Small Law Firms

To Everything There Is a Season (Law Firms Included)

A 2018 study showed that closing down an office during the holidays directly and positively impacts in-office productivity -- so that's what my firm is doing.

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(Image via Getty)

This week, I told my entire team that we will shut down the law firm for the last two weeks of December so we can enjoy a well-deserved paid break. My team was surprised and grateful for the break. One of my team members even remarked that I was a leader with empathy who valued employees. My heart was full, and I felt “on mission.” My goal is to create a work environment that supports employees, prioritizes retaining and fairly compensating women in the workforce, and gives excellent benefits to its team members.

As a small firm owner, does the reality of shutting down for two weeks terrify me? Candidly, yes. As someone who is onboarding a new team member, is the timing of the break inopportune? Yes. But we need it, so we are all taking a break. Instead of ramping up to have the best fourth quarter ever — chasing revenue-shattering numbers — I am taking a different approach. I am inspired by the changing fall leaves and the ending of 2021. The Bible (and famous song by the Byrds) says that “to everything there is a season,” and I am actively living and working in more alignment with the seasonality all around me.

A 2018 study showed that closing down an office during the holidays directly and positively impacts in-office productivity. Unsurprisingly, employees whose offices close for additional days during the holidays are 42% more productive when they are back in the office when compared to 17% percent more productive for employees in offices that close down only on the federal holidays.

Amid the “Great Resignation,” a term coined by Dr. Anthony Klotz of Texas A&M University, we are seeing common trends among employees, including:

  • A backlog of resignations
  • Higher levels of burnout
  • Lifestyle changes (e.g., I moved to Northwest Arkansas!)
  • People who do not want to return to the in-office environment

While we don’t know the long-term effects of this workplace shift, we know that employees want flexibility in working conditions. For some, this is remote work. For others, it is hybrid. And some want more time to do things that fulfill them. Finding the right incentive is individual and imperative.

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Klotz emphasizes the importance of adapting to the workforce shift we are experiencing. For 18-plus months, many of us have changed how we work and spend time with family. The global pause allowed us to focus on and reconsider what matters most. It would be the wrong assumption to return to business as usual after people have spent time exploring other ways of being in the world. We see that people value rest to unplug from the office and spend time doing other things.

It is crucial to keep this in mind for your law firm. The holidays are an excellent time to remember your team and the value they add to your business, and the meaning and purpose they bring to the world. See your team members as whole people — with families, friends, loved ones, and interests — not just KPI generators and billable machines. So, if it is financially feasible (or you can make it happen), give them an extended break over the holiday! (Don’t be like the traditional version of Ebenezer Scrooge when Bob Cratchit asks him for Christmas Day off; be like this version of Scrooge instead.)

Deciding to take a break for two weeks, so my employees can spend time doing something — anything — else is an investment in my people that I am willing to make. In the new year, I will report back on the results!

Is your firm shutting down over the winter holidays? Let me know at iffywrites@ibekwelaw.com.

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Iffy Ibekwe is the principal attorney and founder of Ibekwe Law, PLLC. She is an estate planning attorney evangelist for intergenerational wealth transfer with effective wills and trusts. Iffy is writing her first book on culturally competent estate planning, available in 2022 (prayers up!). She graduated from The University of Texas School of Law and has practiced law for over 14 years. Iffy can be reached by email at iffywrites@ibekwelaw.com, on her website, and on Instagram @thejustincaselawyer.

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