Being a lawyer often means working overtime, going through contract drafts late at night, and mulling over legal cases 24/7. But even the most resilient lawyers won’t keep up this rhythm forever.
This blog post explores the hobbies you could pick up to reduce your stress level and have a little fun. However, we decided to spice it up a bit and looked for activities to hone your lawyer skill set.
What do your fellow colleagues enjoy?
2019 Attorney Compensation Report states that traveling, physical activities, and reading are top choices for spending free time among lawyers. How do these things boost your lawyer skills?
Out-of-office activities develop soft skills, strengthen empathy, or increase concentration. For example, playing golf or joining a book club allows lawyers to improve their communication skills and connect with people across industries.
Now, let’s look at the rundown of hobbies—one of them might be your perfect match.
Grow your own greens
Gardening is good for your mind and body. Stress and mental tension are part and parcel of a lawyer’s work. Growing plants helps wind down, reduce mental stress, and minimize the risk of burnout. Taking care of plants, you can also improve your observation skills.
Growing plants helps wind down, reduce mental stress, and minimize the risk of burnout.
On top of that, gardening is flexible. You can choose to grow only one monstera on your kitchen table. Or go full in and create a little garden with basil, tomatoes, and rosemary in your backyard—or even on the window sill. Admit it, who wouldn’t love to have fresh greens, fruit, or even veggies ready whenever you need them?
Finally, taking care of plants is a physical activity that strengthens your health—and prepares you for new battles on the legal battlefield.
Explore cooking world
Cooking is an easy way of taking your mind off things and exploring new tastes.
Cooking also strengthens time management skills. Chefs, just like lawyers, handle several processes at the same time.
But it’s not just that. Cooking is a great way to practice multitasking, a skill any lawyer is all too familiar with. Try chopping and dicing slick onions, stirring that creamy sauce, and keeping an eye on your mushrooms and pasta all at once.
Cooking also strengthens time management skills. Chefs, just like lawyers, handle several processes at the same time.
Throw healthier food and impressed family and friends into the mix, and you’ll see that cooking might be an excellent hobby for lawyers.
Start journaling
No, we’re not talking about drafting another MSA.
Journaling is a perfect way to self-reflect and organize your thoughts.
Journaling teaches you to express your thoughts and ideas clearly and concisely.
As a lawyer, you need to have excellent communication skills to talk to your clients, explain legal issues in simple language, and present your cases in court. Journaling would be of great help here as it teaches you to express your thoughts and ideas clearly and concisely.
Researchers at Kaiser Permanente discovered that journaling also helps with self-evaluation skills. After writing down your challenges and describing how you dealt with them, you can later return to your self-reflections, critically analyze them, and do better next time.
Play board games
Create and conquer ancient civilizations, explore outer space, fight monsters in the dungeons, or save lives as a surgeon—the list of board games is endless. We’re pretty sure that you can even become a lawyer in one of those games.
Board game players assume roles, learn the rules, and use them to maximize their advantage and win the game.
It sounds like a regular day at the lawyer’s office, doesn’t it?
Studies have shown that board games improve your strategy and planning skills, creativity, communication abilities, and negotiations expertise. Take an old but gold Monopoly. To win this game, you need to convince your fellow gamers to trade with you, make investments, and analyze other players’ possessions.
Studies have shown that board games improve your strategy and planning skills, creativity, communication abilities, and negotiations expertise.
Oh yeah, and keep an eye out for small pieces. They love to hide under couches and hurt your feet. Just like the small print in legal agreements that can hurt your interests if you don’t pick it out on time.
Say your Om’s
Meditation is definitely ‘om— our hobby list.
So take a deep breath and become one with the cosmos. Ten minutes a day should be enough for starters.
Meditation alters your perception of time and is a must-have activity for lawyers who always feel like there’s never enough of it.
Lawyers who meditate cope with stress and plan their time better. They are also in a much better mood than those who don’t. Admit it: when a lawyer is moody, it doesn’t help their clients keep calm.
Meditation offers lots of spiritual benefits, but we decided to focus on those scientifically proven: reduced stress and anxiety levels, increased concentration, and better decision-making skills.
So take a deep breath and become one with the cosmos. Ten minutes a day should be enough for starters.
Learn a new language
Speaking multiple languages looks cool on your CV.
It’s high time to stop using Google Translate and start looking for language courses. If taking a full-time course is too much of a commitment, try downloading Duolingo or any other language-learning app.
The knowledge of a foreign language opens up an opportunity to lead negotiations in international M&A and step up the career ladder.
A UAE-based Eton Institute mentions some other benefits, too:
- improved memory and decision-making skills
- enhanced communication and negotiations expertise
- ability to speak your mind clearly
The knowledge of a foreign language opens up an opportunity to lead negotiations in international M&A and step up the career ladder.
Even if —Je suis un avocat américain’ or —Ich möchte sein bestes Bier probieren’ are the only phrases that you know. For now.
Get into martial arts
Even if you weren’t the karate kid on the block, you can still find your Mr. Miyagi and master the art of self-defense.
Martial arts will help you improve your self-control, focus, and strategic thinking skills. You’ll become more resilient, confident, and pressure-proof.
Expertise in martial arts means better physical and mental health and sharper focus.
Lawyers work in a highly competitive world, where a sharp mind, fast reaction, and smart attacks are the weapons that help you do the job. Besides teaching you to throw a roundhouse kick, martial arts will help you improve your self-control, focus, and strategic thinking skills. You’ll become more resilient, confident, and pressure-proof.
So put on that kimono and go find your dojo.
Summing up
Lawyers no longer spend 25 hours a day at work. AI in legal operations offers multiple opportunities to create efficient, automated workflows for your legal function, from document automation to full contract lifecycle management.
Now that you have gained more control over your time, you can repurpose endless hours of routine contract drafting and unnecessary reviews for something that helps you grow.
A well-chosen hobby is the best way to keep you mentally fit, happy, and healthy. More than that, it can help you cultivate skills that make you a better legal professional.
If you already decided on your new pastime but can’t free up time for it, explore AXDRAFT CLM and the opportunities coming with it. Check out our instant demo and experience lightning-fast NDA drafting, or learn about QuickDocs and the magic of self-service contracts.