by: Reid Trautz
The life of a lawyer, especially a solo or small firm
practitioner, is often stressful. Stress itself is not
necessarily a bad thing; some people thrive on stress. Our
body’s reaction to stress actually helps us to meet the sudden
demands and extra tasks that we face as busy lawyers. However,
too much stress too often–chronic stress--takes its toll on
our physical, mental and emotional well-being. That, in turn
affects or personal lives and our ability to serve our
clients. The trick is to eliminate some of the stressors in
life, and build our resiliency for the stresses we cannot
change. Try to incorporate one or two of the following
practical tips into your daily routine in an effort to help
you reduce your stress and enhance your performance in the
practice of law.
1. Don't Let Your Client Make You
Work for F'ree: Make sure you are the one who
decides which cases you will do pro bono, not your clients.
Working for clients who can’t or won’t pay their bills leads
to frustration and anger, which can lead to you ignoring the
file and the client, which can lead to a disciplinary
complaint. Working for non-paying clients is worse than not
working at all. Remember to follow all procedures for
withdrawing from the attorney- client relationship.
2. Take a Vacation Every
Afternoon: Take a five-minute break each afternoon
and practice imagery--a popular relaxation technique. Imagery
is sitting back and remembering a favorite event such as a
vacation or a round of golf. Try to use all of your
senses–hear the sound of the surf, smell the salt air, feel
the sun on your skin, see the colors of the setting sun. Feel
free to leave out the thunderstorm or the triple- bogey or
other negatives of this memorable event. Enjoy the moments
again, then get back to work!
3. Color code forms and files to
make them easier to locate in your office: Develop
a simple system within your office that everyone can use. For
example, different types of cases such as bankruptcy, real
estate, or personal injury may have different colored
files–not just colored labels; this makes it easier for people
to locate files in a busy office. Also, forms such as
conference notes, checklists and court appearance memos can be
printed on different colored paper to make them easier to
locate within a file.
4. Handle more tasks with just one
touch:Do as much of your paperwork as you can the
first time you touch it. Respond to the letter (or e-mail),
file the response, or delegate the task immediately when the
entire matter can be completed within several minutes. For
tasks that take longer, prioritize quickly, then handle later
when you have more time.
5. Develop and maintain a redundant
calendar system: Develop a daily routine to record
all important events and appointments in two calendars– one to
carry with you and one to stay in the office. If your
“portable” calendar is lost, stolen, or your computer-based
calendar “crashes,” you’ll have an accurate back-up. As an
added benefit, sit down with a colleague, associate or staff
member to review and compare your main calendar day-by-day
with the backup calendar at least twice per month. This will
help you catch calendaring errors before they cause a
problem.
6. Prominently display your law
degree, bar admission, and court admission
certificates: Your clients will gain confidence
seeing proof of your legal accomplishments, and it will remind
you how hard you have worked to get where you are. Take pride
in what you have achieved as a lawyer.
7. Evaluate the costs and benefits
of representing each potential new client: Each
client comes with financial and ethical risks. During the
telephone screening and initial consultation, evaluate the
costs and benefits of representing each potential new client.
This will help you identify problem clients before they
become, well, a problem. Do they balk at advanced fee
arrangements? Cancel one or more prior appointments? Not have
their checkbook to pay for initial consultation? Are you
latest in a string of lawyers? Did the client show up late
with an unorganized bag full of papers? Did he or she
endlessly complain about the current lawyer? If the answer is
"yes" to any of these, strongly consider saying "NO" to this
risky client.
8. Impose a Quitting Time:
Staying late in the office night after night is
counterproductive. The level of human productivity often drops
to the level of diminishing returns after 8 hours in the
office. Impose a quitting time and, whenever possible, stick
to it. You’ll find that when you have a set time to leave the
office, you will use your time more wisely during the day.
Plus, nobody on their death bed says: "I wish I'd spent more
time at the office"!
9. Set specific times to make your
phone calls: Reduce your stress by curtailing the
game of “phone tag.” Studies show the best times to reach
people in the office are between 9:15 and 11:00 a.m. and
between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. If you are having trouble reaching
clients, set aside an hour or two per day for telephone calls
during these times.
10. Just say "No": If you
are overworked and still take on new tasks, learn to say “No”
to colleagues, clients and, sometimes, family. Too many
commitments can lead to burnout. Burnout can lead to a
premature end to your legal career. Reduce your stress by
learning to gauge the amount of work and commitments you can
handle. When you have reached your limit, decline new clients
or tasks until your workload lessens.
Reid Trautz is a lawyer and practice
management consultant to solo lawyers and law firms
nationwide. He is a nationally-known speaker on important
issues facing lawyers in the business of law, including
financial management, client communications, and risk
avoidance. Reid can be reached via his blog at
www.reidmyblog.com or email at rtrautz@cox.net
©2006 Reid F. Trautz
