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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 7 J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 2 6 improvements to its historic space, and infrastructure that supports long-term sustainability and accessibility. Bar Harbor revises cruise cap Bar Harbor's cruise ship passenger cap is unenforceable in all months other than July and August, according to the latest U.S. District Court ruling on the controversial matter. In response, the Bar Harbor Town Council said it would consider the impact of the decision. N O T E W O R T H Y N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N Katahdin Bankshares Corp., parent company of Katahdin Trust Co. in Houlton, declared a cash dividend of 23 cents per share for the second quarter of 2026. The dividend will be payable on June 22 to shareholders of record as of June 8. The dividend represents a 13.6% increase over last year's second-quarter dividend. N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N REACH OUT TO US AT CIRCULATION@MAINEBIZ.BIZ FOR A QUOTE We offer discounted group subscriptions starting at 5 users. Ensure your team has all access to Mainebiz A S K AC E A n s w e r e d b y W i l l i a m W a d e , D i r i g o S o f t w a r e S o l u t i o n s The Association for Consulting Expertise (ACE) is a nonprofit association of independent consultants who value "success through collaboration." The public is welcome to attend its regular meetings to share best practices and engage with industry experts. For more information go to www.consultexpertise.com. Q: My day is filled with small tasks that add up, which means by 4 p.m. I'm just getting started on real work. Any suggestions? ACE advises: Time is like money. It matters where you spend it. Unlike money, you rarely see it leaving. It's 4:45 p.m. You finally open the proposal you meant to work on this morning. Before you begin, you answer one email. Then log notes from a call. Update the CRM. Fix a formatting issue. Respond to a "quick question." None of it takes long. It's 15 minutes here, 10 there. By 5:30 p.m., you were busy all day, but the work that actually moves things forward is untouched. Snowball effect: Most roles include more than the work itself: Rewriting the same email response Updating trackers after every meeting Uploading documents into multiple systems Manually pulling numbers into reports Individually, they seem minor. Together, they quietly con- sume hours. Why we tolerate it: Small tasks feel produc- tive. They're predictable. You can finish them. Changing systems feels harder than push- ing through one more day. And when people try to fix it, they often try to fix everything at once with new tools, complex setups and slow results. They get lost in all the change and become frustrated. Often resulting in just giving up. Start small. Win big: Instead of overhauling everything, pick one repetitive task. Just one. Automate a weekly report. Create a reusable email template. Simplify a manual entry process. Fifteen minutes a day adds up to about 65 hours a year, which is more than a full workweek. Then automate another. Now you get 130 hours a year. Small wins build momentum. Momentum builds freedom and competence that allows you to then take on the more complex automations. All it takes is that first automation to get you started. What's one 15-minute task you're ready to let go of today? William Wade, a member of ACE, is the founder of Dirigo Software Solutions, which specializes in helping businesses to eliminate unprofitable and unneces- sar y work through the use of technology. He can be reached at wwade@ dirigosoftwaresolutions.com

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