This brief is written by Preeti Pallavi, from KIIT Law School.

Introduction

The Speaker: RAMANUJ MUKHERJEE

Ramnauj Mukherji is an alumnus of the National University of Judicial Sciences, Kolkata. He is the CEO of LawSikho and co-founder of iPleaders. His previous work experience includes being part of the Private Equity and M&A Team at Trilegal, Mumbai.

What is productivity?

Productivity is not how much you work but the speed at which you work. Some people are highly productive. This means that they have done a lot and they are quite effective. To be productive we need to work each and every day. It’s not a single day process. You need to pursue productivity wholeheartedly and then only you can achieve it.

Time is extremely essential and no one can control it, there are days we spend without doing anything, without realising we cannot rewind and today can never come back again. So we need to utilize it as much as possible. We have a finite life span. Making it worth it can only make us happy.

There are 2 types of people in life:

• I will do this, I can do this, I have the ability to do so. 

These are the people who can achieve everything they want because they believe in themselves more than they believe or think about others.

• I should have done that, I could have done that. 

These are the people who usually lose because they want to be satisfied even without doing anything.

How can one ensure productivity?

Productivity needs planning beforehand, thinking about it, learning from the work done and preparing for it by not neglecting or taking it carelessly.

What does productivity for a lawyer look like?

1. If you have a job: Then doing the work that has been assigned to you and a little bit more than that when done and when you compare and see you have done more, that can be said to be productivity.
2. If you are the boss: You should be more concentrated towards the betterment of your organisation, team. Your organisation needs to be more productive. It’s not only about you. It is not a personal or individual matter, it’s about the growth of the practice or it is about the growth of the law firm.
3. If you are a law student: Their term of productivity is scoring good marks in the exams and feeling useful about themselves in some or the other way.
4. If you are lawyers: They would want to be mentally fit and prepared to do the work. 

Productivity means to be able to do what we were expected to do. Productivity can be different from one person to another. Productivity differs from person to person because of the goals we set for ourselves, others might not have set the same ones. It is always self-imposed. This is called productivity. It’s always the benchmark that we set for ourselves. There are some people who always want to achieve more and that’s not a bad thing. They always want to shine out, become extraordinary. This can also be productivity. Working really hard is not a goal but working for a purpose and being hardworking is a goal. Working hard by enjoying yourself can also be productive. Some also define productivity as a success.

What needs to be achieved in the name of productivity?

1. If you worked more hours per day and earned more money.
2. Feeling satisfied that the day went well or felt like you did something which is worth it.
3. Building a system where even in your absence, the work can be done. Making progress in building a system to do more after some time by hiring people to allocate work to.
4. Organise or prepare beforehand on what all you need to do that can ensure productivity most of the time. This can bring certainty.

Important facets of productivity

1. Management – It needs to be measured. How much is done and what needs to be done and to be completed today for better growth.
2. Keep a track of what needs to be done – Note down points, don’t do the urgent one, always try to do the important ones. It may be at least 1 or 2 but that will make you happy and satisfied and you will feel productive.
3. Keep a track on your efforts that you make, the money and the time that you invested- Keep a track of how much time you are spending on one task or project and which ones are giving you more investment or return.
4. Identify what you want to improve and how it may be done.
5. Simplifying tasks and removing complexity.

PARKINSON’S LAW:

According to this principle, the time is given to you for a particular task, it can be completed in that time only. The more deadlines you receive, the more complex it becomes. Short deadlines can make you achieve more. The success can also be more in this case.

PARETO PRINCIPLE:

According to this principle, we need to find the major parts and make efforts on that and focus on that only. We need to be specific in nature and do what is important. Most of the time, if you act smart then less effort can also make more and great results. We just need to realise which part is necessary and we need to eliminate the rest.

A track needs to be kept and distraction should be ignored to continue working properly. Don’t just go with the flow. We need to be focused and just not a race to complete the task. To achieve big productivity, we need to observe and maintain everything. We need to concentrate on one task at a time and do not mix up. Even if anyone disturbs, you have to ignore that and complete your work first. Be serious about your completion. We need to create habit patterns so that we can be punctual and plan some work accordingly to be successful. Productivity requires to do or to act not to think and sit ideally. Try to reclaim the time which is not productive and we also need to keep our mind and brain strong to make it work.

Key points to remember:

• Work expands to fill the time allotted- Give yourself shorter deadlines by breaking a task into smaller parts so you don’t rush at the end of deadlines to get the task done.
• Do not make complicated plans, find a simple path.
• Commit to daily rituals to remember what is important at the moment.
• Analyse what kills your momentum and slows you down.
• Allow yourself to be fully absorbed by the task at hand that you lose track of time.
• Tune out the outside world.
• Do one task at a time.
• Do not be welcoming to interruption.
• Be obsessed with completion.
• Allocate long blocks of time for each task.
• Create habit patterns around your work.
• Reclaim unproductive time.
• Keep your brain strong and young.
• Reserve specific time for business development.

How to stay productive in the face of unforeseen problems, stress, insecurity and uncertainty?

For facing these all, we first need to accept whatever is coming in the way and need to keep faith that everything will be fine and keep the focus on your goals because these problems are part of our life. Bad things will definitely happen but we have to keep patience and need to work on it to do well.

How can you stick to your productivity plans?

Yes, it is quite difficult to stick to the plans that we make. But that is not impossible and it seems so because we think that we are not organised and cannot follow the plan. But if we try to practice it regularly even after failing in completing the plans, we will be able to stick to our productivity plans in some days.

Students of Lawsikho courses regularly produce writing assignments and work on practical exercises as a part of their coursework and develop themselves in real-life practical skill.

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