In the fast-paced legal profession – dependent on detail-orientation, systematic processing of information and finances, and the ability to focus on people and problems – lawyers’ organizational skills elevate their capacity to achieve their goals and serve their clients.
Unfortunately, many lawyers can struggle to remain organized once they leave law school and enter the wild world of professional practice.
What Does ‘Being Organized’ Mean?
Your struggles with organization can reflect over-narrow thinking about what “organization” means and how to accomplish it, argues Judith Kolberg, an expert on mitigating disorganization, in her book
Conquering Chronic Disorganization.1 She writes:
Because organizing, like reading, is a learned activity, it reflects our learning style. The problem is that conventional organizing methods, for the most part, fail to appreciate learning style differences.
Conventional logic does not always resonate with the brains of people who are neurodivergent. Instead, Kolberg argues, those with chronic disorganization need strategies based on emotions and learning styles.
Learning styles vary from person to person. Someone who learns best through auditory processing might dictate notes from a meeting and use AI to organize their thoughts. A lawyer who is better at visual processing might color coordinate their work schedule and files. Another lawyer who learns through hands-on experience might organize by writing things down.
Lawyers with ADHD
Kolberg’s argument proves particularly important for people who meet the criteria for ADHD or ADD – cognitive styles characterized by difficulty organizing tasks and activities, losing things necessary for tasks or activities, and often being forgetful in daily activities.2
Steven Miller has a master’s degree in experimental psychology from Northern Michigan University. He is currently an intern with the State Bar of Wisconsin
Lawyers Assistance Program (WisLAP) through the Master of Social Work program at UW-Madison.
ADHD is one of seven cognitive patterns considered “neurodivergent,” or a variation from how most people process information and interact with the social environment.3 Having ADHD not only can leave you frustrated with challenges in keeping on top of tasks required for their work, home, or personal lives, but also leave you feeling defeated, incompetent, and under-achieving.
Lawyers with ADHD make up 12.5% of the profession.4 For both “neurotypical” and “neurodivergent” lawyers, finding organizational strategies that work supports professional success, professional confidence, and personal mental health.
Try Something Different: ‘Panic Order,’ or Filing by Emotion
One of the strategies Kolberg outlines is organizing files by muttering and arranging files in panic order.
Seriously.
Imagine you’re facing a stack of papers that you have been meaning to go through. As you go through each paper, you start muttering, “I really need to call these people,” “Did I get paid for these yet?” or “When I win the lottery.”
Kolberg states that these mutterings should be the labels on your files – as people who are chronically disorganized tend to do better with strategies that are based on emotion rather than logic.
These files can then be arranged vertically by “panic order” – aka, putting first the most pressing items that you need to take care of. You could even use a body double (another person) to help prioritize these files.
How Law Firms Can Help
What can law firms do to help support those who struggle with organization? Firms can make good use of paralegals and legal assistants to help lawyers stay organized. Law firms can contract with ADHD coaches and consultants, some of whom are lawyers or specialize in working with lawyers.
Does organization lead to perfection? No. Strategies implemented by people who are considered neurotypical are not perfect. Every lawyer would benefit from developing the flexibility to determine which conventional and unconventional strategies work for them – even if muttering is involved.
This article was originally published in the
The Lawyer's Journey blog of the State Bar of Wisconsin
Lawyers Assistance Program (WisLAP). WisLAP offers confidential support, consultations, and education related to mental health and wellness for lawyers.
Check Out
Listening to Lawyers: A WisLAP Podcast
An audio project of the Wisconsin Lawyers Assistance Program (WisLAP),
Listening to Lawyers features Wisconsin Lawyers sharing personal stories of the unexpected challenges that have shaped them. Theirs are stories of struggle, resilience, persistence, and creative and brave navigation through challenging territory while lawyering.
Hosted by Amber Ault, Ph.D, MSW, manager for the Wisconsin Lawyer Assistance Program, listeners say they are surprised, touched, and inspired by what they learn from Listening to Lawyers.
Listen now:Apple Podcast |
YouTube Music |
Spotify |
Audible |
iHeart Radio
Find more podcasts: Visit
wisbar.org/podcasts
Endnotes
1 Judith Kolberg,
Conquering Chronic Disorganization, Squall Press, 2006.
2 American Psychiatric Association, “Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, 314.00,” Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition, Text Revision 2022.
3 Nicole Baumer and Julia Frueh, “What is neurodiversity?” Harvard Medical School, Nov. 23, 2021.
4 Annie Little, “Lawyers with ADHD: Understanding Neurodiversity in the Legal Profession,” JD Nation, Oct. 1, 2024.
