IndyBar: Practice Toolkit: Are Notifications Blowing Up Your Concentration?

By Jared Correia, Red Cave Consulting

There’s a funny scene in the Pixar movie “Luca” where one of the main characters has labeled the negative voice in his head “Bruno” — and, whenever he has thoughts about how he can’t do something, he yells “Silenzio, Bruno!” (they’re Italian), and so tamps down the fictional naysayer.

I mean, it’s a great strategy, honestly.

But for many lawyers (and businesspeople generally), there’s another, external voice, that can be highly bothersome. Those are the notifications that constantly ping on your devices and in software.

Look, the fact of the matter is that software and hardware for work is designed to be “in your face” at all times. Developers and CEOs know that you’re always getting crushed with information and being sent notifications, and they have to muscle in somehow, too. That’s why, when you buy something, they try to opt you in to updates. And that’s always why every software prompts you to enable notifications.

So, every time you get an email message, your phone dings. And every time you get a text, it buzzes. And every time a new lead comes into your business, you get pinged in 17 different places.

But you don’t need to leave those notifications on; you can (and maybe should) turn them all off. And in cases where you feel like a response is needed, you can potentially automate that response — for example, by using chat or CRM tools for new leads.

The fact of the matter is that you don’t really need all these notifications, and you probably do your best work when you can concentrate, without distractions.

So if you can’t get that noisome voice out of your head, maybe take some time to visit your software and hardware settings.•

Jared D. Correia, esq., is the founder and CEO of Red Cave Law Firm Consulting. A former practicing attorney, Jared has been advising lawyers and law firms for over a decade. He is a regular presenter at local, regional and national events, including ABA TECHSHOW. He regularly contributes to legal publications, including his column, “Managing,” for Attorney at Work, and his “Law Practice Confidential” advice column for Lawyerist. Jared is the author of the American Bar Association publication, “Twitter in One Hour for Lawyers.” He is the host of the Legal Toolkit podcast on Legal Talk Network.

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The Indy Bar offers FREE law practice management consulting services through Red Cave Law Firm Consulting. To request a consult, visit the IndyBar law practice management consulting landing page and start running your law firm like a business.