--- title: "Stress Less: Mindfulness Techniques for In-House Legal Teams" description: As a lawyer, there’s no avoiding stress — but with these mindfulness techniques and the right legal technology, you can stress less. image: https://blog.linksquares.com/hubfs/relax-vacay.png --- [Skip to content](https://blog.linksquares.com/stress-less-mindfulness-techniques-for-in-house-legal-teams#main-content) [LinkSquares](https://blog.linksquares.com/) Open Mobile Menu [LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/) Close Mobile Menu [Why LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/why-linksquares/) [Products](https://linksquares.com/products/) --- [The LinkSquares Cloud One platform for all your in-house legal needs](https://linksquares.com/products/linksquares-cloud/) --- Contract Lifecycle Management Create, review, manage and sign contracts Legal Project Management Centralize your work and keep projects moving Cross-product capabilities Get scalability, efficiency and connectivity LinkSquares Onboarding Experience A step by step guide to get started today --- [Solutions](https://linksquares.com/solutions/) [Customer Stories](https://linksquares.com/customers/) Resources Content [LinkSquares+ Content curated for in-house leaders](https://linksquares.com/plus/) [The Library](https://linksquares.com/library/) In the studio [Demo Library](https://linksquares.com/demo-library/) Community & Events [Customer Stories](https://linksquares.com/customers/) [Events & Webinars](https://linksquares.com/events/) Learning [Blog](https://blog.linksquares.com/) [In-House Insights](https://linksquares.com/inhouse-insights/) [Knowledge Base](https://help.linksquares.com/) [Events](https://linksquares.com/events/) [About Us](https://linksquares.com/about-us/) [Careers](https://linksquares.com/careers/) [Press](https://blog.linksquares.com/tag/linksquares-news-press) [Pricing](https://linksquares.com/pricing/) [Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/) Back Close Mobile Menu [Contract Lifecycle Management](https://linksquares.com/products/) [Finalize Streamline your contract creation process](https://linksquares.com/products/finalize/) [Sign Get your contracts executed faster](https://linksquares.com/products/sign/) [Analyze Your post-signature analytics & repository](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/) [CLM Suite One platform to rule them all](https://linksquares.com/products/) [Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/) Back Close Mobile Menu [Legal Project Management](https://linksquares.com/products/) [Prioritize Manage, track, and report on legal work in one place](https://linksquares.com/products/prioritize/) [Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/) Back Close Mobile Menu [Cross-product capabilities](https://linksquares.com/products/) [LinkAI Predictive and generative AI](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/features/ai/) [Integrations Connect the tools you love](https://linksquares.com/integrations/) [Reporting Improve your teams efficiency with KPIs](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/features/dashboard/) [API Integrate with any third-party app](https://linksquares.com/integrations/linksquares-api/) [Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/) Back Close Mobile Menu [Cross-product capabilities](https://linksquares.com/products/) [Onboarding We're here for you from day one](https://linksquares.com/onboarding-services/) [Services Short on time? 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Okay, that’s not so much a news flash as a massive *duh*. But it’s perhaps less obvious that corporations should care about — and feel empowered to do something about — the stress levels that their in-house legal teams experience. In this blog, we’ll explain how corporations can help by actively encouraging in-house legal teams to use mindfulness techniques to manage stress and strategically adopting legal technology to reduce avoidable sources of lawyer stress. First, though, let’s look at why lawyers’ stress levels are important for organizations. ## Why organizations should care about lawyer stress Again, it’s no secret that lawyers are stressed out. Lawyers have long reported higher levels of anxiety and depression compared with other professions. Over time, stress and its effects compound. Anxious and depressed lawyers may have difficulty focusing, leading to oversights, careless errors, and missed deadlines. That, of course, adds more stress, kicking off a vicious cycle that may lead to insomnia, substance abuse, and complete burnout. When lawyers burn out on their high-stress, high-pressure careers, they start looking for new opportunities, taking all of their skills and institutional knowledge with them. And that’s a loss — financially, operationally, and in overall morale — for the organization. We’re not being dramatic; these issues are so pervasive that the American Bar Association created a[National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being](https://www.americanbar.org/groups/professional_responsibility/task_force_lawyer_wellbeing/) that recommends, in part, reframing well-being as “an indispensable part of a lawyer’s duty of competence.” So, how can lawyers improve their overall well-being? Through mindfulness. ## How lawyers can use mindfulness techniques to manage stress What is mindfulness? In a nutshell, it’s the practice of simply being present in the moment. Mindfulness is the opposite of multitasking or working on autopilot; rather, it’s being purposefully aware of what you’re doing, where you are, and what’s happening around and within you. What difference does mindfulness make? Quite a lot, as it turns out. Mindfulness has been shown to help people accomplish important goals, including these: - Managing stress - Regulating their emotions - Focusing on tasks - Communicating more clearly - Maintaining mental balance and calm A recent study showed that when law students were taught how to practice mindfulness, their[levels of stress, anxiety, and depression all decreased](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9388961/). Notably, the control group of students saw all three measures rise — which makes sense, given that the “before” assessment was performed in January 2020 and the “after” was conducted remotely in April 2020. ## What does it mean to “practice” mindfulness? The cornerstone of mindfulness is usually meditation, but mindfulness can be practiced anytime and anywhere. Here are a few ways to get started. - Learn the basics of mindfulness meditation with the help of a[meditation app](https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-meditation-apps/). - Identify a time-wasting habit that you don’t enjoy — mindlessly scrolling the news or social media, perhaps — and replace it with a brief daily meditation. - Designate at least part of every workday to intentional monotasking, turning off notifications for that period, and pay attention to how you feel during and after. - Choose an environmental cue — like an occasional notification sound or, if you’re brave, the ringing of a phone — and train yourself to take a deep breath every time you notice that cue. - Listen to a[podcast episode about how to practice mindfulness and/or meditation](https://www.npr.org/2022/12/29/1146096945/how-to-start-a-practice-of-mindfulness). - Explore a mindful movement practice like yoga. - Pick a short, non-stressful daily task, like doing the dishes or brushing your teeth, and commit to being mindfully present during that activity for the next week. Experiment with different approaches until you find something that works for you, and encourage all the members of your legal team to do the same. | ***I’ve tried meditation, but I can’t do it. My thoughts are always racing!*** People who say that they’re “bad at meditation” may be misunderstanding the practice. To make a physical exercise comparison, people think that meditating is like holding a plank position: maintaining a perfect state of stillness with no thoughts in their mind (and their elbows fully locked out). But meditation isn’t a plank; it’s a series of pushups. Yes, meditation begins in the plank position, as you focus on your breath. But at some point, you’ll realize that you’re metaphorically lying on the floor, lost in thought. This is where the practice begins, not where it ends. Notice what’s happened, label the thoughts as “thinking,” and push back up to the plank position by again focusing on your breath. You’re not failing; you’re practicing meditation. | | --- | To learn more about how organizations can encourage lawyer well-being, check out our[webinar on Finding Balance and Success In-House](https://linksquares.com/cockpit-counsel-series/balance-and-success-in-house/). But the burden shouldn’t fall exclusively on the legal team to do a better job of managing stress. Organizations can also reduce lawyer stress by adopting technology that streamlines particularly odious legal tasks. ## How legal technology can reduce lawyer stress A tremendous amount of legal work involves reviewing (and re-reviewing) lengthy, boring, and repetitive documents with unflagging attention to detail and an infallible memory. Unfortunately, people — even lawyers — are inherently fallible. That’s where legal technology comes in, with AI-powered tools like these: - [LinkSquares Finalize](https://linksquares.com/products/finalize/), which enables legal teams to quickly and easily draft, review, and approve clear and consistent contracts without spending hours poring through terms or double-checking clauses - [LinkSquares Analyze](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/), which keeps all the organization’s active contracts organized in a single searchable repository, transforming contract data into actionable insights - [LinkSquares Prioritize](https://linksquares.com/products/prioritize/), which gives the [legal team](https://linksquares.com/library/6-steps-to-success-as-a-legal-team-of-one/) a bird’s-eye view of all their work priorities, streamlining communication and collaboration both within the legal department and externally with other business units and stakeholders [Sign up for a free demo](https://go.linksquares.com/demo-request) to see how these tools, especially when unified in the[LinkSquares Cloud](https://linksquares.com/products/linksquares-cloud/), can reduce stress and enhance job satisfaction for your organization’s legal team. ![avatar](https://blog.linksquares.com/hs-fs/hubfs/2-May-13-2024-06-53-08-0056-PM.png?width=290&name=2-May-13-2024-06-53-08-0056-PM.png) #### [Mary Curtin](https://blog.linksquares.com/author/mary-curtin) Sr. Manager, Brand & Communications ## Subscribe to the LinkSquares Blog Stay up to date on best practices for GCs and legal teams, current events, legal tech, and more. ## Related Articles ### [Christina Sullivan Jan 09, 2023 4 min read 8 Ways In-House Legal Can Extinguish Burnout In-house legal professionals have one of the most stressful jobs out there. Balancing business goals, hustle culture, and ... Start Reading](https://blog.linksquares.com/8-ways-in-house-legal-can-extinguish-burnout) ### [LinkSquares Team Dec 18, 2025 9 min read Streamlining Legal Teams with Legal Operations & Tools Start Reading](https://blog.linksquares.com/what-is-legal-operations) ### [Alyssa Verzino Dec 01, 2022 4 min read Leverage Technology to Boost Your Legal Team’s Status Welcome back to the blog series all about boosting your legal team’s reputation. If you missed the first posts in this series, ... 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Okay, that’s not so much a news flash as a massive duh. But it’s perhaps less obvious that corporations should care about — and feel empowered to do something about — the stress levels that their in-house legal teams experience. In this blog, we’ll explain how corporations can help by actively encouraging in-house legal teams to use mindfulness techniques to manage stress and strategically adopting legal technology to reduce avoidable sources of lawyer stress. First, though, let’s look at why lawyers’ stress levels are important for organizations. Why organizations should care about lawyer stress Again, it’s no secret that lawyers are stressed out. Lawyers have long reported higher levels of anxiety and depression compared with other professions. Over time, stress and its effects compound. Anxious and depressed lawyers may have difficulty focusing, leading to oversights, careless errors, and missed deadlines. That, of course, adds more stress, kicking off a vicious cycle that may lead to insomnia, substance abuse, and complete burnout. When lawyers burn out on their high-stress, high-pressure careers, they start looking for new opportunities, taking all of their skills and institutional knowledge with them. And that’s a loss — financially, operationally, and in overall morale — for the organization. We’re not being dramatic; these issues are so pervasive that the American Bar Association created a National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being that recommends, in part, reframing well-being as “an indispensable part of a lawyer’s duty of competence.” So, how can lawyers improve their overall well-being? Through mindfulness. How lawyers can use mindfulness techniques to manage stress What is mindfulness? In a nutshell, it’s the practice of simply being present in the moment. Mindfulness is the opposite of multitasking or working on autopilot; rather, it’s being purposefully aware of what you’re doing, where you are, and what’s happening around and within you. What difference does mindfulness make? Quite a lot, as it turns out. Mindfulness has been shown to help people accomplish important goals, including these: Managing stress Regulating their emotions Focusing on tasks Communicating more clearly Maintaining mental balance and calm A recent study showed that when law students were taught how to practice mindfulness, their levels of stress, anxiety, and depression all decreased. Notably, the control group of students saw all three measures rise — which makes sense, given that the “before” assessment was performed in January 2020 and the “after” was conducted remotely in April 2020. What does it mean to “practice” mindfulness? The cornerstone of mindfulness is usually meditation, but mindfulness can be practiced anytime and anywhere. Here are a few ways to get started. Learn the basics of mindfulness meditation with the help of a meditation app. Identify a time-wasting habit that you don’t enjoy — mindlessly scrolling the news or social media, perhaps — and replace it with a brief daily meditation. Designate at least part of every workday to intentional monotasking, turning off notifications for that period, and pay attention to how you feel during and after. Choose an environmental cue — like an occasional notification sound or, if you’re brave, the ringing of a phone — and train yourself to take a deep breath every time you notice that cue. Listen to a podcast episode about how to practice mindfulness and/or meditation. Explore a mindful movement practice like yoga. Pick a short, non-stressful daily task, like doing the dishes or brushing your teeth, and commit to being mindfully present during that activity for the next week. Experiment with different approaches until you find something that works for you, and encourage all the members of your legal team to do the same. I’ve tried meditation, but I can’t do it. My thoughts are always racing! People who say that they’re “bad at meditation” may be misunderstanding the practice. To make a physical exercise comparison, people think that meditating is like holding a plank position: maintaining a perfect state of stillness with no thoughts in their mind (and their elbows fully locked out). But meditation isn’t a plank; it’s a series of pushups. Yes, meditation begins in the plank position, as you focus on your breath. But at some point, you’ll realize that you’re metaphorically lying on the floor, lost in thought. This is where the practice begins, not where it ends. Notice what’s happened, label the thoughts as “thinking,” and push back up to the plank position by again focusing on your breath. You’re not failing; you’re practicing meditation. To learn more about how organizations can encourage lawyer well-being, check out our webinar on Finding Balance and Success In-House. But the burden shouldn’t fall exclusively on the legal team to do a better job of managing stress. Organizations can also reduce lawyer stress by adopting technology that streamlines particularly odious legal tasks. How legal technology can reduce lawyer stress A tremendous amount of legal work involves reviewing (and re-reviewing) lengthy, boring, and repetitive documents with unflagging attention to detail and an infallible memory. Unfortunately, people — even lawyers — are inherently fallible. That’s where legal technology comes in, with AI-powered tools like these: LinkSquares Finalize, which enables legal teams to quickly and easily draft, review, and approve clear and consistent contracts without spending hours poring through terms or double-checking clauses LinkSquares Analyze, which keeps all the organization’s active contracts organized in a single searchable repository, transforming contract data into actionable insights LinkSquares Prioritize, which gives the legal team a bird’s-eye view of all their work priorities, streamlining communication and collaboration both within the legal department and externally with other business units and stakeholders Sign up for a free demo to see how these tools, especially when unified in the LinkSquares Cloud, can reduce stress and enhance job satisfaction for your organization’s legal team.", "url" : "https://blog.linksquares.com/stress-less-mindfulness-techniques-for-in-house-legal-teams", "wordCount" : "1444" } ```