Take the 5 Minute Legal Nurse Consultant Challenge
How often do you have five minutes and what do you do with it? Click onto Facebook? Seize the opportunity to accomplish something? Renew and recharge?
How often do you have five minutes and what do you do with it? Click onto Facebook? Seize the opportunity to accomplish something? Renew and recharge?
Often, there’s nothing more satisfying than crossing a task off of your gargantuan to-do list. In fact, it’s a feeling that can be addictive. Once we cross off one task, we go after the next one so we can experience that feeling all over again. But how many of those eliminated tasks really helped you move forward in achieving your ultimate goals for your legal nurse consulting business?
Every medical-related case you analyze begins with the big picture. Only when you understand the essence of the case can you efficiently drill down to the relevant details for optimal legal nurse consultant productivity.
When LegalNurse.com staffers and CLNC subcontractors complain to me about all of the interruptions getting in the way of their productivity, I usually respond, “Interruptions are work too.” In 2014 most of us rarely have the luxury of working without interruptions. That’s one of the reasons I get up at zero dark thirty – because anyone who would probably be inclined to interrupt me is quietly enjoying a REM cycle and sleeping as late as they can before dragging themselves into work.
Once the world wakes up, and eventually it will no matter what time you arise, this one strategy guarantees increased productivity for Certified Legal Nurse Consultants. The strategy is to “stay in the moment.” Staying in the moment and not thinking about the impending deadline or the 10 other medical malpractice cases on your desk, should be as natural or involuntary as breathing.
Staying in the moment – you are more relaxed. Focusing on the past or the future only contributes to increased tension and anxiety which bring productivity to a standstill. When those low level thoughts involving the past and future interfere with your moment, remember this – the past is over and the future might never come.
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,
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.
*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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