![]() In the summer of 2019 I made a big mistake: I didn't take a proper vacation and I didn't take one for most of that year. I know this is not the type of mistake that would have the Law Society knocking on my door, but this seemingly small misstep had massive repercussions – a rippling negative effect - on my job, practice, and life, that lasted a lot longer than the summer. It can sometimes be easy for lawyers and business owners to prioritize work over their personal life, but when we do that, not only does our personal life suffer, but so does our work. And when our work suffers, our personal life suffers. It can become a vicious cycle. So how can we make sure to guard our vacation time without having to sacrifice our practices and businesses? Fast forward to the present and I have implemented 5 lessons I learned from the summer of 2019 (described below) and found an approach that works for me. How I Messed Up in 2019I had the best of intentions to unplug that summer. I planned on working extra long days on Monday to Thursday so I could take Fridays off in July and August and enjoy the warm weather. Instead, I found myself saying, “Sure I can schedule that call/meeting on Friday, no problem”. Or, thinking to myself, “I’ll just pop into the office Friday morning and take the afternoon off”, only to look up and see that it was 6pm. No worries, I thought at the time, there’s plenty of summer left. In July we loaded our three kids into the car and drove to remote Maine for a planned seven-day long vacation. On our arrival, I found it so peaceful.....until some work emails started coming in (at the time I was the sole employee at Flex Legal managing all of the freelance lawyers and lawyer clients). And, of course, something was up. There was a miscommunication between a lawyer client and a freelance lawyer. Both were looking to me to assist. By the time the issue was resolved it was three days into my vacation. On the seventh day I was finally starting to unwind, and . . . it was time to go home. But, no worries, I remember thinking, there was still plenty of summer left, it was only August. On my return to the office I did not feel relaxed. I did not feel rejuvenated. I felt lethargic. I would go to the office with a long to-do list and I would barely get through a few items. Normally I am energised to get to the office in the morning, but 8 hours would go by and I wondered, what did I do all day? Anything? Instead of recognizing that I needed a break, I pushed through, I stayed at my computer all day, everyday. I didn’t get anything done. I told myself, how could I justify taking a day, or days off, now that I am barely doing any work?! And then August was over. September abruptly arrived, which was my busiest time of year. There is always an uptick in business for Flex in the fall and I was teaching at the University of Toronto. My calendar was full of conferences, networking events, volunteer meetings. My window of opportunity to take a proper break closed. By not taking the vacation my work suffered because I had no energy left to give. Does this sound familiar? Take a (Real) Vacation, it will Make You a Better Lawyer!I’m not giving you any earth-shattering information. We all know that taking a real vacation makes us less stressed, more focused, and in return, better lawyers, better employees, and better bosses. Even though I love my job, I still need a break from it. I need to unplug and unwind. I need to think about something other than the law. When I do, I return to work with more energy and commitment. When I worked for someone else, I always took all my allotted vacation. I felt I was working hard and I rightly deserved the time off. Now that I have my own practice and business and can, in theory, take as much vacation time that I want, I take even less. I needed to change that. What Went Wrong in 2019?First, it was my plan to take Fridays off. I was putting too much pressure on myself. When I inevitably had to work on a Friday, I felt disappointed in myself and the negative thoughts would creep in, “Erin, look at you, another Friday where you worked when you said you wouldn’t.” Which in turn would make me lose focus and become very unproductive. I knew something had to change. I still wanted to take more time off during the summer, but I needed to find an approach that worked for me. So in the summer of 2023, I decided to take time off when the opportunity presented itself. Let me explain. I am an early morning riser and I do my best work in between 6am-11am. I would still work Monday to Friday during that time (or would let myself sleep in a few days if I felt my body needed the rest). But, when 1pm or 2pm rolled around and I didn’t have any more phone calls I would just end my workday. My to-do list wasn’t done (it never is!) but if the most important things for that day were completed, I gave myself permission to enjoy the remainder of the day, whether that was hanging out with one of my kids, reading a book on the porch, or going for a walk. Some days I worked full days, some days half days, and some days not at all. I also removed work email from my phone while I was away on my week long cottage vacation and left my laptop at home (I recognize not everyone can do this, but if you can I highly recommend it). And I protected my calendar better in 2023. I did not take as many meetings as I did in the summer of 2019. Many of the “pick your brain” or “let’s catch up” coffee meetings can wait until September, so I said yes only to the meetings that could help with Flex Legal’s sales or were required to keep the business running properly. Does this approach work for everyone? Maybe not. But the important thing is to find an approach that works for you that gives you a break from your job. Remember: Taking time off makes us better, not weaker. The 5 Lessons I Learned:So, here are the lessons I learned (which may help ensure that you take your important vacation time):
NUMBER ONE: Figure Out What Works for You. Pick what type of time off / vacation works for you and your practice. Is it winding down in the summer (or winter) and only working a few days? Is it taking a few weeks away from the office every January? Is it working half days? Is it a mixture of both, a few weeks away in the winter and some half days in June? Make plans that are easy for you to commit to with your schedule. NUMBER TWO: Block Your Calendar in Advance. Book the vacation time into your calendar in advance. Not nailing down the time off makes it easier to push back that much needed break. Block off next year's vacation time when you return from the current year's vacation. NUMBER THREE: If it Works for You, Take More Than One Week Try to take at least two weeks off in a row each year if you can. For me, one week is not enough to get the “law” out of my system and to unwind. (In the early 1970s, law partners at larger firms in Toronto used to take one month off each summer, plus another two weeks in the winter to ski or take a sunny vacation south. Small firm lawyers would take Fridays off. ) NUMBER FOUR: Plan Financially Planning for a break in income is especially important for those who are sole owners. If we don’t work, we don’t get paid. Factor your vacation time into your financial plan for the year. (In other words, don’t let money be an excuse to not take time off). NUMBER FIVE: Take a REAL Break & Fiercely Protect Your Time Take a TRUE break from work and do NOT work on your vacation. I know this is hard if you are a sole practitioner, but try to have someone cover your practice if an emergency comes up. Or, simply shut down your practice for those weeks. I know this sounds scary but if you give enough notice to your clients it often is not a big issue (send them emails in advance, put the dates you will be away in your email signature at least a month prior, have a detailed out of office message set on your website, email and phone etc.). Or, if you are more anxious not checking in on work every day, then set aside a specific time each day to look at email. Don't have it easily accessible on your phone. You don't want to see each and every email that comes in when you are trying to relax. Also, fiercely protect our time. Practice saying “No”. Say “No” to that meeting they want to schedule on your day off. Say “No” to that “quick” conference call while you are on vacation. And then provide an alternative date for when you are back in the office, relaxed and ready to work! The bottom line: We need to give ourselves permission to take a break and forget about law for a while. We will be better lawyers if we do. Don’t make the same mistake I did. (This post was originally published in 2019, updated June 2024.) Photo by chen zo on Unsplash
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Erin C. Cowling is a former freelance lawyer, entrepreneur, business and career consultant, speaker, writer and CEO and Founder of Flex Legal Network Inc., a network of freelance lawyers.
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October 2024
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