How Do You Protect Your Personal Time?
Here's an interesting open thread for today — how do you protect your personal time from work encroachments? Can you plan vacations and dates — and buy tickets for things like concerts and shows — without worrying that work might become a problem, to the extent that you might have to cancel your plans? How early do you tell the people you work with, and what do you say to express that it's really important to you?
I was reminded of this horrible old post on Above the Law, where in a law firm memo, someone first tried to do the awesome thing of suggesting that work-life balance is a good, and personal appointments should be able to be made and respected… and then she tried to do the horrible thing of likening all personal appointments to women having babies. Because hey, when women are in labor, the law firms know to stay away.
Here's a taste:
The discussion [at a recent Women Lawyers meeting] centered on the fact that no one would question or fault a woman for being unavailable on a team as a result of “having a baby”, but that other engagements may not receive the same amount of deference. In an effort to find solutions and not simply highlight problems, it was suggested that all associates on a team should be awarded a “baby” every so often – a hobby, engagement or event for which they are unapologetically unavailable and on which the rest of the team volunteers to cover, without question.
Anyway — this brings us to the question today. How DO you protect your personal time and engagements from work encroachment? Do you have any great tips on what to say to your superiors, or how to signal that things are really important and cannot be cancelled?
Heh. I just had to fight with a client about moving a trial a couple months out because I am…. having a baby. Seriously.
Honestly, I left Big Law and went to a non-profit where I can unapologetically work 9-5 and mostly get away with not responding to email/calls after hours unless it’s a true emergency.
Good for you! I work 9:30-4:15 in the office (unless I am out with cleints), leave work and eventually sign back on and work at home all evening while eating and watching TV. Because I am allowed to bill no matter where I am, I easily make my hours. So that is the flexibility I have. The manageing partner says to me all the time — “work where you want when you want, but just be sure get at least your 150 hours of weekley billing in on time!” And I always do! YAY!!!!
Ha, this reminds me of why I left Biglaw. Like if I had an out of town wedding to attend, I’d typically fly Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon — because then I wouldn’t have to worry about managing my relative lack of availability on Friday.
Now I just… take my PTO.
I missed a friend’s wedding reception (that I had flown cross-country for) because I had to write a brief. I do not miss Big Law.
I’m very fortunate to be in an office and practice area (in biglaw, no less) where vacations are respected. I check my email at least twice a day, respond/forward stuff along as needed, but I do not respond to opposing counsel or other people’s clients when I’m out of the office (I forward to the appropriate person to respond). I respond to my own clients if needed. I usually don’t take my laptop with me on vacation.
Ironically, the shorter the time out of the office, the more pushback I get. Business development stuff is a struggle. I don’t even try to make personal plans during the week. The culture of constant availability is tough for everyone.
Cynically, if you want to protect your free time, then don’t get a job that pays you $180,000 a year as a 25 year old with no experience. You either take a job in a company that has a good corporate culture for this, or you build up seniority and the ability to carve out time.
+1
Agree!
I quit BigLaw.
I left my last law job because of this very issue. Now I work as a contract attorney and come and go as I please.
The mistake is saying why you are unavailable, which allows others to place their values over yours. It should not matter whether you say you are having a baby, going to a wedding, or finally sleeping so that you don’t die from exhaustion. You also train people what to expect of you in how you respond. I no longer bend over backwards to perform miracles, because that is not sustainable even though it became the partner’s ridiculous expectation. When I changed firms (Biglaw to Biglaw), I entirely recalibrated. It’s made the biggest difference. I don’t say no often, but learning how to say it effectively and on occasion made me feel like I can do this a while longer.