Burnout for all workers is on the rise. Future Forum reports 42% of all workers experience burnout.
The legal profession is not immune to burnout and when we look at the size of the burnout problem among lawyers, we can see it is a major concern. The good news is that you can overcome lawyer burnout.
Burnout Defined
The 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) defines burnout as:
“Burn-out is a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It is characterized by three dimensions:
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- feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion;
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- increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and
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- reduced professional efficacy.
Burn-out refers specifically to phenomena in the occupational context and should not be applied to describe experiences in other areas of life.”
Not all burnout is the same. Researchers have identified three types of burnout, caused by being overloaded/overworked, under challenged/bored, and neglected.
Burnout Among Lawyers
Bloomberg Law reported about their 2021 survey that showed attorney well-being was declining. The survey showed burnout was increasing and attorneys reported burnout half of the time.
Reuters reported about several Bar Associations finding declining mental health among their members.
Causes of Lawyer Burnout
If you know about the daily work life and career of most lawyers, you will not be surprised that burnout is a problem for our profession.
Lawyers experience long work hours, demanding clients and bosses, adversarial relationships, and they are in the middle of conflicts. We get paid to see what can go wrong in the situations we examine. The expectations are high. The workload is huge. There is little room for mistakes when representing the interests of our clients. Just thinking about it is triggering. Breathe…
Managing Your Burnout
So what is a lawyer to do so they avoid feeling exhausted, negative, cynical and that their work is not valuable?
Assess What Type of Burnout You Are Facing
Researchers at a Spanish university discovered at least 3 distinct subtypes of burnout. What they all have in common is the potential to leave you feeling drained and hopeless if they’re allowed to build up over time.
Overloaded Burnout
- This may be you if you typically push yourself to exhaustion and all your focus is on achieving. You may also be feeling frustrated about office policies and practices that seem to hold you back.
Boredom Burnout
- This happens when your work is not challenging enough, leaving you under-stimulated and bored.
Neglect Burnout
- This type of burnout happens when your workplace does not provide the guidance and resources to succeed.
Identify what is making you feel burned out. Is it just one thing? Or is it a lifestyle that you simply do not feel you can maintain any longer? Maybe you are having multiple challenges at home, work, health issues, and financially. Take the time to identify what is causing you the greatest amount of stress. The awareness can help you manage better.
Take Targeted Action Within Your Control
Stay In Your Circle of Control
If you want to take action to avoid getting burnout. Focus on the things you can control. There are many things happening around us that can lead us to burnout if we do not pay attention. When planning what to do, think about what is under your control, and it starts with managing yourself and your thoughts.
There is a coaching exercise that can help you visually remind yourself of what is under your control. In a blank page, draw three concentric circles. The internal circle will be your area of control, the middle circle will be what you can influence, and the external circle will be everything else that is outside of your control. For each circle, jot down actions and events that fall within the area of control, influence or outside your control. This exercise is discussed in the Stephen Covey book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and can be a good visual reminder of what is within your control.
Small Actions Have Big Impact
There are numerous things simple and small actions you can do to help you avoid and recover from burnout. In the Mental Fitness Bootcamp we develop habits of mental fitness in only 15 minutes a day.
Start building one stress-management habit a day.
If self-care isn’t a normal part of your life, it may be difficult to get used to it. However, you can start with one small habit and you’ll see positive changes. The key is to pick something small that is easy to do. Then, you can build from this foundation and add other habits. If you try too many activities at once, you’re likely to get overwhelmed or discouraged.
Take Care of Your Body Building Habits and Routines for Self-Care
You can facilitate your wellbeing and prevent burnout easier when your routines and habits work for you instead of against you. Here are some ideas:
- Eat well. Have you seen the saying: “Stressed is dessert spelled backwards?” It is common to eat junk food, overeat or to skip meals when you are super stressed. This only serves to make things worse. Make a concerted effort to eat nutritious foods when life gets busy. Make changes to your environment to help you in stressful times. For example, have healthy snacks accessible to you. Try to maintain your normal diet.
- Get rest. Stress wears out your mind and body. Give yourself the chance to sleep 7 to 8 eight hours each night. Regular, good quality sleep will give you clarity and energy to better deal with your challenges. Design a bedtime routine and set a bedtime that will give you enough rest.
- Exercise. Give your body a boost with regular exercise. Hit the gym and work up a good sweat. Many of the biochemicals released during stress are reduced by physical exertion. You can get in shape and reduce your stress at the same time.
- Make relaxation part of your schedule. You plan everything else, so plan your relaxation time too. Even 10 minutes of mindful breathing can be meaningful and give you something to look forward to each day.
Take Care of Your Mind and Wellbeing
We mentioned above it helps to determine what you can control. Sometimes life gets hard and there are challenges out of your control. If you cannot do anything about a situation, what is the value in worrying? Figure out what you can control and then give those things your energy attention.
You can also:
- Stay social. It is natural to want to isolate yourself in stressful times, but that might be a mistake. Make time for those you most enjoy spending time with. It can lift your spirits and your outlook on life. Everyone needs to laugh.
- Disconnect electronically. Your smartphone, TV, and internet are stimulating, but that may not be what you need when you are feeling burned out. Try to take a break, a night or an entire weekend off. Read a book or listen to music. Visit with friends even if it is just a video call for now.
- Remember your past experiences. Remember how resilient you are. You have been overwhelmed before and survived. It is likely that challenges you faced even turned out well. There is no reason to believe the same won’t happen again.
- Keep your perspective. How will you feel about this stressful moment 10 years from now?
You can prevent burnout by being intentional and taking action. Put the tips above to use each day and you will maintain and improve your wellbeing better sooner than you think!