August 1, 2024: Billable Hour Check In

August 1, 2024 -- time for my monthly billable hour check in.

As a partner, my all-in expectation is 2,400 hours--a mix of traditionally billable time + investment time (business + client development, networking, CLEs, mentoring, recruiting, and more).

So far, I'm right on track, if not a little ahead. However, December will be a short month, as I hope to take some time off around the holidays.

So, my goal for August is 200 hours.

When I look at my calendar, I see 23 working days, a mix of full billing days (20), half billing days (2), one Saturday full of investment time, some zero billing days (the rest of the weekend days, hopefully).

200 divided by 22 = 9.1 hours on full days and 4.6 hours on half days.

I will map this out into weekly goals. Every day, I'll see if I missed, met, or beat my goal.

If I'm ahead, I'll take hours off the next day, the rest of the week, or the rest of the month (or I won't change anything, so I can bank extra hours).

If I'm behind, I'll add hours to the next day, the rest of the week, or the rest of the month.

I'll do this same analysis at the end of the month, recalibrating every step of the way.

By knowing where I stand, I can enjoy slow days, when things are tidied up, and take a break. Or, I can push on, getting ahead, for the inevitable slow period that always comes.

The ebbs and flows of this job are still the hardest part. But, with this practice, I worry less and turn down the guilt (as much as I can).

🔥❤️✌️