I'm an A2 from a law firm here, and once the pandemic hit, I moved back to where my family is based out of (Bangalore). So I had barely a year of "law firm life", and the concerns of the pandemic aside, I've had a not so great time with WFH. I had a few specific concerns and I was hoping some of you can tell me how you solved for this?

1. Isolation - I went to law school away from this city, and predictably lost touch with most people here. Out of the few that I do remain in touch with, only one remains in the city, and she's quite busy herself. Other than that given the hours we work (nearly 14 a day x 6 days at least) there's just been no time to make friends. There are often entire sets of weeks where the only people I see are my parents and my dog, and initially the introvert in me rejoiced, but now after a year + of this, it has really started taking a toll. If I have a terrible day at work, I have no idea, who I can share this with. I tried telling my long distance friends (none of whom are lawyers) - however, after a point they just aren't able to empathise anymore. My team has had a few exits since we were all together in person and its been nearly impossible to create the same rapport with the new folks despite our best efforts - cause you just don't know what the other person is like. I tried the whole let's do an activity on a Sunday thing (those are relatively free for me thankfully) but somehow that hasn't worked out for me.

How do you find friends and support systems in a WFH setting with our lifestyle? I would also go into how difficult it is to date/find companionship, but that seems like a bougie problem at this point. But if you have any ideas on that, please throw them in as a bonus as well.

2. Asking for help - We are a GC team and predictably have to advise sometimes on matters of law where we have no prior experience. Pre pandemic it was just extremely easy to go to a colleague's desk who I knew whined about how they were struggling with that environmental law question, to pick their brains. But now I have no idea who to ask for help for, with most things. My seniors don't really have visibility over who else is doing what either (presumably for the reasons mentioned above?) and I find myself spending a lot of hours doing things, all of which to me seems inefficient. Have your teams figured out a way to deal with this?

3. I have no idea what the vibe of a team is on a particular day. For instance, pre pandemic, if we had a closing, or a bunch of urgent deadlines, or even if my seniors had a packed day, it was very very apparent. And I set my manner of working according to that. These days, its hard to tell really whether this is a day where I can get to eat lunch with my parents or take my dog for a long-ish walk, or whether its a day that will end at 4AM. I do recognise that the solution to this is communication, but there's only so far that can go. Most people are too busy in their own days and lives.

Are there any steps that you use to figure out what your day is like?

4. Professional Advancement - I have heard (and observed to some degree based on my limited time at office) that the way to advance yourself professionally in a law firm setting is to get in with the right people - some of whom are senior to you. How does one go about doing that in WFH? I have no idea about another team's seniors (actually sometimes even to my own team's - because its largely been professional interactions to a large extent).

Thanks!

This is so well articulated! While I do not have solutions to all your questions, few of the things that have helped me are:

1. Isolation: Working together with people. While most of your friends in your hometown may be non-lawyers and cannot relate to your work, they will most certainly be corporate slaves to another company/firm. Going over to their place and just working beside them for the day can give you that sense of having a companion, even if you're not indulging in activities. It's also better than continuous conversation when you're just meeting with someone after work. Also, I personally prefer going to home rather than cafes because I find sitting at cafes for extended hours difficult and less safe due to COVID.

2. Asking for help: Just call up people randomly. Remember, when you're someone in the firm for help, they're not helping you, they're helping the firm and its deliverables. So you shouldn't shy away from it if you feel like you're 'disturbing' them. Keep a track of those internal deal announcements in the firm, else look up the matters on iManage and then call up people who've worked on similar transactions even if you've never spoken to them. Everyone in the firm is an internal consultant as much as you are.

3. Vibe for the day: The best way to handle this is to have a to-do call with your team. Even if your team does not have daily/weekly meetings in the morning, just call up your partner and the senior you're working with and casually mention "So, for today we have to send out ..., ... and ... Hopefully, that should be it for the day?"

Secondly, if you do get free time in the day, don't hesitate to take proper 30 mins - 1 hour breaks. You're working round the clock. It's completely okay if you're having lunch or taking your dog for a walk in the evening when you have no immediate work. If a senior calls chasing you for a new work that they had not mentioned before, tell them you'll be back in 30 mins. Trust me, nothing is falling apart in law firms if you do something an hour late. They may act pissed, but they'll get used to it. Especially if you do it everyday at a certain time.

4. Professional Advancement: This one is a googly. Billable hours and work output are going to take precedence over networking abilities when it comes to promotions. That may work also in your favour if you are an introvert. As for learning, honestly, law firms even in WFO setting do not invest much in your development. It's one of the few industries where higher education is actively discouraged. So you have to take matter into your own hands and tap into the resources available online. You may not learn the tricks and tacts of the trade through online courses - but you'll certainly become a better lawyer.

While learning through imitation and observation of those around you may have reduced in this pandemic, it's also true that people have found more time to be and discover themselves. Everyone I've met after the pandemic has been so much genuine and less pretentious. People are realising that life is too short to be somebody else and I think that is beautiful.

Okay, wow. This is such an amazing thread, and it’s articulated so well. I’m a lawyer in a tier 1 myself and I can very much relate to the isolation that you’re facing. It’s difficult to judge the mood of your colleagues esp on a video call when everyone’s camera is off.

While I wouldn’t say I have completely figured it out, here’s a couple of things I’m trying:

Have a list of contacts of people whom you went to college with and are working in law firms. Try calling up one/ two of them each week. This way you’ll have someone to talk to every week and it won’t feel repetitive.

If you have your Sunday’s off, don’t waste it in doing some mindless activity. Try and pursue a hobby, which will require you to dedicate some time to it for you to advance in it. (For example-learning a language; learning a new recipe) This will mean you always have something to look forward to.

Reach out to your juniors in your team. They are probably facing isolated too and could really do with a senior who’s willing to listen and empathise. You just might get the bonding with your teammates you’ve been looking forward to.