Pause: Now is the time to reflect
When was the last time you just stopped?
The last few weeks have been surreal. As countries one by one start to lock down, it feels like someone has pressed the pause button to take a phone call in the middle of the movie, just as the protagonist is struggling to fend off the all-powerful enemy. What’s going to happen next? Will they succeed? How long is that call going to take before we can carry on? And what am I supposed to do in the meantime?
As legal professionals, rarely do we ever press the pause button. We spend our time jumping from client meeting to drafting to conference call, and if we are not working, we are desperately trying to fit our personal life into whatever hours of the day remain. It’s our norm. Whether we like it or not, it provides routine, and routine provides comfort.
As the world presses pause, we, as individuals, are forced to exit our comfort zone. The familiarity of the office has disappeared; work has slowed down; conference calls are interspersed with children arguing and dogs barking; and, for many, it’s the first time we’ve spent 24 hours a day / seven days a week with anyone but ourselves since university. Add the underlying anxiety and worries about our health and financial situation and those of our friends and family, it’s no wonder that this feels uncomfortable.
But this “forced pause” also provides us with the one thing all lawyers complain about not having: TIME.
So, what are you going to do with yours? What have you been putting off? What can you do right now that is going to put a smile on your face as we navigate these uncharted waters?
Go on – take advantage of the time. It will be worth it.