How many tabs do you have open?

When you think of self-care, perhaps you imagine a spa, a massage, or an enjoyable weekend of golfing or traveling. But self-care isn’t just about pampering yourself or hobbies; it’s understanding your individual, personalized needs that allow you to improve your overall well-being so you can even better serve your clients and be present for personal matters.

July 24^th is International Self-Care Day, serving as a reminder to prioritize and make self-care a daily habit.

According to the Global Self-Care Federation¹, “Self-care is the practice of individuals looking after their own health using the knowledge and information available to them. It is a decision-making process that empowers individuals to look after their own health efficiently and conveniently, in collaboration with health and social care professionals as needed.”

Self-care can be about understanding your limitations on a given day. On the days I neglect to prioritize and create a to-do list, I find myself unable to fully concentrate on any given task. I toggle between multiple open tabs: email, projects, messaging, phone, and social media, which can be overwhelming and stifle my productivity.

The brain can only actually focus on one task at a time. The change from one task to another creates a “switch cost,” when it takes more time to refocus and can lead to slower work rates and more mistakes, ultimately impacting your practice. It can also increase stress hormones and lead to feelings of anxiety and burnout, which lawyers are already susceptible to, even on the best day. Research indicates that multitasking can negatively affect memory, attention span, and even brain structure, potentially leading to cognitive decline over time.²

However, you don’t just engage in multitasking at work, you inevitably carry these open tabs home with you, perpetuating the cycle of stress. You may toggle between dinner, email, family time, calls/texts, bedtime routines, and document review.

Here are some helpful tips for self-care:

• “No” is a complete sentence.
• Limit checking emails to three times a day.
• Work on ONE task at a time.
• Resist the urge to procrastinate.
• Understanding what work/life balance looks like for you.
• Prioritize works tasks. “Eat your frogs” by completing the task you most dread first.

At the core of self-care are the decisions you make daily on what is and isn’t healthy in your life in order to take better care of yourself and your clients. Let go of the need to always be doing something and stop multitasking. The act of multitasking, while often glorified in the busy culture of the legal profession, is not only unproductive but detrimental to your mental health and well-being. It is the antithesis to self-care.

Remember don’t just minimize your tabs, close them.

 To assess your level of self-care, use this assessment: https://www.therapistaid.com/worksheets/self-care-assessment

MOLAP can help Missouri lawyers work on these self-care strategies. Call 1-800-688-7859 to talk to a licensed counselor at no cost. All services are strictly confidential.

Endnotes:

 1 What is self-care, Global Self-Care Federation, https://www.selfcarefederation.org/what-is-self-care.

2 Adam Gorlick, Media multitaskers pay mental price, Stanford study shows, Stanford Report, Aug. 24, 2009, https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2009/08/multitask-research-study-082409#:~:text=People%20who%20are%20regularly%20bombarded,of%20Stanford%20researchers%20has%20found.