Work-life
balance
in
the
legal
industry
has
been
decimated
in
recent
years,
mostly
because
of
increased
work-from-home
policies
and
burdensome
expectations
from
managers.
Although
many
law
firms
have
vacation
policies
which
afford
attorneys
and
staff
generous
vacation
periods,
few
may
feel
empowered
to
take
full
advantage
of
time
off
for
fear
of
upsetting
bosses.
However,
vacation
is
important
to
charging
the
batteries
of
everyone
who
works,
and
all
lawyers
and
staff
who
are
able
should
take
as
much
time
off
as
they
possibly
can.
Throughout
my
legal
career,
I
have
not
really
taken
a
proper
vacation.
Earlier
in
my
career,
I
used
to
take
the
last
few
weeks
of
the
year
off,
but
I
never
traveled
anywhere,
and
this
period
was
merely
a
staycation
at
best.
I
took
long
weekends
to
travel
to
places,
but
I
never
took
off
for
around
a
week
or
longer
and
traveled
somewhere
to
see
some
sights
and
relax
away
from
work.
This
was
mainly
because
I
tried
to
save
as
much
money
as
possible
earlier
in
my
career
to
pay
off
student
loans
and
because
vacations
are
difficult
for
self-employed
lawyers
since
this
reduces
the
amount
of
money
you
can
earn.
This
past
week,
I
took
a
seven-day,
six-night
vacation
to
the
United
Kingdom
and
Ireland,
and
the
trip
was
amazing!
After
experiencing
the
benefits,
I
regret
not
taking
vacations
earlier,
and
I
plan
on
taking
them
as
much
as
practical
moving
forward.
Upon
arriving
back
home,
it
took
some
time
to
rest
and
recover
from
traveling
abroad,
but
after
that,
I
feel
more
invigorated
and
focused
at
work.
People
should
take
vacations
for
many
reasons.
Perhaps
most
importantly,
people
should
work
to
live
and
not
live
to
work.
Some
lawyers
are
so
committed
to
their
jobs
that
they
do
not
want
to
do
much
that
can
take
them
away
from
those
tasks.
Moreover,
people
might
fear
that
being
away
from
work
might
make
it
difficult
for
lawyers
to
earn
promotions
and
be
seen
favorably
in
the
eyes
of
managers.
However,
many
bosses
are
fine
with
lawyers
taking
a
reasonable
amount
of
time
off
for
vacation.
Managers
that
actually
care
about
their
workers
understand
that
lawyers
who
take
time
off
may
be
more
dedicated
to
their
jobs
when
they
return
to
work
so
it
actually
makes
good
business
sense
to
let
employees
do
so.
I
was
also
surprised
by
how
much
clients
respect
the
vacation
time
of
their
lawyers.
Sure,
some
clients
wished
to
communicate
during
my
time
abroad,
and
it
was
easy
to
facilitate
this
depending
on
what
I
was
doing
that
moment.
But
far
more
clients
understood
that
most
matters
could
wait
until
I
returned
from
vacation,
and
this
possibly
humanized
me
more
in
the
eyes
of
my
clients
and
solidified
the
bonds
that
I
have
with
those
clients.
If
your
employer
offers
paid
vacation
time,
you
should
take
it.
Don’t
leave
benefits
from
your
employer
on
the
table.
I
am
perpetually
surprised
with
how
often
workers
do
not
use
the
benefits
offered
by
their
employers.
Indeed,
earlier
in
my
career,
I
did
not
participate
in
a
401(k)
match
offered
by
my
employer
since
I
did
not
understand
this
benefit,
and
some
workers
did
not
use
commuter
benefits
since
there
were
some
administrative
tasks
associated
with
this
benefit.
Perhaps
the
biggest
perk
that
employers
offer
that
employees
do
not
use
is
vacation
time,
and
many
law
firms
offer
two
to
four
weeks
off
for
workers.
Sure,
if
your
employer
reimburses
attorneys
for
unused
vacation
time
after
they
depart
the
firm,
it
might
make
sense
to
not
go
on
vacation
in
certain
contexts.
However,
if
vacation
time
is
a
use
it
or
lose
it
proposition,
then
workers
should
use
this
benefit
as
much
as
possible.
People
have
different
work
experiences
and
may
not
be
able
to
take
vacation
for
a
variety
of
reasons.
However,
as
the
old
saying
goes,
no
one
ever
regrets
how
little
time
they
spent
in
an
office,
and
people
are
far
more
likely
to
regret
not
taking
time
off.
Lawyers
can
take
a
stand
against
the
degradation
of
the
work-life
balance
and
recharge
their
batteries
more
by
taking
a
proper
vacation.
Jordan
Rothman
is
a
partner
of
The
Rothman
Law
Firm,
a
full-service
New
York
and
New
Jersey
law
firm.
He
is
also
the
founder
of
Student
Debt
Diaries,
a
website
discussing
how
he
paid
off
his
student
loans.
You
can
reach
Jordan
through
email
at
jordan@rothman.law.