3 Tips For Managing Distractions Caused By Out-Of-Work Stress
Managing stress and eliminating distraction are necessary skills for every lawyer, regardless of the size or type of practice.
Managing stress and eliminating distraction are necessary skills for every lawyer, regardless of the size or type of practice. Working in an adversarial environment with constant deadlines and demanding clients makes it essential to be able to deal with the frustrations of everyday life in the office. But, believe it or not, lawyers are (mostly) all human, which means that they also have to resist being distracted by worries and demands of out-of-office life.
For me, a visa-holding immigrant from a country with not-so-stellar diplomatic relations with the U.S., monitoring the recent immigration-related executive orders and, even more so, anticipating what may be coming next has been an active source of stress and distraction in my daily routine. Between following the developments in the news, responding to emails from concerned friends, and thinking of how to deal with possible worst-case scenarios, it is easy to get distracted from what my focus needs to primarily be on during most of the day—fighting for my clients.
Coping with stress is an often discussed topic within the legal industry, as law always ranks high on the list of the most stressful professions. Managing mental health in stressful times is, however, different from managing client work while under stress. As harsh as it sounds, the work must get done, and the client must get the best representation possible. Lawyers have different approaches to achieving this goal, and those approaches differ from person to person. The following non-exclusive list of tips works well for me, but they may not for others.
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1. Mix in other activities.
While adding tasks to your daily schedule when you are already struggling to get everything done sounds like the opposite of what you should be doing, the positive distraction that it provides can have a beneficial impact. For example, I’m coaching a high school mock trial team for an upcoming state-wide competition. This activity, while time- and effort-consuming, allows me to shift my energy to helping ambitious and passionate teenagers prepare for a make-believe trial where every witness and lawyer has a gender-neutral name. This change in pace and attention serves as a good way to block distractions.
This example may not be ideal as it involves the exact kind of work that I do on an everyday basis, except the result of a fake trial does not affect the outcome of real people. But, the idea is that changing the setting and shifting focus onto something different for an hour or two a day helps us block distractions and get work done.
2. Get exercise and sleep.
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It seems like exercise is always prescribed as a cure for pretty much anything nowadays. I think there is a strong reason for it. It helps you get out of the office and keep yourself busy in a way that lets you forget about whatever stressful situation is distracting you from work. More importantly perhaps, physical activity, whether it be a long walk, a spin class, or weight training, improves the brain functions and focus that will help you get the work done. This need not take a large chunk of your already busy day; a walk around the block can really help you get things done in the hours to follow.
Exercise also helps the quality of sleep and falling asleep altogether, both of which are likely to otherwise suffer due to stress. Lack of sleep, especially over an extended period, leaves us tired and unable to get things done efficiently. We have a rule at our firm that encourages attorneys on a given case to limit the number of late nights before filing deadlines, thus sharpening productivity during the final pre-filing hours.
3. Delegate work.
The importance of relying on my colleagues is a crucial part of working on every case, the importance of which becomes that much more apparent when out-of-work distractions are affecting my own focus. As John Balestriere frequently notes, “if lawyers want do the best work—for their clients, and for themselves—they need to find the best teams and fulfill their roles in those teams.” But help them help you. Make sure that everyone on the team knows what they need to do and what is expected of them.
Stress-causing distractions are part of life and always will be (perhaps more so over the next four years). Learning how to manage them helps both our clients and us. It makes us better lawyers and, more importantly, better individuals.
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Stefan Savic was an attorney at Balestriere Fariello, a trial and investigations law firm which represents clients in all aspects of complex commercial litigation and arbitration from pre-filing investigations to trial and appeals. You can reach firm partner John Balestriere at john.g.balestriere@balestrierefariello.com.
