By Gloria Koss

Today’s paralegal is looking to squeeze the most out of every workday minute—sometimes even weekend minutes—in order to stay on top of caseloads, contacts, and callbacks. With this fact in mind, there are some simple things paralegals can do to boost their work productivity even more.

1. Discontinue Disruptions

For many paralegals, one of the main speed-bumps to higher productivity is disruptions. Sometimes such disturbances cannot be avoided; for all others, there are some simple tactics paralegals can use to stay “in the zone.”

Eradicate the Egress

While this seems very common sense, it truly is surprising how many paralegals leave their office door open while they work. By closing the office door, co-workers know that they should come back another time.

Close Calls

Sending calls to voicemail or having another co-worker take messages is another great way to stay in the flow and increase productivity. Set aside a specific part of the day to make and return telephone calls, and stick to that schedule.

Internet Interlude

There is no law anywhere that says paralegals must check, read, and deal with each email that comes through their inbox on an individual basis throughout the day. Try closing the email program and setting aside some time to specifically deal only with email, just like with phone calls.

2. Decrease Dawdling

Procrastination really can be a paralegal’s worst enemy. Whether there is not enough free time, there seems to be no good place to start, or the task looks too daunting, there are ways to manage the seemingly unmanageable.

Create Crumbs

For tasks that will take a lot of time, instead of putting them off until there will be a large enough chunk of free time to complete them in one fell swoop, think about how to break them down into smaller, more manageable tasks that can be accomplished over a series of days.

Chunk Chapters

Work in small chunks. Break an already small task—which is ideally part of a larger job—down into smaller bits. Set a timer for 10 to 15 minutes, no more than half an hour, and work at the task. When the timer goes off, decide whether to stay on the current task or to pick another. Either way, tasks get worn down, one small chunk at a time.

Separate Starts

All large tasks are really the same; when cleaning a house, start with one room. When finished, move on to the next room. Before long, the entire house is clean. Caseloads and client files are no different. Start with one; when it is finished, move on to the next. One by one, until the entire task is complete.

3. Tap into Tools

There is a plethora of tools available to today’s paralegal. Technology can help organize time, allocate resources, delegate duties, and more; making the best use of the tools at one’s disposal is perhaps the most important key to increasing productivity.

ServeNow.com

One of the duties that befalls paralegals is that of arranging for legal service. Many firms rely on third-party servers to deliver service, trace skips, conduct investigations, and other tasks. ServeNow.com provides firms with access to a vast network of trusted, pre-screened local process servers. This service saves paralegals the time required to hunt down a worthy process server by doing all of the legwork for them. How easy!

ServeManager

Another service provided by ServeNow.com is ServeManager. This program gives paralegals the ability to assign, track, and manage serves, much like shipping companies provide one location to manage and track all packages. This is a very convenient way to save time and stay organized.

Combined Contrivances

By combining tools such as ServeNow.com and ServeManager, paralegals can ensure that all of their process serving information is in one place, and that with very minimal effort and time, they can find all of their service information in one place.

4. Open up to Organization

Staying organized is a challenge for many individuals, not just paralegals. Whether it is the desk, filing cabinet, in/outboxes, or computer files, being organized saves time.

A Place for Everything … and Everything in its Place

Although an old saying, it holds truth to this day. By organizing the items on a desktop, a person’s mind creates a traffic pattern to the location of each item. By putting regularly used items in specific places and keeping them there, when a paralegal reaches for the item his/her brain learns the path to that item. Each time the action is carried out, that pathway becomes cemented harder and harder. Pretty soon, grabbing the stapler without looking, answering the phone while stapling, and grabbing a sticky note will all be second nature.

Find a File Formula

Client files can be a nightmare; organizing and keeping their contents organized can be even worse! Develop a pattern for case file contents. For instance, make it a rule to put the client information sheet in the bracket on the left side of the file, first item, followed by the retainer agreement on top, and any pertinent case opening documents from the court on top of that. On the right side, place discovery. Try filing the most recent additions to the front, so they are easy to find when preparing motions. After finding a succession that works, stick to it. Doing so will save time in the long run and eliminate lengthy searches for documents.

Kick Clutter to the Curb

Go through inboxes and outboxes, filing cabinets, and seldom-used desk drawers. Anything that is outdated, no longer used, or irrelevant, shred and throw away. Pens that no longer work, pencils without erasers, calculators with dead batteries: pitch ‘em. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a little spring cleaning year-round!

5. Find the Flow

Great paralegals know how their office works, and how their lawyers work. Putting that knowledge to good use by creating a proficient flow-through system for handling documents will increase productivity in the office, guaranteed!

Copy Cornucopia

Keep a good-sized stack of copies of a variety of regularly used documents readily at hand. For instance, if a firm requires a client intake sheet to be filled out for each potential client, having a tall stack of them copied and ready to grab on the way to a new consultation is extremely helpful.

Promptly Prioritize

Identify what tasks have to be done in what order, or what tasks must be completed by when. For paralegals who work with more than one lawyer, this can be tricky. Try keeping a weekly calendar that both lawyer and paralegal have access to in order to update meetings, hearings, and other items so that prioritization is always current.

Repeat the Routine

Once a routine is established, if it works, keep at it. Try not to deviate from the schedule unless absolutely necessary. This will help co-workers know when to stay out, clients to know when to expect an email response or phone call back, and the neural pathways will hum with efficiency!

Boosting productivity is challenging, especially in the paralegal profession, because working diligently all day and feeling exhausted at the end of it must mean that a great deal was accomplished, right? In truth though, arriving back at the office the next morning reveals that very little was completed. Trying these simple ideas to streamline the office and the way work is done can help conquer such a defeating and vicious cycle….”