Sometimes it can be a struggle to remain motivated and positive about your career. This is normal, you’ve got a busy work life, a busy home life, and at times, it can be a real struggle to balance the demands of work and home. This fine work-life balance can make it hard for you to stay motived in your court reporting career.
The good news for you, is that you’re not alone. The even better news is that there are some small changes you can make to help balance work-life demands and keep the motivation going when working as a court reporter in San Francisco or other busy city.
It’s important to remember that change doesn’t happen overnight and that staying motivated is an ongoing process. The key is finding exciting, manageable, and challenging ways to keep motivated and looking forward to your court reporter career.
Balancing Work Demands
It can be very easy when you work in a busy career such as court reporting, to feel overwhelmed with too many items on your daily to do list. To help prevent these feelings, consider doing the following:
- Talk to your manager. It might be that your manager doesn’t realize how much work you have.
- Manage your priorities. Set daily, weekly, and monthly priorities. Keep these lists short and workable.
- Be easy on yourself. When you have a tough day or revert to old habits, go easy on yourself and remember that you’re only human.
- Leave the office at the office. When you walk out the door for the day, leave your work behind. Don’t work at home. Don’t check your work emails before bed.
Unplugging Away from the Office
The future of court reporting is very bright – you know this based on the amount of work you and your colleagues have. As well, the occupational outlook on the future of court reporting tells us that demands for professional court reporters will continue to increase.
And this is exactly why you need to unplug when you’re away from the office. The demands placed on you are high and only going to increase, so when you leave the courtroom and have completed your deliverables, it’s time to turn off for the day, weekend, and vacation period.
- Don’t check your email at home.
- Don’t bring work home.
- When you’re on vacation, set an out-of-office alert.
- Prepare for the weekend or vacation by making sure your deliverables are met.
- Make sure your colleagues are taking over your case demands and filings when you’re away.
Getting Connected with Court Reporters
Although you work with other court reporters it’s easy to become disconnected from the wider legal profession. Networking and getting connected with other court reporters in San Francisco or your city can be a great way to help you stay motivated.
Consider joining a professional association such as the National Association for Legal Professionals, the Association of Legal Administrators, the Association for Legal Professionals, or the National Association of Legal Assistants.
Being a member of one of these professional associations gives you a number of valuable opportunities that can help you stay positive and motivated about your court reporting career:
- Education opportunities. Most associations host educational meetings, conferences, webinars, and seminars that can help you further and develop your career.
- Career options. Being part of a professional association enables you to connect with people who know of job opportunities or have suggestions on how to make changes in your career.
- Network, network, network. You’ve heard the saying “it’s not what you know, but who you know”, and this holds true for court reporting. Meet fellow court reporters and other legal professionals who can help you discover new career options or skills that can help you in your professional day-to-day.
- Relaxation. Being part of a professional association isn’t all work and no play. Take advantage of the social opportunities offered and use your professional association meetings as a reason to leave the office.
We want you to remember that you’re not alone in struggling with the work-life demands of a busy court reporting career. Choose the steps and changes that work best for you and remember that while your court reporting career is important – it doesn’t define you. The happier and more balanced you are, the easier it is to stay motivated.
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