Bored practicing law

It may be hard for some to believe, particularly non-lawyers, but some lawyers are actually bored practicing law.

I was called on some time ago to consult with a lawyer, a very good lawyer, who was considering leaving his firm, and even changing his career - - because he was bored practicing law.  His firm wanted him to remain a lawyer, and continue with the firm, because he was very good at what he did and he attracted a number of clients to the firm.

When I interviewed this lawyer, he told me that he did the same type of legal work day after day, month after month, and year after year.  He had gotten bored being a lawyer.

As we got further into our conversation, it became apparent to me that his personal life, outside of the office, wasn't much different.  He was bored in the office, and bored outside of the office.  But, the interesting thing to me was that he was an interesting guy.  He had a lot of (legal) talent, and had a number of (hidden) interests.  It is just that he had gotten himself into a great big rut both in his work and in his personal life.

Harvey Mackey, the national columnist who writes articles on Leadership, wrote an article that addressed just this type of person.  Mackey said, "Folks who are chronically bored are missing out on a lot of opportunities.  When you can't (or should not have to) change your job to eliminate boredom, you have to change your state of mind. You need a shot of stimulation. Give your brain some new challenges - - both work and non-work related."

Mackey suggests the following tricks:

Make some changes in your work.  If your work is all routine, then make some changes in your surroundings - - for example, take on some free (pro bono) work that you would not typically do; make some new friends in your Firm or office building; take some classes that are, or are not, work-related; or, rearrange your office space (shift furnature around, hang some pictures on the wall - - even if it is of the Justices of the Supreme Court)

...and, as for your personal life...

Do something that you would like to do, that you have not done in a long time. Go to a movie, a museum or a sporting event.  Start developing new friendships.  Buy yourself a little gift or a surprise for someone else.

Get some exercise.  Physical activity will get your blood pumping and stimulate endorphin production, making you feel energetic and happier.

Take a break, possibly a little nap every now and then - - maybe even a longer break, called a "vacation."

Change your routine.  Take a different route to work, or back home.  Start the day with something new instead of just sitting down with your to-do list (that contains 5,000 things that you have not been able to get to). 

Shake up your work, and your day, and interesting things may reveal themselves.

JEROME M. BAME, Esq. Coach-Mentor-Confidant to Lawyers, 10061 Talbert Avenue, Suite 200, Fountain Valley, CA 92708; Telephone (714) 962-4477; Email bame@PracticingLawSucks.com

 

Comments

[Yeoman Lawyer]

To add just a bit to this, I'm not too sure that a lot of lawyer "boredom" isn't a combination of boredom, fatigue, and burnout.

Truth be known, most lawyers careers are very limited in scope, and this is very much the case after a decade or so. By that time, your practice is what it is, and there's next to no way to switch from one field to another within the law, or to get out of the law.

So, if you didn't have a deep love of the law to start with, and most lawyers do not, and your job is extremely stressful, while very repetitious, how can you not develop a combination of boredom and burnout? Seriously, I am not asking that rhetorically, but because I'm curious of the answer.

At some point, you face doing the same thing every day, some of which is very stressful. At that point, your reward for doing it well, and you need to do it well, will be to do more of the same. How does a person get motivated in those circumstances?

[Yeoman]

Consider another aspect of this. When you launch into a career in your 20s (typically) you really have a very narrow field of view. You see yourself, really, working as a lawyer, in your 20s.

But by your 40s, you've done that for a long time, and you have a long, long time to go. Most lawyers don't really make all that much money, so the most they can really hope for is retirement at retirement age. Anymore, a lot of them never retire.

Looked at that way, no wonder boredom sets in. 40 years of more of the type of stuff lawyers do, is a really long time doing it. And boredom is really hard to overcome once it sets in. . .and that's a dangerous condition for somebody practicing law.