How to Use Effective Time Management To Increase Productivity

Via The Complete Lawyer

By Diane Costigan

With the downturn in the economy, many lawyers have some extra time on their hands. What a perfect opportunity to work on establishing stellar time management practices that will help increase productivity when it is back to business as usual.

Although the suggestions in this article are simple, they are not always easy to implement. In fact, many are challenging because they often require a change in mindset—or even more difficult, a change in behavior.

When it comes to effective time management, you need to plan, plan and then plan some more. Not planning your time is like going food shopping without a list—you end up wasting time and money by buying things you do not need and forgetting things that you do.

Work As You Shop

Super-organized shoppers create a strategy that minimizes their time while maximizing their output. Based on previous experience and exact knowledge of what they need, they sort their coupons, know the best times to shop, and can locate the items on their list. By bringing a laser-like focus to their task, they’re in and out of the store in record time. Their approach is similar to that of a heat-seeking missile—they are unstoppable in zoning in on their target.

The same strategizing can be done with respect to our day-to-day lives. How? By becoming an “efficiency expert” in training. The operative word here is “training”—an ongoing process of committing to be more efficient with your time. This can be difficult since it requires a generous helping of the “D” word—discipline.

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