* Volunteering for civic and charitable organizations?
* Attending to personal time (going to bank, car repairs, doctor, dentist, family business)?
* Being interrupted by people in the office?
* Vacationing?
* Being sick?
* Observing holidays?
* Eating lunch?
It would not be unusual to discover that less than one-half of a lawyer's time is discretionary. When I did this, I was shocked to discover that I was in the office about ten hours per day and had four to five hours of discretionary time. It was no wonder that it was a struggle to get the to-do list done.
At this point in the analysis, it may be apparent that the lawyer has more work at present than he or she can personally do. However, a lawyer usually has more resources than himself or herself.
In my case, I have a paralegal and a secretary who work with me as a team. To work effectively, a team must be organized with well-defined roles. Also, communications must be effective.
Before meeting with your team, the inventory of tasks must be prioritized. This will give a clear view of the order in which things must be accomplished. A good deal of analysis must be done because some tasks--such as trials--have many sub-tasks which must be performed in order before the entire task can be completed. Once the prioritization is done, then it is time to meet with the team.
Share your view of the work and priorities with the team. Ask the team members to review your list of priorities and suggest appropriate changes. Decide on a final prioritization.
Next, determine if there are any cases or tasks that should not be done by your staff or you. If so, eliminate them. Do you have clients with unreasonable expectations that you can never satisfy? Do you have the expertise to handle a particular matter? Should you make a referral?
Delegate what is appropriate. Can some of these matters be done by other lawyers in your office? What can your paralegal do to relieve you work load? What can your secretary do to help? Your staff is capable of doing many things other than typing and administrative tasks. How much typing and administrative tasks can be delegated to a temporary worker or a part-time worker freeing up time for your paralegal and secretary to do higher-skill tasks? Make time to train your staff to handle higher-skill functions. Ask your staff members what they can do to help you with your tasks.
With a team approach, communication is crucial. Have short meetings at least weekly to coordinate efforts with your team.
1) Prepare for the meeting by determining your priorities for the day, then for the week.
2) Ask each team member to do the same.
3) Discuss all priorities to make sure that you are all on the same page. For example, if you need to take a deposition of a plaintiff in a personal injury action, has the deposition been scheduled? Have the employment records been subpoenaed? Have the medical records been obtained? Who is doing what?
4) Delegate the upcoming to-do list.
5) Follow-up on past due to-do lists.
6) Discuss conflicts in scheduling.
Be realistic on your own to-do list. How many hours are available to work on it? Schedule appointment time for yourself to do those tasks that require significant amounts of time. Use a few minutes at the end of the day to plan your next day. If there is no plan, the events of the day will control your practice.
Be selective when accepting new cases and projects. Learn to say "NO!"
Self discipline is the key. Every night, plan your next day. Stick to your plan. The path will lead you to the light at the end of the tunnel.
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Maximilian M. Prusak is a principal in the firm of Prusak & Winne, Ltd., 331 Fulton Street, Suite 704, Peoria, IL 61602.
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