There I was typing away on a document at 6:30 p.m. on a Friday night and thinking, we can get this out on Monday - no problem. We will have time - no problem at all. And then I thought you know, this project is a bit of a disaster (because we inherited a half done project, done poorly (my least favorite kind) and we are fixing it) - I think I want to pull that one document out, document A, that summarizes what the entity in X country is supposedly doing and not doing with Y type of information. I just want to take a quick peek at some factual due diligence because what they told us doesn't jive with what is in Z contract. SCORE. You get to work this weekend.
Because what appears in A document with respect to X country and Y type of information most definitely is not what they told us. So what would be quick to finalize is now hours of pouring through binders of due diligence looking to see if they ever figured out exactly what they were in fact doing in countries X1-X9 with Y type of information. Great. And the only way to get it done on Monday is to do it this weekend. Because I have so much other stuff to do next week...
I most definitely have a love/hate relationship with my job. I love my firm, I love the people I work with, I love the area of law I practice - it's super interesting and fun - I really am lucky that way - I do not love working on the weekend, or late. I just don't. I need a bit of a better balance - a better boundary. The reason I am so miserable about my hours all the time is because I never get a break, ever...more on the leave situation later...
Why couldn't I just say well, this document isn't going out on Monday (for Tuesday a.m. conference call) and by the way, the other 4 things that need to be done on Tuesday - those things aren't getting done either - because I want my weekend? I'm just not like that - I'm super responsible, extremely dedicated - I just don't not get things done on time.
On a positive note, things are going really well at work. People are happy with me and my work and I'm feeling pretty good about the prospect of being able to move in a year or two and telecommute - that's really my goal I think, eventually - but let's not get ahead of myself - I need to figure out this leave first. And yes of course I am grateful to have a job to go to this weekend. You know I am. It's allowing me to shop. Plus, these extra hours that I am banking - will assure me the ability to take the 24th and 25th of this month off (and still hit 2000 hours). Well, "off." Actually, I do in fact intend to take them off, not "off," but you know that every time I take a day off, I really just take it "off," which means I work anyway.
Not anymore folks. I have a whole new plan for this next billable year. It's called I don't care if I hit my hours. I'd rather be happier.
1 comment:
I like the sound of your new plan. I also want to hear more about the leave.
And I am also now insanely curious about what area of law you are in.
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