Try These Hacks for Incredible Productivity
“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”
I think the word “hack” is overused nowadays and I really don’t like it. We’re bombarded with supposed “hacks” that promise to make our lives easier but rarely deliver.
Well, here I am, with a hack! Wait - come back!
Seriously, this is something which has really helped me. It’s to do with time. And using the time we have in the best way possible.
My hack involves getting one of these simple kitchen timers that you can start and stop with a tap. They help you become more aware of time and how you’re using it. So helpful for when we constantly feel as though we don’t have enough time.
Here is my timer:
This is just a simple kitchen timer but it has a few uses which are helpful for lawyers. You can get one off Amazon for around £20. (I know Amazon are awful but they kind of make my life run as well. I’m not proud of myself). Here are three uses of the timer, or involving time in general…
Tip number one – use as a handy time recording device
This is a great simple timer when you’re working from home and you don’t want to mess about using your firm’s time recording system.
It’s easier to pause if you get a phone call or have to answer the front door.
I love smacking my timer when I start and finish a job. So satisfying!
I’m talking about using this whilst working from home, obviously. You may look a bit eccentric if you start smacking your timer with a dramatic flourish when you’re in the office. Or maybe you should do this anyway. Who are your colleagues to judge your fearless productivity?
Tip number two – the Pomodoro technique
Ah, the good old fashioned Pomodoro technique. I save this for when I’m really struggling to get going on a job. You’ve got to keep your powder dry or it may get overused… like saving full sugar Irn Bru for when you’re seriously hungover (another hack for you right there – works every time).
When you can’t get going, simply set your timer for 20 minutes and start work. Just do 20 minutes. No more is required for now.
The point is to set the bar so low, you can easily accomplish it and get started with the job – this really helps to take the fear out of it. And once you’ve started it, you could just carry on, if you feel so inclined.
It’s remarkably effective at helping you to get going on those “wading through treacle” days.
Tip number three – do a time audit
Do you ever reach the end of the day and feel like you haven’t achieved much? Your chargeable hours may be down, or you’ve STILL not got on to that big job you’ve been meaning to start for days now. What HAVE you been doing all day?
If you’ve had a few days like this recently, try this.
Print out 5 copies of the time audit form. This is available for free after you sign up.
Keep a copy of the form with you each day and fill it in as you go, all day every day during your working week. You’ll be AMAZED at how much time you’re spending on things that aren’t moving the needle forward on your life or career (things like scrolling on Instagram, pottering round the house etc). I was pretty shocked when I did this. It can be a bit brutal – there’s nowhere to hide!
Once you’ve completed the time audit, it’s an enormously valuable exercise to review the entries and decide whether you could have done things differently.
Are there activities which would be better done by someone else?
Or not done at all?
Should you have spent more time on certain activities?
What were your favourite activities? Could you do more of these in future?
Speaking of time, I wanted to brighten your week by sharing this beautiful cover by Elbow.
We were listening to Elbow’s latest album “Audio Vertigo” in the car last week, driving through Corfe Castle in Dorset, and this song unexpectedly came on. I say unexpectedly, as I hadn’t known they’d covered it. What a treat.
It’s singer Guy Garvey’s tribute to his late mother-in-law, Dame Diana Rigg. Diana of course played Tracy Bond in the 1969 Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, where she becomes the first Bond girl to marry 007. The theme song to On Her Majesty’s Secret Service was “We have all the time in the world” performed by Louis Armstrong. It takes guts to cover such a perfect song but I think you’ll agree that Elbow pull it off.
It’s completely gorgeous.
Enjoy the rest of your week.
~Rachel