Blog

Time Management - Sept. 9, 2010

By Barbara Haubrich-Hass, ACP/CAS

This week I received an e-mail asking about time management, juggling tasks, and dealing with 'on the spot' demands.

This question made me nostalgic and think back to 1980 on my first day of work in a law firm.  I was hired as a legal secretary for two defense attorneys.  Keep in mind, back in 1980 we used an IBM typewriter and a cassette tape Dictaphone machine.  The attorneys used to cram as much dictation as they could on one tape.  I was fresh out of junior college and really knew nothing about being a legal secretary.  I had one attorney asking me to do one thing, and another asking me to do something else.  I was overwhelmed.  Well, one of the attorneys handed me a full two-sided cassette tape to transcribe.  Instead of pressing REWIND I pressed ERASE, and that was when the excitement began on my first day in the real world. 

Fast forward 10 years to 1990 when my attorney walks into my office right before lunch and asks, "Barb set the deposition of this expert, it should only take you 5 minutes; then I need you to finalize this discovery, and coordinate the inspection on a piece of equipment.  Oh by the way, can you get this all out by the end of the day?"  On top of that, I had 10 other tasks that I had already started that day. 

I can attest to the fact that juggling multiple tasks when there seems not enough time to complete them can be stressful.   However, when you stop to prioritize your tasks, previously unreachable deadlines can be conquered.  My mother was notorious for using old adages to teach me about life that still rings true today.  One being 'the beginning of each journey starts with a single step'.

The first step in proper time management begins with prioritizing your work.  The catalyst to success in time management is focusing on the goal and staying organized.  Prioritizing your work, based on the deadlines, gives you a timeline to communicate with your attorney as to when a task can be completed. 

The second step is to never be afraid to ask for help.  A legal team is just that, a team that you can rely on when it is 4:30 p.m. and the mail runs at 4:45 p.m.  A quality legal team is indispensible.  Utilize their unique talents, knowledge, and experience to maximize your efficiency.

The third step is to never let a deadline lapse!  With that said, do not be discouraged from asking for more time, unless the deadline is a drop dead cut-off.  It is germane to ask opposing counsel for an extension on discovery responses if the case is in a posture to allow the extra time.  

Implementing these three steps will help you manage your time and keep your deadlines in track.