Here is an example of how a simple change in workflow has helped one professional increase her efficiency.
Key Takeaways:
- Transition to Solo Practice: A lawyer transitioned from a large law firm to a solo practice to gain more control over her life and achieve a better work-home life balance.
- Lack of Support: While enjoying more autonomy, the lawyer faced challenges due to the absence of the support she had in her previous office.
- Communication Overload: The lawyer was inundated with calls from clients seeking updates on their cases, leading to significant time spent on these calls.
- Time-Consuming Client Updates: Client contacts for case updates took the equivalent of about three-quarters of her entire workday every week.
- Systems in Place: The assistant helped the lawyer set up systems in Evernote, creating a standardized summary sheet for each client in the digital case folder.
- Standardized Summary Sheet: The summary sheet included case number, name, contact information, date of actions taken, next steps, and pending issues for easy reference.
- Efficient Weekly Updates: The lawyer’s assistant saved each summary sheet as a PDF and emailed them to clients, providing efficient weekly status updates.
- Reduced Monday Morning Calls: The introduction of the summary sheets led to more focused questions from clients on Monday mornings, reducing the time spent on such calls.
- Minimal Time Investment: The lawyer and her assistant reported minimal time spent on preparing and sending out information, streamlining the update process.
- Positive Client Feedback: Clients appreciated the frequent status reports, indicating improved communication and transparency in the legal process.
Dave Edwards Media 