At 5:50am this morning, I was waiting for Starbucks® to open before we started the Las Vegas CLNC® Certification Seminar. It’s hard to believe that in Vegas a Starbucks doesn’t open until 6:00am, but that’s why I was in line. Waiting. Patiently. For. My. Caffeine. Fix.
In the 21st-century one of our biggest challenges is attaining balance while wearing the productivity badge of honor. My personal strategy for staying balanced is to wake up just for me – not Tom, email or that looming legal nurse consulting project. I wake up at 4:00am to carve out “me” time – well before the rest of the world starts stirring. And during that time I quietly enjoy two cups of healthy green tea to prep myself before leaving my cocoon and entering the real world and the craziness that goes with it.
I have an excruciatingly hectic schedule for my legal nurse consulting business and I joke with Tom that working 12-hours shifts at an RN hospital job would be a break in contrast to my travel schedule and the frequent 16-hour days. But even when I’m traveling, or launching into one of those 16-hour days, my day always starts with “me.”
I can’t wait to get out of bed each morning – there really is something magical about not having to wake up and roll over to face a “To-Do” list. Carving out time for yourself,
Promise #4 reminds us to surround ourselves with as many successful mentors as possible. Inept coaches don’t just fail to help you, they actually help you to fail. As Vince Lombardi said, “Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.” Practicing a bad tennis swing doesn’t improve your game. Hanging out with negative naysayers won’t grow you or your CLNC® business.
Commit to actively seek out new, challenging experiences and people who will push you to the next level. If you want to run with the big dogs, you have to run with the big dogs.
I’m Just Sayin’
P.S. Comment and share your strategies for being a success student for life.
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Each and every one of us has a dream – something we want to do or be. CLNC consultant, Lynda Whitlow, RN, FAACM, CLNC had a dream – owning and racing thoroughbred racehorses – which as you can guess, necessitated money. In this video, Lynda shares how becoming a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant has allowed her to live that dream.
Structured procrastination is a very real malady that many CLNC® consultants (or any business person) suffer from. A symptom that one is afflicted with this slow-moving disease is the endless making of checklists and constant interaction with the lists.
My own research has identified that this disease first appeared in the early 1990’s, when a famous motivational speaker encouraged his followers to start their day by making a “to-do” list of everything they needed to accomplish that day and then end their day by making a list of what they didn’t complete. In between, he encouraged them to check off (or add and check off) each item that was completed. The same cycle started over the next day, and the next and the next. Rather than label this compulsive behavior by its DSM-5 title of structured procrastination, I simply call it the “feel good addiction.”
This feel-good addiction doesn’t just infect unproductive legal nurse consultants. Even if you are productive you can be addicted to straightening, organizing, reorganizing and checking off. The feel-good addiction is insidious for those who like to check things off, because you feel good after completing each small task.
When we were little we were taught that good students sit in their chairs and don’t move. Those of us who were the most still, got the most gold stars. And those of us who weren’t still – well let’s just say we didn’t get the best marks in conduct.
In 2014 we know, that contrary to those experts, we learn best when we’re on the move. Learning experts have proven that we remember best what we learn at the beginning and at the end of a study session. Therefore it pays to have shorter, more frequent study sessions.
The strategy of being on the move can work for your legal nurse consulting productivity too. How often do you find yourself staring at your computer screen waiting for the insights and words to come? Knowing the attorney’s deadline is looming, you’re hoping the report will write itself if you sit staring at the computer screen long enough.
When you hit the roadblock head-on, that might just be the right time to get up and take a 5-minute walk, stretch or have a cup of healthy green tea. You’ll most likely find the words you’re seeking in those moments of movement.
I call Promise #3 the “buck-up” promise. Nurses constantly tell me “Vickie, I don’t have time to develop my legal nurse consulting business. My response is always the same, “Buck-up, cut the excuses and make the time.”
Our more casual attire doesn’t always set us up strategically for spontaneously meeting attorney-prospects. Professional Certified Legal Nurse Consultants know there’s such a thing as comfortable, too comfortable and way too comfortable, and they dress accordingly anytime they step out the door.
All Certified Legal Nurse Consultants have heard the news about the increasing numbers of major companies who have had credit cards and other personal data accessed by hackers. More and more of these breaches have involved personal information as well as credit card numbers. If your data has been included in the information that was “hacked” you’ve probably received a notice from either that merchant (Target, Neiman Marcus, etc.) or from your credit card company that you need to protect yourself. Given that the bad guys apparently have addresses, phone numbers and email addresses, those miscreants now have many ways to contact you also.
Social media accounts such as Facebook®, Twitter®, Instagram® and their like present a wealth of potentially damaging information for both plaintiff and defense. Many people leave those accounts open to public viewing, indexing and searching. It’s common and considered standard practice for attorneys to review the public and private social media accounts of their own client and the public social media accounts of the opposing parties, expert witnesses and even jurors for potentially useful or damaging information. Attorneys research those social media accounts before, during and after litigation.
Many account owners set the privacy settings to allow only “friends” or approved parties to view their posts. If an attorney requests you, as a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant, to “friend” or infiltrate an opposing party’s or juror’s private account, don’t do it. Attorneys are themselves ethically prohibited from doing so and ethically prevented from instructing someone else to do the same. The attorney should always obtain the information through the proper discovery process.
*The opinions and statements made by Vickie Milazzo, the founder of Medical-Legal Consulting Institute, Inc. are based on her experiences and expertise, should not be applied beyond the specific context provided, and do not guaranty or project actual results. Vickie Milazzo is no longer involved in the operations or management of the business, but is involved as an independent education consultant.
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