Monthly Archives: March 2021

How to Plan an Ideal Week: The Incrementalist, Ep. 8

Posted on March 3, 2021 | Comments Off on How to Plan an Ideal Week: The Incrementalist, Ep. 8

If you feel overwhelmed and off course, weekly planning helps you to take control and get back on track. The lack of a plan or the plan itself could be your problem. Cultivate purposeful work and intentional living with a review of your past week and a preview of your upcoming week.

Consolidate by planning your ideal week, designate by prioritizing your tasks with the weekly review, and activate by beating interruptions and distractions. Streamline your to-do list by connecting to your heart, mind, and body and the cosmos.

What do you want to have done in the week? What are the big things you can do to call the week a success and make it great? 

Unexpected things will come up. Tasks will take longer than you expected. Distractions and interruptions will pull you away. But you’re more likely to accomplish what you must when you plan for it and begin with the end in mind. 

In episode 8 of The Incrementalist podcast, I discuss achieving more by doing less in a week. You will learn: 

1. How to consolidate by planning your Ideal Week 

  • The concepts of batching and theming
  • The categories of front stage, back stage, and off stage activities
  • The use of color codes in your weekly plan or calendar to reflect focus areas

2. How to designate by prioritizing your tasks with the Weekly Review and Preview

  • The best times to do a weekly review and preview
  • The six steps in a weekly planning session: list your biggest wins; review the prior week; review your lists and notes; check goals, projects, events, meetings and deadlines; designate your Weekly Big 3 things to accomplish; and plan for self-care

3. How to streamline your to-do list

  • The four areas to help you design your week and your weekly to-dos: body; mind; heart; and the cosmos. 
  • The importance of margin or buffer time

Resources Cited: 

  • Michael Hyatt, Free to Focus: A Total Productivity System to Achieve More by Doing Less
  • Kate Northrup, Do Less: A Revolutionary Approach to Time and Energy Management for Ambitious Women

To listen to episode 8, How to Plan an Ideal Week, click here.

Cheers,
Dyan Williams

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Dyan Williams is a solo lawyer who practices U.S. immigration law and legal ethics at Dyan Williams Law PLLC. She is also a productivity coach who helps working parents, lawyers, small business owners and other busy people turn their ideas into action, reduce overwhelm, and focus on what truly matters. She is the author of The Incrementalist: A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps. 

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Posted in communication, competence, diligence, The Productive Lawyer - Productivity + Lawyer Wellbeing Blog

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The Busyness Trap, Minnesota CLE, 2021 Family Law Institute, March 15 to 16

Posted on March 2, 2021 | Comments Off on The Busyness Trap, Minnesota CLE, 2021 Family Law Institute, March 15 to 16

Minnesota CLE’s 2021 Family Law Institute is completely online this year. It’s the best way to ensure you are up to date on all the latest cases, legislation and other new developments in Minnesota family law. It also provides practical instruction on dozens of important topics, as well as extensive written materials. 

If you register for this online event, I invite you to attend Breakout Session E at 2:15 – 3:15 p.m., in which I will present on The Busyness Trap: How to Reduce Overload and Create Space for Things that Matter.

Attendees have the opportunity to view the video recording with live written Q&A to claim CLE credit, which they will not receive if they watch the recording at another time. 

Here’s a description of what The Busyness Trap will cover:

The path to being a diligent and effective lawyer involves reducing overload and creating space for things that matter. Yet the emphasis on billable hours and “presenteeism” continue to prevail in the legal industry.

Lawyers who work more and stay longer at the office – often at the expense of their personal health and well being – are typically viewed as more successful, productive and committed. But when you’re in the busyness trap, you are less able to do high-quality work, think creatively, and solve problems with the greatest impact and least resistance.

In this presentation, you will learn effective ways to:
1. Cultivate productive habits by focusing on your top priorities, limiting your to-dos, keeping a startup and shutdown routine, and matching your tasks to your energy cycles;

2. Tackle the problem of facetime cultures and 24/7 accessibility by setting realistic expectations and healthy boundaries;

3. Collaborate and communicate in moderation without having emails, phone calls, meetings and interruptions take over your day; and

4. Take restful breaks and regain lost momentum on important projects.

Click HERE to get more information on this 12-credit online CLE event and to register for it. 

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Dyan Williams is a solo lawyer who practices U.S. immigration law and legal ethics at Dyan Williams Law PLLC. She is also a productivity coach who helps working parents, lawyers, small business owners and other busy people turn their ideas into action, reduce overwhelm, and focus on what truly matters. She is the author of The Incrementalist: A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps. 

SUBSCRIBE           CONTACT

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Posted in communication, competence, diligence, lawyer well-being, The Productive Lawyer - Productivity + Lawyer Wellbeing Blog

Deadlines and Daily Habits, Minnesota CLE, Ethics Fundamentals – Safekeeping Property, Collecting Fees, Acting with Diligence, March 24

Posted on March 2, 2021 | Comments Off on Deadlines and Daily Habits, Minnesota CLE, Ethics Fundamentals – Safekeeping Property, Collecting Fees, Acting with Diligence, March 24

On March 24, Minnesota CLE will host Ethics Fundamentals – Safekeeping Property, Collecting Fees, Acting with Diligence via live webcast. This is a 3.0 ethics credits event that runs from 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. 

There are three separate 1-hour sessions in this special credit CLE, including my presentation on The Ethics of Deadlines and Daily Habits – Discovering the Essence of Diligence. 

Below is the description: 

An attorney’s ethical duties of diligence, competence and communication are paramount in client relations. Yet we often struggle to fulfill these obligations. Deadlines are often associated with heightened stress, time crunches, and external pressures beyond your control. But by using external deadlines to your benefit and setting self-imposed ones effectively, you help fuel productive action. Deadlines – in combination with daily habits that enable you to pick, prioritize, and perform your big tasks – are the essence of diligence.

Click HERE to learn more and to register for this event. 

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Dyan Williams is a solo lawyer who practices U.S. immigration law and legal ethics at Dyan Williams Law PLLC. She is also a productivity coach who helps working parents, lawyers, small business owners and other busy people turn their ideas into action, reduce overwhelm, and focus on what truly matters. She is the author of The Incrementalist: A Simple Productivity System to Create Big Results in Small Steps. 

SUBSCRIBE           CONTACT

Comments Off on Deadlines and Daily Habits, Minnesota CLE, Ethics Fundamentals – Safekeeping Property, Collecting Fees, Acting with Diligence, March 24

Posted in communication, competence, diligence, The Productive Lawyer - Productivity + Lawyer Wellbeing Blog