In the first of two articles, Jonathan Goodliffe explains why being incredibly busy is a great way to offload stress
How can you possibly cope nowadays with the pressure of being a top fee earner? You are expected to put in seven or eight chargeable hours a day. On top of that you have to turn up for endless internal meetings. These cover boring things like know-how, Brexit, appraisals, horizon scanning, marketing, directory submissions, financial targets, daily and weekly financial regulation updates, contact and client databases, negligence claims, drinks parties for trainees, unfair dismissal claims from incompetent former staff.
So what’s the solution? You could give up lawyering altogether and retrain as a ‘posh’ plumber or artisan baker. You would then endure the sneers and contempt of or be ostracised by your former colleagues. Or you could have a breakdown, scream and shout at your secretary (if you’re still allowed to have one) or trainee, or get help with (or get on with) your drinking problem.
“ The joy of being incredibly busy is that it allows you to be as rude as you like to people”
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