November 22, 2006
Organization and Time Management Tips for Attorneys
Last week I was in Milwaukee attending the Milwaukee Bar's annual Conference. Technology and law firm management are an important part of their conference. It traditionally attracts faculty members of national (make that international) stature. One of the faculty members was Dave Bilinsky, the Practice Management Advisor for the Law Society of British Columbia. Among his other insightful tips was this high value four-pointer worth framing:
1. Teach someone
2. Delegate, delegate, delegate….
3. Concentrate on results
4. Push work down
When partners hoard work, they limit the firm’s prospects for future profitable growth. “Doing it yourself” means that you are short-changing associate professional development, limiting your ability to plan, bring in new business, or get more done by leveraging off of others. Taking the time to teach someone rather than doing it yourself increases the firm’s capacity in the long term.
Number two speaks for itself. Try to never do something someone else can do.
Too often we think first of the process required rather than the end result to be achieved. Short-cutting a process (or finding a new way) saves time, if it achieves the same or a better end result. Take the time to think creatively. Give delegates the opportunity to be creative.
For a partner, “push work down” means pushing it down to an associate. When you do, you get double the bang for your buck. The associate gets the work done, and you get a more experienced associate.
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