (or begin) before the day ends.

This is the most important list because today is when “doing” gets done. We can plan something for tomorrow or next week or next month but we can’t do anything until that day arrives and it becomes today.

If I have due dates, I put them on my calendar. I also calendar tickler dates for deferred tasks. When the tickler date arrives, I either move the task to @today and do it or review it and decide its fate.

If I’m doing something today, it goes on my today list. However, when it has become a habit, e.g., writing a daily blog post, walking, etc., I no longer keep it on a list or calendar.

My other most important list is my list of top priorities for the week (@week). These are the three or four high priority projects I’m focusing on this week.

I have other lists:

  • “Work in progress” (@wip) includes current and recurring projects that aren’t (yet) a top priority
  • “Soon” (@soon) refers to tasks and projects I want to do soon, e.g., next
  • “Ready” (@ready) are projects and tasks I plan to do after I’ve cleared higher priorities
  • “Backlog” (@backlog) are tasks I don’t need to get to for the next few weeks
  • “Someday/maybe (@sm), are things I may or may not want to do someday

I spend most of my day in the @today and @week lists. I also look at the @wip list. If I get caught up, or I feel like doing something different, I look @soon and/or @ready.

I don’t do a lot of long-term planning because by the time long-term gets here, my priorities have often changed.

That’s my current set-up. But it’s a @wip.

Have you read my Evernote for Lawyers? 

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Filed Under: Productivity

How to take the pain out of your weekly review

May 15, 2018 by
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A weekly review is an important part of any productivity system. Without regularly reviewing your plans and progress it’s easy to get off track.

But it’s a pain in the behind.

Going through all of our tasks and projects, current and proposed, takes a long time and makes us continually re-visit decisions we thought we had already made.

Too often, we put off our review and before long, we’re lost in the weeds.

Here are a few ideas you can use to avoid this:

  • Do SOME of the weekly review tasks daily instead of weekly. It will be quicker to empty your inboxes during your weekly review, for example, if you’ve developed the habit of doing this (or most of it) every day.
  • Schedule the time in advance. I do my weekly review on Sunday mornings at 10 am. It’s on the calendar and has become a habit. I don’t have to think about it, I just do it.
  • Use a checklist. Prepare a list of #weeklyreview tasks so that you can dive right in and git ‘er done.
  • Reward yourself. When the review is done, do something fun to reinforce the habit.

One more and it’s a biggie: Use a time limit.

I now limit my weekly review to just ten minutes. Easy peasy. I can do that standing on my head.

A ten-minute limit means I can’t go through my #someday/maybe and #idea lists each week. I do that once a month, or periodically (when I’m in the mood).

A ten-minute limit also requires me to keep on top of my lists throughout the week, which I do. My lists are always just one click away so I can look at them frequently during the day.

“What if you’re not done in ten minutes?” you ask. “Aren’t you taking the risk that you’ll miss something important?”

I’ve come to trust that if something is important, it’s already got my attention.

Try a ten-minute review and see how it works for you. Before you do that, however, do one last major review to clean up your lists. Or, do what I do periodically: hide everything (in another folder, another app) and start fresh with a clean slate.

New lists, new you.

Evernote for Lawyers

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Filed Under: Productivity Tagged With: ,

Overcoming overwhelm

May 9, 2018 by
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I was reading through my blog feed this morning, bookmarking articles to read later. There were easily 20 articles I wanted to save but I didn’t do it. I’ve already got hundreds of articles in my bookmark app, plus hundreds more saved in Evernote waiting to be read.

I stopped and closed the app. Enough. I can’t handle it all. Mommy.

When you have too much to read, too much to do, too many fires to put out, and you are feeling overwhelmed, how do you handle it? The best thing to do is distract yourself long enough to allow your brain to reset.

Sometimes, taking a few hours off is all we need. Sometimes, we need to get more sleep. Some folks listen to music, some write, some play sports, some watch movies, some have a good cry with their best friend.

Exercise helps. When I come back from my walks I’m usually ready to get back at it. That’s what I did today.

Do something to interrupt your thought patterns and you’ll usually find the feeling of overwhelm begins to subside. If it doesn’t, if you can’t shake the feeling, you might need to do something more radical to eliminate whatever it is that’s overwhelming you.

You may need to hire some people. You may need to find new tools and methods to streamline your workflow or take some training to learn how to better use what you already have.

When all else fails, all we can do is surrender to the reality that there will always be too much to read and too much to do and we’ll never get it all done.

Because we won’t.

The things we don’t read today will still be there tomorrow, even if we don’t bookmark them. (It’s called the Internet.) You don’t have to feel guilty about the things you didn’t do. Tomorrow is another opportunity to start fresh.

Let it go.

Life is messy. Uncertain. Out of our control. But that’s okay because most things don’t really matter.

Once you accept this, you can focus on the things that do.

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Filed Under: Personal development

I don’t know, let me check my list

May 7, 2018 by
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I’ve started using a daily checklist. It’s a list of things I need to do as soon as I sit down at my computer and throughout the day. Most of the items on the list are things I’m already doing, without prompting from a list, but I like seeing them in front of me. I know I won’t forget anything and I can get things done and out of the way.

I have three categories: @admin, @personal, and @work.

On the @admin list are things like checking the calendar, email, and a @tickler list (upcoming date-oriented tasks to review or start), followed by checking my other lists to see what’s on tap for the day and for the week.

@personal includes my daily walk, reading, and writing in my journal.

@work includes some of my routine activities like writing a daily email/blog post and working on my current book project.

I’m just rolling this out so I know it’s going to change. I’m already thinking I could combine the three lists into one since I work from home and don’t ordinarily differentiate between work and personal, and because admin is intertwined with my work.

But, we’ll see.

If it’s not obvious, I like lists. I guess I’m a linear thinker, although there are times when I like to use a mind map to brainstorm and flesh out ideas. For the record, once I’ve done that, I convert them to a linear outline or list prior to “doing”.

I’ve also got a checklist for my weekly review. This has always been a work in progress.

Next up? Maybe an evening “shutdown” list. Hmm, I wonder if I need to write down “Netflix and chill”.

Evernote for Lawyers. Click here

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Filed Under: Productivity, Time Management Tagged With: , ,

Thinking on paper. Sorta.

May 4, 2018 by
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The other day I mentioned that I was thinking about scheduling regular time for thinking. I said I thought it would help me solve problems, make better decisions, and help me move closer to achieving my goals.

Well, I’ve done it. Five minutes every afternoon is now dedicated to the task. It’s right there on my daily checklist.

It’s just five minutes. With no agenda other than to see what I think.

To make it easier, I’ve started journaling again. Thinking on paper, or in this case, typing on a computer screen, helps the process. It allows me to capture my thoughts so I can come back to them after doing research, talking to someone, or just letting the idea incubate for a spell. I’ve created a #thinking tag for that purpose.

Writing things down also helps improve my thinking. As the words appear on screen, I can see where I’m going and where I need to go.

I didn’t schedule thinking time to brainstorm ideas but to contemplate ideas I’ve already recorded. Nevertheless, I’m finding that ideas are coming to me and that’s okay. You’ve got to learn to trust your mind and let it take you where it wants to go.

I haven’t kept a journal for a long time. I’m starting to realize that I missed it. If you haven’t tried it, or have moved away from doing it, give it a try. If you do keep a journal, I’d love to hear how you use it and how it has helped you.

A good place to keep your journal: Evernote

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Filed Under: Personal development, Productivity Tagged With:

The list’s (still) the thing

April 2, 2018 by
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Many moons ago, I told you about the lists I kept for my boyhood coin collection. Yeah, the one I sold buy furniture and pay the first month’s rent on my first law office.

Anyway, I had two lists: one for “want” and one for “have”. I kept these in my wallet so that when I visited the Kennedy Coin Club in suburban Chicago, I would know which coins I needed for my collection and extras I had to trade or sell.

I’ve also written about the value of having lists for running your practice. These can be lists of steps, instructions or checklists, to make sure you don’t forget anything, or to train new employees or temps.

Examples:

  • File opening/closing procedures
  • Investigating/background checks
  • Drafting pleadings/discovery
  • Form letters/email templates
  • Experts/vendors (stenographers, investigators, arbitrators, mediators, interpreters, repairs, etc.)
  • Supplies: quantities, where to order
  • How to use software, apps, online services

How about for marketing:

  • Prospective clients
  • Bloggers/editors in your niche
  • Publications that accept guest posts
  • Organizations/groups where you can speak/network
  • Ideas for blog/social media posts/videos/articles
  • Social media posting schedule/process
  • Lawyers you know and what they do (for referrals)
  • Business owners/professionals who sell to your niche market

And a ho lot more.

We can’t be all work and no play (even if we’re not named Jack) so how about some personal lists:

  • Movies/books that interest you
  • Your bucket list
  • Packing checklist
  • Vacation ideas
  • Writing prompts
  • Health metrics (blood pressure, weight, etc.)
  • Exercise routines, workout schedule
  • Retirement planning
  • Investments
  • Debt reduction schedule/journal
  • Jokes/stories/quotes/
  • Recipes
  • Routines (weekly review, inbox zero, computer updates)

And the list goes on. And on and on.

You can keep lists of just about anything, as reminders, as a way to measure progress, or as a way to memorialize your journey.

You might start with a “list of lists”–ideas for lists that can make you healthier, more productive, or more profitable. Or lists that sound like fun.

(Lawyers are still allowed to have fun, aren’t we? Well, as long as there are no witnesses.)

I keep my lists in Evernote

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Filed Under: Personal development, Productivity

Cleaning up your email inbox

February 5, 2018 by
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How much of your day is spent writing and responding to email?

Yeah, a lot.

When you don’t get through it, not only can bad things happen (mistakes, missed opportunities, unresolved problems, broken promises, etc.), these “open loops” weigh on your subconscious mind and bedevil you. (The Zeigarnik effect is the psychological tendency to remember uncompleted tasks.)

So, if you don’t have your email inbox under control, here’s a reminder to make it so and a checklist of what to do, courtesy of David Allen (Getting Things Done):

  1. Take out the trash. Go through the inbox and delete everything you don’t need or want. Just do it, already. (Or, archive them if you’re not sure.)
  2. Use the “two-minute rule”. Any actionable emails that you can read and reply to (or complete the required action) in two minutes or less, do it.
  3. Tag/file/label “waiting for” items. If you ordered something and you’re waiting for it arrive, if you tasked someone to do something and you’re waiting for them to complete it, move the corresponding emails to a folder or label them accordingly. (I forward them to Evernote.) Tip: when you confirm by email that someone will do something, cc or bcc yourself and label that email “waiting”.
  4. File/tag “action” items. Anything you need to do that will take longer than two minutes should be filed in an “action” folder or tagged or labeled accordingly. (If forward these to Evernote, too).
  5. File reference material. For emails that don’t require action but you want to keep, move them to their own folder or tag or label them. (Once again, I forward these to Evernote.)

When you’re done, your inbox should be empty. I did this several years ago, over a period of several days, and it felt great to get it done. Everything was out of sight and in the place it needed to be and I knew where to find it. Nothing screaming at me for attention. No open loops.

Try it and let me know what you think. (I already know what I’ll do with your email.)

Evernote for Lawyers

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Filed Under: Email, Productivity Tagged With: , ,

Go plagiarize yourself

December 28, 2017 by
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I have another project for you for the new year. In a nutshell, you’re going to inventory everything you’ve written or recorded in the past so you can use it again.

It’s about leverage. Getting more value out of your previous work, and saving a bunch of time and effort in the process.

First, gather up the following and put them into digital files:

  • Forms, documents, and other work product.
  • Frequently used emails and letters.
  • Content: articles, blog posts, newsletters, podcast, video, and interview transcripts, presentations, reports, ebooks, etc.

You might break up work product by practice area, type of matter, type of client, or stage of the proceeding. Instead of files, you can use tags or labels.

Calendar some time in the coming weeks to go through your files, and then:

  • Update forms and documents. Create an index of these documents, with searchable tags.
  • Convert emails and letters into boilerplate: transmittal, demands, notices, client updates, marketing, newsletters, etc.

Re-use, update, or re-purpose other content:

  • Re-publish blog posts, newsletters, and articles. Or combine parts of several posts to create new ones.
  • Convert blog posts, articles, podcasts, and interviews into ebooks, reports, presentations, social media posts, lead magnets (giveaways), and bonuses. Convert presentations, ebooks, reports, etc., into blog posts.
  • Update older posts, etc., with new information, new results, different opinions, predictions, etc. Consolidate several posts into round-up posts. Break up longer posts into shorter ones.
  • Modify marketing documents for use with different types of readers or markets

Do a little bit each week and you should soon find yourself saving time and getting better results.

You should also set up files to save copies of “incoming” content from other lawyers–documents, emails they sent you, (subscribe to their newsletters), forms they use (when you sub-in on a file), and so on. No, don’t plagiarize their stuff, use it for ideas for updating yours.

C’mon, you know they’re doing that with your stuff, don’t you?

Evernote for Lawyers

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Filed Under: Law office management, Leverage, Productivity

The list’s the thing

December 19, 2017 by
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We like lists, don’t we? They help us remember what to do, when, and in what order. They help us do our work, buy our groceries, and remember who was naughty and who was nice.

As you sit down to plan the upcoming year, you might want to add a few more lists to your collection. Here are some examples, along with what you might include on each list:

  1. Daily: Outgoing phone calls, exercise, vitamins, writing in your journal, 15 minutes for marketing, personal development, reading, tidy up desktop
  2. Weekly: Weekly review, staff meeting, writing your newsletter, paying bills
  3. Monthly: Planning, review accounting ledgers, review goals, meetings, review advertising
  4. Quarterly: Board meeting(s), pay estimated taxes, update software, remind clients to conduct board meeting
  5. Yearly: Year-end review, goal setting, planning, sending docs to CPA, physical checkup, Christmas cards, remind clients to review leases

You’ll want to have sub-lists for many of these. For example, a checklist for your weekly review.

If you’re really into lists, you might also consider a list for every morning, every evening, every weekday, or every Saturday.

Put the date and time of the activities on your lists on your calendar. I suggest you maintain the actual lists elsewhere, however, to make it easier to review and update them.

I also suggest you create a “list of lists”. If you keep your lists in Evernote, for example, create a “Table of Contents” note with links to each of your lists. Drag that master list to your “favorites” in the left sidebar for quick access.

Evernote for Lawyers

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Filed Under: Goal Setting, Productivity

Focus on what you want, not what you don’t want

December 12, 2017 by
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I’ve been doing some tidying up lately. Going through closets and boxes, getting rid of old papers and the like. I know, I’ve done this before but no matter how much I get rid of, there always seems to be more.

Anyway, since cleaning up is on my mind lately, I noticed an interview with Marie Kondo, author of the mega bestselling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. You have to admire someone who can write an entire book about tidying up and, I’ve learned, built an entire business around it.

In the interview, I learned that the KonMari method, as she calls it, can be applied to any are of life because it’s not just about paring down possessions and organizing what you keep, it’s a philosophy for creating simplicity and flow, leading to a more effective and fulfilling life.

Or something like that.

Anyway, one thing in particular caught my eye. Kondo was asked, “What’s the major error we make when trying to tidy and simplify?”

Kondo said, “The biggest mistake people make is to focus on what to discard instead of what to keep. If you focus on this, you look for flaws. . . and cannot appreciate the things you own. The correct mindset is to keep what you love instead of throwing out what you don’t like.”

That’s precisely what I did in my recent clean-up. I went through several boxes of old papers and got rid of two-thirds of them by setting aside the ones I liked. Notes I can use for current and future projects, some awards and photos, and a few other things that caught my attention.

I threw out decades of clutter by focusing on the few items that meant something to me.

It got me thinking about the digital clutter we all have residing on your hard drives, and the ideas they represent. We all have notes and lists and ideas that occupy space, like the physical clutter in our closets and drawers. I’ve got close to 9,000 notes in Evernote. Which notes should I keep? Which ideas should I start?

The ones that speak to me about things that excite me, of course.

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Filed Under: Personal development Tagged With: , ,
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