Scott Shapiro, MD

Organizational and Executive Coach
Specializing in Workplace Performance and Productivity

focus

7 Strategies for Bankers, Private Equity, and Hedge Fund Professionals to Improve Focus and Performance

Investing banking, hedge fund, financial industry, private equity, improving focus and performance - elite performance
Improve Productivity and Reach Your Goals – Productivity Coach, Scott Shapiro, MD – Executive Coach – Achieving Elite Performance Photo Credit-iStock AndreyPopov

In high-stakes finance, your edge isn’t just your intellect—it’s your ability to focus under pressure, make sharp decisions, and sustain performance over long hours and volatile conditions. Whether you’re on the buy-side analyzing a deal, in meetings from dawn until after the market closes, or managing a demanding client portfolio, the ability to direct your mental energy is what separates top performers from the rest.

As a psychiatrist and executive coach based in New York City, I work with investment bankers, private equity leaders, and hedge fund professionals to fine-tune their performance using strategies grounded in neuroscience, behavioral psychology, and real-world application. These seven strategies will help you cut through mental clutter, protect your cognitive bandwidth, and perform at your best—without burning out.

1. Win the First 90 Minutes of Your Day and Boost Your Performance

Start your day with intention, not reaction. Avoid diving into emails, Slack, or Bloomberg alerts the moment you wake up. Instead, use your first 90 minutes for high-leverage thinking—developing an investment thesis, planning a pitch, or outlining your talking points for a key meeting. During this time, block distractions, protect your calendar, and focus on value-generating work. This primes your brain for clarity and sets the tone for the rest of the day.

2. Apply the “One-In, One-Out” Rule to Your Mental Bandwidth

Your brain, like your portfolio, has limited capacity. If you’re juggling six priorities simultaneously, you’re not executing any of them optimally. High performers often overestimate how much they can take on without mental cost. Adopt a rule: for every major commitment or new deal that enters your pipeline, something must exit or be deprioritized. Protecting cognitive bandwidth improves accuracy and sharpens strategic thinking.

3. Use “Power Sprints” to Drive Deep Work

Work in targeted sprints—45 to 60 minutes of uninterrupted, distraction-free focus. Turn off notifications, close unused browser tabs, and keep only the materials relevant to the task in front of you. After the sprint, take a 5–10 minute break to reset. These focused bursts are ideal for financial modeling, analyzing data, or writing investment memos. Over time, this approach trains your brain for depth and precision.

4. Shift from Reactive to Proactive Communication

Constant communication can fracture focus. Slack messages, email chains, and meeting overload often make people feel productive without actually producing. To regain control, block specific times for communication and protect other windows for strategy and execution. Create a culture around intentional check-ins rather than defaulting to always-on responsiveness. You’ll be more focused—and more respected—for it.

5. Preload Decisions to Reduce Mental Fatigue

Decision fatigue is real, and in finance, the number of micro-decisions you make daily is staggering. Create routines and systems to offload low-impact decisions. This might mean setting a fixed morning routine, automating calendar priorities, or standardizing how you review new opportunities. By conserving your mental energy for high-value calls—like investment evaluations, hiring, or negotiation—you improve decision quality when it matters most.

6. Audit Your Calendar Like a Portfolio

Time is your scarcest resource. Every meeting should have a clear return on time (ROT). Review your calendar weekly and ask: which meetings are aligned with my priorities, and which are legacy obligations? Cut or consolidate anything that isn’t moving the needle. Just as you wouldn’t hold a non-performing asset, don’t allow time-sinks to accumulate. The highest performers are ruthless about protecting time for thinking, creating, and executing.

7. Recover as Intentionally as You Work

High performers often treat recovery as optional, but it’s non-negotiable for sustained performance. Chronic stress and sleep deprivation shrink the prefrontal cortex—the part of the brain responsible for focus, planning, and impulse control. Build recovery into your schedule the way you build in earnings calls or board meetings. Even 10 minutes of mindfulness, walking without your phone, or breathwork can reset your nervous system and boost clarity. Recovery isn’t a weakness—it’s a performance multiplier.

Final Thought

The intensity of banking, private equity, and hedge fund environments doesn’t just demand technical excellence—it demands mental agility, emotional control, and sustainable focus. You can’t afford to burn out, zone out, or get caught in a loop of busywork that doesn’t move your career or your firm forward.

These strategies aren’t about doing more—they’re about doing what matters with precision and consistency.

If you’re ready to operate at the next level—strategically, cognitively, and emotionally—visit www.scottshapiromd.com. I work with high-achieving professionals in finance to sharpen their edge, unlock performance gains, and sustain long-term success in the most competitive environments.

7 Strategies for Lawyers to Improve Focus and Productivity

Credit: iStock Hispanolistic- Scott Shapiro, MD – Productivity and Performance Coach for Lawyers in NYC

Often, lawyers can improve their success by improving their focus and productivity. The profession demands long hours, sustained attention, constant decision-making, and the ability to rapidly switch between tasks without missing critical details. The stakes are high, and so is the pressure. Over time, even the most accomplished attorneys can find their focus slipping—especially in today’s distraction-saturated world.

As a psychiatrist and executive coach who specializes in performance and productivity, I work with high-performing professionals—including many lawyers—to help them sharpen their focus and operate at peak performance. The following seven strategies are based on cognitive neuroscience, behavioral psychology, and real-world experience in helping attorneys get more done with less stress.

1. Start Your Day With One Big Win and Boost Your Productivity

Before you check email or respond to texts, identify the most important task of the day—the one that moves the needle forward. This is often a brief, high-impact action: drafting a key section of a brief, preparing for a negotiation, or organizing your notes for court. Even 60–90 minutes of uninterrupted work on this priority can build momentum and change the tone of your day.

Think of this as your “anchor task.” Complete it early, and you’ll feel more focused and in control the rest of the day.

2. Use the 52/17 Focus Rhythm

The human brain is not designed to work for hours at a stretch without rest. One of the most effective productivity patterns I teach is the 52/17 rhythm: 52 minutes of focused work followed by 17 minutes of active rest. During the 52 minutes, eliminate all distractions—no email, no multitasking, no Slack. During the 17-minute break, get up, stretch, take a walk, or engage in light conversation. This rhythm prevents burnout and enhances sustained attention.

3. Schedule “Cognitive Sprints” Instead of Open-Ended Work

Lawyers often leave open-ended time blocks to “work on that memo,” which invites procrastination. Instead, reframe your work into sprints. For example, “For the next 25 minutes, I’ll outline the argument section.” The time constraint creates urgency, and the narrow focus reduces overwhelm.

Cognitive sprints improve both quality and efficiency. They’re especially helpful when you’re facing a large, ambiguous task that feels hard to start.

4. Practice Strategic Email Hygiene

Email is one of the most common productivity traps for attorneys. Rather than checking constantly throughout the day, batch your email into 2–3 focused windows—ideally after completing your anchor task. Turn off notifications and resist the urge to reply instantly unless it’s urgent.

Use folders and filters to prioritize client communications. A good rule: if a reply takes less than two minutes, handle it during one of your email windows. If not, schedule a specific time to respond thoughtfully.

5. Use Mental Anchors to Transition Between Tasks

Context switching is a major drain on cognitive energy. Instead of jumping from one task to another, take 60 seconds to mentally “close the loop” on the previous task—write down where you left off, what’s next, and any loose ends. Then take a brief moment to breathe, stretch, or walk before diving into the next priority. This practice resets your attention and helps you stay fully present.

6. Clarify What “Done” Looks Like

Vague goals like “work on deposition questions” tend to linger on to-do lists. Instead, define what completion means: “Write five questions for the expert witness” or “Outline the main argument threads.” When your brain knows exactly what the finish line is, it’s easier to focus and easier to stop when you’ve achieved it. Clarity reduces cognitive load and increases productivity.

7. Protect Sleep Like You Protect a Court Deadline

High-functioning lawyers often sacrifice sleep in the name of productivity. But chronic sleep deprivation impairs decision-making, focus, memory, and mood—exactly the functions legal work depends on. Treat sleep like an investment in your performance. Set a hard stop to your workday, dim screens at night, and establish a calming pre-bed routine. Even an extra 30–45 minutes of sleep can improve your mental sharpness the next day.

Final Thought

Improving focus and productivity as a lawyer doesn’t require working harder—it requires working smarter. By implementing these science-backed strategies, you can reduce mental fatigue, get more meaningful work done in less time, and perform at the level your clients, colleagues, and your own standards demand.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to optimize your mental performance, productivity, and leadership as a high-achieving attorney, visit www.scottshapiromd.com. I work with professionals like you to remove mental roadblocks and help you function at your best—consistently.

7 Proven Ways to Reach Your Goals in 2024

Executive Coaching in NYC to help you reach your goals
Scott Shapiro, MD – The Productivity Consultant

7 Productivity Strategies to Help You Reach Your Goals in 2024

Several years ago, Brenda*, a 37-year-old marketing executive, contacted me for productivity consulting. She had heard about me from one of her mentors. She was interested in taking her career to the next level. She felt several factors were blocking her from reaching her full potential.

She described worrying a lot and not having the zest she used to earlier in her career. This interfered with her productivity. We scheduled an hour to discuss her challenges as well as her thinking about the challenges. As a coach and consultant, I felt confident that Brenda had many of the answers and ideas about her current situation. However, perhaps, like a diamond in the rough, she just needed to polish her thinking.

During our initial conversation, after closely listening to her challenges and goals, we discussed working together regularly. We used seven productivity strategies that have been effective for many of my clients. Below, I would like to share these strategies with you.

1.  OBSERVE RUMINATION

Rumination is thinking about the same thing over and over. It can sap your energy and take the “wind out of your sails.” This can interfere with your productivity. Attempting to stop the thoughts can often make them persist. Instead, label them as “ruminating thoughts” and turn your focus to another activity. 

One technique that you may find helpful is saying,  “Oh…there is obsessing” or “Oh…there is worry”. Just observe what happens when you name the thought. Research has shown that this can lower the intensity and duration. During corporate coaching, I help my clients observe their rumination patterns and clarify their thinking.

2.  INCREASE STRUCTURE

Successful professionals struggle with time management, initiating tasks, organization, follow-through, and prioritizing. Chronically feeling overwhelmed can lead to worry and exhaustion.

Having a schedule or “game plan”, can help one feel calmer.  Using a calendar, either paper or digital, can help structure tasks and time. This can help with productivity and organization.

3.  SELF-TALK

Many professionals, despite past successes, often feel they will never catch up or achieve their goals. You may recognize some of the self-talk:

●    “I am always screwing things up.”

●    “I will never be good enough.”

●    “This will never work for me.”

This type of self-talk is often called the inner critic and can sap energy like rumination. Often, I encourage my patients to do the following:

●    Notice the inner critic.

●    As above, label it. “Oh….There is the inner critic.”

●    Remind yourself: “I am a work in progress”.

This may sound like positive talk or unrealistic, but thousands of studies for many decades have shown that how we talk to ourselves affects how we feel and behave and has been shown to improve our productivity.

This concept is the basis of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

4.  IMPROVE SLEEP

There has been more attention over the past decade on the connection between sleep deprivation and diminished productivity.  Restorative and adequate sleep is essential not only for energy but also for cognitive functioning.

Some tips to improve intermittent sleeping difficulties include:

●    Avoid electronic devices for three to four hours before bedtime.

●    Establishing a consistent evening routine.

●    Creating a calm, uncluttered sleeping environment.

●    Use earplugs or a white noise machine if needed.

●    Exercising during the day and not within three hours of bedtime.

Suppose you suffer from significantly low energy during the day or chronic insomnia. In that case, it may help your productivity to seek treatment from your doctor about potential underlying medical causes of fatigue.

5.  FUN

Often, successful and highly productive people can feel overwhelmed or without enough time that fun or pleasurable activities are ignored. People may say, “I don’t have time to relax or have fun,” or “I don’t deserve to do that.” 

However, the fun can energize you and help you have a better outlook and be more productive. Fun can involve watching a comedy, playing with your dog, visiting friends, or pursuing an artistic passion.

6.  SET GOALS

Like a map, having specific goals can help you stay on track. As you progress in your goals, it can provide momentum and guidance on your journey.

As your corporate coach, I would recommend that you create both short-term (e.g. one month) and long-term (e.g. one year) goals. The research has shown that specific goals increase productivity.

Practical goals usually have specific outcomes (e.g., increased sales by $10,000 or eating meals with the family three times a week), a game plan or strategy, and, most importantly, a means to measure the outcome (e.g. a chart or checklist).

7.  CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE

Cardiovascular exercises such as biking, running, dancing, swimming, and other activities benefit our overall health. In addition, cardiovascular exercise can improve our sense of well-being, energy, and productivity.

There are many hypotheses as to why cardiovascular exercise has this benefit, including releasing endorphins and increasing a “motivational transmitter” called dopamine.

SUMMARY

After Barbara and I worked together for over four months, Barbara clarified her thinking about her most important personal and professional goals as well as strategies for achieving them. Her productivity greatly improved. 

In addition, with the collaborative consulting process that included clarifying her thinking, developing specific action steps and due dates, and exploring new strategies we discussed, Barbara felt re-energized and more engaged at work.

In addition, she was managing her team more effectively, and her colleagues acknowledged her. Interestingly, within a year, with her new energy and confidence, she secured a new job that was a significant step up in a leadership position with a much higher salary.

As you pursue success in your personal and professional life, there can be many challenges in sustaining your engagement, energy, and motivation. I hope these seven ideas help to provide you with the stamina and energy to achieve your highest potential.

If you want to learn more about productivity consulting, please visit my website at www.theproductivitycoachnyc.com.

*Disclaimer: Details of cases have been altered to protect the confidentiality of any individuals.

Productivity Consulting and 5 Exciting Game-Changing Strategies for Productivity

By Scott Shapiro, MD – The Productivity Consultant

Productivity Consulting: 5 Game-Changing Tips

Introduction:

In the realm of productivity consulting, excelling hinges on your ability to harness your mental prowess—much like the intense focus, concentration, and confidence required in a game of tennis. In both arenas, getting your mind out of your own way is the key to unlocking your full potential.

Discover five transformative Life Coaching Tips to empower you to achieve peak performance in both your professional and personal life, all while benefiting from expert productivity consulting insights.

Productivity Consulting Tip 1: Harness the Power of Mantras

To sharpen your focus and establish a rhythmic flow, adopt a simple mantra like “bounce-hit, bounce-hit” when a tennis ball approaches the net. In the workplace, a similar mantra can keep you on the right track, leveraging the expertise of productivity consulting.

Productivity Consulting Tip 2: Find Inspiration in Music

Tap into the invigorating force of music to prevent overthinking. Just as tennis requires a delicate balance between focus and release, having a motivating or favorite song in mind can be particularly helpful when confronting challenging projects at work, in alignment with productivity consulting principles.

Productivity Consulting Tip 3: Release Critical Self-Talk

During the warm-up phase, practice letting go of critical thoughts by reassuring yourself that “this is practice.” This mental habit can enhance your performance, both on the court and in your professional endeavors, as recommended by productivity consulting experts.

Productivity Consulting Tip 4: Anticipate Your Next Move

Preparation is the key to success. Ensure that you stay one step ahead by thinking about your next move in advance. Whether it’s positioning your racket before your opponent’s shot or being proactive at work, staying ahead of the game can set you apart, guided by productivity consulting strategies.

Productivity Consulting Tip 5: Sustain Your Momentum

Similar to the principles of martial arts, tennis draws its power from the momentum of your body rather than raw muscular strength. Likewise, at work, maintaining a continuous flow can prevent procrastination and the “mind games” that breed doubts and worries, as advocated by productivity consulting professionals. A steady rhythm is your ally in both endeavors.

Conclusion:

Remember that life is a game, and the key is to strike a balance between honing your skills and enjoying the process. While most people perceive tennis as a game and work as a serious endeavor, shifting your perspective can lead to greater productivity and more fun. As you embark on this journey of self-improvement, we wish you the best of luck in “getting your mind out of your own way” both on the court and in your professional life. For any questions or comments, feel free to reach out to us at scott@theproductivitycoach.com, where you can access top-tier productivity consulting solutions.