The value of a strong work ethic is vital for career success. However, we can’t maintain an intense work schedule without taking time for ourselves. While we all have varying work and productivity capacities, there is a point for everyone where more effort brings a negative return and can create severe consequences when we continually push ourselves too hard. Doing so can affect the quality of everything — mostly our work output, our health or our relationships, even all three simultaneously.
Just look at the research. ALM reported that 15% of legal professionals know someone who committed suicide in the last two years. Sadly, stories like this are becoming more common.
What can legal administrators do to combat these stresses and improve their overall quality of life?
ESTABLISH HEALTHY BOUNDARIES
Early in your career or in a new job is the best time to set boundaries, according to John Bowers, Chief Executive Officer of Thompson Burton and a member of the Middle Tennessee Chapter. He says if you allow others to contact you whenever they want from the beginning, it will be much more difficult down the road to have boundaries. Start (or restart) now with realistic expectations for your work hours and establish guidelines for when you can be reached when you aren’t at work. Use your out-of-office email responder to let others know when they can reasonably expect to hear back from you when you are away.
Some of the most productive and creative moments of your day can come right after a short pause. Don’t wait until you are feeling overwhelmed to pause — be proactive and schedule them.
If you feel under a lot of pressure and are continuously backlogged by your work or asked to take on an urgent task, it might be that you need to have a conversation with your leadership that includes comments along these lines: “To accommodate that request right now will mean a significant drop in the high-quality work that we both desire. How can we proceed in a manner that will honor your request while reducing the pressure I am feeling now?” If that sounds unreasonable, the alternative could be worse. You must make that choice. Decide how available you will be after hours, on weekends or while on vacation, and stick to your guidelines.
BE PROACTIVE IN PLANNING
Bowers also says that he has taken the stairs to his office for most of his career (including when he worked in a 40-story building in Philadelphia). He says he uses that time to think through his day while giving his body a workout. Also, on Monday morning, his office door is closed with an “In Conference” note on his door for the first two hours. This allows for deep thinking and planning.
TAKE MICRO-PAUSES
Some of the most productive and creative moments of your day can come right after a short pause. Don’t wait until you are feeling overwhelmed for these pauses — be proactive and schedule them. Here are a few ideas:
Movement: Stand up and stretch. Keep some stretch bands or light weights nearby for a “mini- workout.” Take a brisk walk around outside or even around the office or a stairwell.
Brain stimulation: Set a timer and work on a crossword puzzle, Wordle or Sudoku for five minutes.
Express gratitude: Write a thank you note to a friend or co-worker. Find someone in the office who has been helpful to you on a project you worked on together and thank them with a fist bump, handshake or even a hug if appropriate.
Breathe: It is amazing how calming it can be to practice deep breathing.
Eat a healthy snack: Snacking can even be used as an incentive after completing a task.
Listen: This could mean jamming out to your favorite music. If you have an opportunity to get outside in nature, pay attention to the sounds around you. Listen deeply and regularly.
Look: Look at photographs on your computer or phone that bring you happiness — your family, your spouse or significant other, a memorable vacation, your pet, etc.
Smell: Make a cup of your favorite tea or other hot beverage, light a candle, or rub some of your favorite scented lotions on your hands.
Network: Contact someone in your local ALA group! Regularly schedule short calls with your ALA peers to check in on them and ask for their assistance when you need a different perspective.
Pray or meditate: Dana Holsomback, CLM, Firm Administrator at Bodker, Ramsey, Andrews, Winograd and Wildstein, and a member of the Atlanta Chapter, says her go-to pause is to meditate on scripture or to listen to contemporary Christian music. “I may also use a meditation app like Calm to bring my focus back to center,” she says.
During your day, see if you can incorporate all five senses in your routine to help with stress relief. You may find over time that one sense is more beneficial to you than the others but experiment by using them all. If you are feeling increased stress or anxiety, take a pause to explore how your senses might help change things. Ask yourself, “How can I use my senses to have a calmer demeanor right now?”
If you are a conscientious and productive administrator, you should never feel guilty for taking time for yourself. Have a conversation with your manager about some of the strategies you want to consider and let them know how you see them helping you better manage your workload, cope with stress, and how they will help your productivity and efficiency.
Jeopardizing your health or worse your life, shouldn’t happen. Ever. Take control and take time to pause.
