The latest data is out and yes, we’re number one! Sigh. Yet another study shows that law is the most stressful profession. As they say, “knowing is half the battle”. In-house lawyers need to implement mechanisms to reduce stress, as this is not only important to work performance, but critical to life. The pressures of legal practice not only affect lawyers, these pressures can also affect their clients, family life and physical and mental health. Part of the legal role is to assist others in decreasing stress during difficult times, and lawyers suffering from intense stress are not in a good position to assist others. In-house lawyers can decrease stress by focusing on wellness and work-life balance. For many, this is easier said than done. Sometimes a lawyer has hit a fork in the road and it is time to look for greener pastures. Fortunately, law provides many opportunities to shift gears into different roles.
“The most stressful occupation in the United States is being a lawyer, according to an analysis by the Washington Post of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Washington Post looked at a subset of well-being data collected in four American Time Use Surveys between 2010 and 2021. The surveys asked respondents how meaningful their activities were or how happy, sad, stressed, pained and tired they felt on a six-point scale.”
Source: Law is the most stressful profession, newspaper’s analysis finds at ABA Journal