By Julie Bays

I spent several days out of town a couple of weeks ago for a meeting. It was a good meeting and well worth attending. But every lawyer knows what happens when you are away from the office for several days. The work does not stop. Emails keep coming. Decisions are waiting for you. Deadlines remain on the calendar. Sometimes your calendar gets ahead of you before the week even begins.

That is why Jay Harrington’s recent Attorney at Work article, “Attorney Productivity Tips: 5 Tips That Helped Me Get My Head Back Above Water,” caught my attention. Harrington shares five practical productivity tips for lawyers who feel as though every open space on their calendar is being filled by someone else’s priorities. His suggestions include time blocking email, avoiding meetings on Mondays, batching calls on Fridays, checking in with your “future self” before accepting future commitments and creating a shutdown routine at the end of the day.

The Monday tip may be my favorite.

Harrington says he tries to reserve Mondays for deep work like writing and strategy, with no meetings scheduled that day. His point is not that every lawyer can control every Monday. We all know better than that. Courts, clients, deadlines and emergencies have their own ideas about our calendars. But the principle is still a good one.

Setting aside dedicated time for focused work enables lawyers to communicate more effectively, achieve higher quality results, and minimize the chances of missing important details.

Monday is often when lawyers need to regroup. It is the day to look at the week ahead, review deadlines, identify client matters needing attention, respond to important communications, check in with staff and make sure nothing has been missed. When Monday morning is immediately filled with meetings, calls and appointments, the lawyer may begin the week already behind.

For solo and small firm lawyers, this can be difficult. There may be only so many appointment slots available. Clients may want to meet as soon as possible. Court settings are not optional. But before automatically offering Monday morning as a meeting time, it may be worth asking whether that is the time you need to organize the rest of the week and protect the quality of your legal work.

Harrington’s “future self” advice is relevant: people often accept commitments weeks ahead, assuming they’ll have more time or fewer obligations. However, your future self will still be busy. Consider whether you’d agree to new tasks if they happen next week before saying yes.

I also liked his suggestion of an end-of-day shutdown routine. Taking a few minutes to tie up loose ends, review email, note tomorrow’s priorities and step away from the computer can make the next morning much easier. Lawyers do not need complicated productivity systems. But a few consistent habits can improve the delivery of legal services.

No system will work perfectly every day. Law practice has too many moving parts for that. But a little calendar discipline can support professional competence, improve client communication and help lawyers regain some control over their workweek.

If your calendar has been running your life lately, Harrington’s article is worth reading. You may not be able to protect every Monday. But protecting some part of Monday may be a good place to start.

Read Jay Harrington’s Attorney at Work article here: Attorney Productivity Tips: 5 Tips That Helped Me Get My Head Back Above Water.