SBAND President
PRACTICING LAW GETS HARDER THE LONGER WE PRACTICE:
WORK-LIFE BALANCE IMPORTANT THROUGHOUT LAW CAREER
I find myself a partial empty-nester with one child at university and another starting his last two years of high school. I foolishly thought this time in my life would result in more free time and spending money; I was sorely misinformed. The demands of family life are often poorly balanced with the ever-present professional demands incumbent upon lawyers and judges. It is this mindset that brought me to both the bench and the presidency this year.
It is more precisely this elusive work-life balance which serves as the opening salvo of my president’s quarterly missive. I might have a few minor thoughts upon the professional side of the equation, as I believe my modest 27 years working within this profession provides me with something bordering on relevant insightfulness.
Practicing law gets harder the longer we practice. One of my favorite quotations comes from the great painter Edgar Degas: “Painting is easy when you don't know how, but very difficult when you do.” So it is true of the legal profession.
Much time is spent on training and mentoring new attorneys, rightly so. However, it is the senior attorneys who handle the majority of the legal matters in our state. Rising to manage offices and firms, rising to levels of leadership on boards and councils, and simultaneously tasked with training and mentoring the newer lawyers.
Experienced lawyers and judges are aware of all the things to be done, and more troublingly aware of all things that have been left undone or half-done. We are also aware of the counter-arguments and the many ways in which a legal matter is lost. Worst of all, we are aware of all the mistakes which might be made or have been made. It is said the ignorance and hubris of youth must always give way, in time, to the worries and fears of age.
Every day, the practice of law grows more and more difficult. For every day a lawyer practices, the difficulty increases. The more you know, the more work is required, because you know all the ways and means a project can go wrong. A common symptom of this problem is summed up in the neatly coined phrase “paralysis by analysis.” Another common symptom of this problem is ossification of your legal analysis. It gets harder, and so you either get stubborn, or the work piles up, or you start cutting corners. None of those option are good for you, your business, your clients, or the practice of law in our state.
Thankfully, there might be a few simple options available to busy lawyers, which may promote a healthier practice so as to avoid – or at least minimize – these troubling symptoms. I admit these are merely my own findings, and results may vary, but I think they are mostly universally applicable.
First, read. But don’t read pulp: Avoid true-crime, romance, and pop star biographies. High and classic literature exercises your brain by directing its prodigious energy towards complicated language and concepts outside of your day-to-day professional mental efforts. Your writing, thinking, and problem-solving skills are greatly enhanced when you take the time to exercise your mind.
Second, exercise. Physical exercise is universally understood to be necessary for all people, especially attorneys and judges who spend the majority of our working day seated. Physical movement is psychologically and physiologically beneficial and leads to clear thinking. This need not mean a dedicated and time-consuming work-out regimen. A daily walk or swim is recommended for most people at any age.
Third, mingle with other lawyers. There is tremendous benefit in finding time to associate with other lawyers outside our own circle. You will realize your problems are usually not yours alone, and it can be a tremendous relief to know issues with green associates, billing, certain judges (not in North Dakota, naturally), travel, and recent rulings are not exclusive to your own troubled practice.
Mingling with other lawyers is also beneficial to the legal practice at large. Over time, we find ourselves in a silo, closed off except to the few who perfectly fit our individualized practice. Living in a practice silo is lonely and suffocating, and ultimately bad for the entire practice of law, because you are shut out from opportunities and experiences.
I readily accept and admit these above little bromides are commonly known, but that fact does not negate the efficacy of their repetition. Read a good book, take a walk, and attend an in-person CLE. Go to the SBAND Annual Meeting. Get involved in your local bar. There are literally no downsides to doing any of these things, and there may be a host of benefits to your practice.
