Just Your Voice: Part 1: The Eight Hour Day

A Note to Minions:

I’ll repeat this phrase in ALL of my writing until the world understands: Time is a Scapegoat.  

Some days get ahead of us, yes, but if you’re feeling swamped and behind every moment of every workday, perhaps a shift needs made.  Have you trained your peers to be able to handle your overflow?  Have you assessed which tasks take you longer to complete and brainstormed for a solution?  The “it’ll never work” mentality is a self-fulfilling prophesy - even the most stubborn old dog can find a new groove if it makes survival more manageable.

On the flip side, sometimes jobs have gaps in workflow.  I worked as a domestic violence caseworker for over three years and the actual job of meeting with clients, answering phones, and training professionals to screen for domestic violence was flood or famine on the busy front.  So, in my downtime, I wrote new curriculum.  I created new worksheets for clients and staff to use.  The agency caught on and I was invited to train other staff on how to create new programs within the agency.  

It’s not your job description that dictates what you do all day - it’s you who chooses how you ration your time.

Small law offices are similar - either you’re on a deadline and are too busy for lunch or you have time to clean off your desk and sort paperclips.  So, I wrote a how-to manual for office functions and legal assistant tasks.  A former co-worker of mine changed all the in-house office forms to be more functional, organized, and stylized.  Her portfolio of office management and Microsoft Office skills grew solely through her quest for improvement.  

Just remember to ask yourself periodically:  

Are you proud of the work you’re putting on the table?  Are you working or are you on Facebook during those gaps in your day?  

Sometimes it’s hard to tell.

A Note to Supervisors:

Know what your staff is capable of.  

If they appear to be too busy and overworked, teach them to delegate.  
If they appear to be underwhelmed, suggest a few “on-the-back-burner” projects for them to sink their teeth into and hopefully inspire them to learn a new on the job skill.  

Lording over the office spouting, “you don’t look busy” or “so, I can see you have spare time on your hands,” creates a hostile environment that hinders productivity.  Pressure to look busy leads to staff sitting at their desks slowly sorting through papers all day so they will “look busy”.  

Bottom line: knowing what your staff is interested in and indulging in their ideas keeps them coming back to work and to succeed.