Reading · Kelly Nolan · RSS Amplifier

Each Thursday, the “How I Structure My Day” series features women from different industries, with and without kids, with and without partners, with family living with/near them and not, wfh to 1+ hour commutes, etc. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I do!

Know that if you’re ready to learn a time management system designed for professional working women, the 10-week Bright Method program is open and ready to get you results! Learn all about it here – and send any questions my way! Happy to talk out whether I think it would work for you, your main concerns, timing, etc. Send me a message, and I hope to see you in there!

Profession: Equity Partner at a Boutique Management/Employer-side Workplace Law Firm
Hybrid - mostly in-office 4+ days/wk
Partner: Yes (hybrid)
Children: Yes – 3 kids (Daughter 14, Son 11, & Son 7yo)
Vancouver, Canada
44

I wake up on my own, usually between 5:30-7am.
I drink a coffee and triage emails. Since I am in Vancouver and our firm is national (and my work is federal), I often find I'm already behind in the mornings, opening my inbox to 30-40 emails on average.
I will then shower, get ready and help kids with packing backpacks and getting lunches packed, as needed (the boys have 2 hot lunch days per week, and pack a lunch 3 days.) My daughter makes her own lunch.
Feed and let our 2 dogs out.
I'll start a load of laundry and help the kids empty/re-fill the dishwasher.
For in-office days, I try to leave around 7:45 but it is often more like 8:05. WFH days, I'll start around 8:15 after the kids leave. I try not to schedule calls before 8:30am, but sometimes this is unavoidable.
My daughter takes the bus to school and my husband will generally drive the boys to their school - sometimes they will bike.
My commute is usually around 15mins by car.
If I need to have an early call, I'll go in early if possible or take it from home or in the car.

My middle son makes lunch for him and our youngest. My daughter now makes her own lunch. If I need to make lunches for some reason, I do it the night before.
I don't schedule calls before 8:30 am unless I need to.
My husband drives the boys to school nearly all mornings. He is a lawyer too and he generally works less than I do, though when he is in trial, we won't see him really at all, during the entire trial.
We live close to school and work and now that the kids are older, it's a little more flexible. Though I work a lot of hours, my time is my own and I am flexible, which makes life easier.

LOL. I am always in work-mode. I am always 'ON'..... which is fine with me, it's my personality and how I operate.

For work, it's fairly full-on. My practise is about 70% advisory and 30% application-based. I work in the narrow area of corporate immigration, on the employer-side. It is high stakes and often last minute. I lead a team with 2 lawyers junior to me and 2 paralegals.
I am co-chair of our firm's Marketing Committee and on our Knowledge Management Committee and Associate Committee. I also organize/run student and associate hires in our Vancouver office with another lawyer.
I will generally schedule most of my calls 1-2 days per week in the morning. On days that are not as call-heavy, I will try to draft/prepare an application or 2 those mornings.
We have a team meeting with the 2 paralegals and three lawyers in our group every Tues morning to go through file load, questions, recent immigration changes/updates.
Afternoons are for email advice and any BC/AB calls since ON-east are done at 2pm PST. I try to leave by 5:45 latest.
On WFH days, I will visit with the kids when they return from school, I might drive the boys home if I can fit it in and it's raining. Otherwise, they walk or bike home.
We have an 'afternoon nanny' who is wonderful and comes M-Th from around 4-6/7, mostly to get the kids fed, homework started and then drive them to activities (she has a car).
On WFH days I will often start something for dinner mid-day, then work more, then go back, ending my day around 6. In-office, I am usually home by 6/6:15 and then start dinner. We usually eat later those days, 7/7:30 - which often works well with kid-sports (soccer, baseball, hockey, flag football, field hockey or a combination. We ski most winter weekends).
I find I need to log back in around 2 evenings per week to catch up, or go in early one morning per week. If it works with the kids and my husband's schedule on particularly busy weeks, I'll stay late in the office until I finish, often 8-9pm. I find as a lawyer in private practice, you need to have at least 1 early morning or late night per week, to be able to stay on top of things.
I also mentor 1-2 junior lawyers at other firms and one in-firm, so I will meet with them for lunch/coffee, in what adds up to be 2-3 meetings per month (total).
We do not have a target for partners, but I will generally bill 1700-2000 per year. I tend to travel for work 3-5x per year, Toronto, Calgary, Halifax. When I'm gone, my husband takes on all, sometimes with a little help from my Mom, though she is often busy with her own life! Luckily, I love my colleagues across the country and though it is 'work travel', it is truly with my best friends (and without kids around!) so it is sort of like a mini-break.

I'll take around 30mins for lunch and eat with colleagues while we chat and watch the news. We call it the 'lunch train' - we walk somewhere nearby and get takeout, then bring it back to the office and eat and chat. We love it.
We have snacks at the office, so I'll grab some fruit, coffee, Buble soda water as needed.

I'll generally walk with a colleague in the morning to get a coffee between calls, then the walk at lunch to get food. My door is open whenever I'm not on the phone, so others will come by to chat or I'll do the same if I need a break.

I try to be home by around 6/6:15. Commute in the evening is 15-20mins, depending on traffic.

Ha - see above, I am basically always in work-mode. The drive home helps, but I don't really find this to be an issue. Maybe because my spouse is a lawyer too?

I'll make dinner, visit with the kids and my husband, drive back from any sports if needed (the nanny usually drops off), move the laundry, catch up on further emails if needed.
If I have time, I'll bake a treat for the family to have in lunches, as a snack (I love baking).

Usually 6-730, depending on the day.
A HUGE help has been a 'meal suggestion' that a friend thought up. I am not great at full-on meal prep or planning, but this way the ideas are somewhat narrowed so you aren't trying to think of something to eat from all of the possibilities in the world. It is a daily 'suggestion' -
- Mon: pasta of some kind;
- Tues: 'Mexi-tues';
- Wed: 'Soupy Wed.';
- Thurs: meat, veg, rice;
- Fri: order pizza;
- Sat: leftovers or we may go out;
- Sun: meat/veg/rice.
I will often text the nanny mid-day to ask her to help the kids chop certain veggies that I'll need for dinner.

Tidy the kitchen, start dishwasher
Move laundry and fold
Work-out Mon and Wed.
My husband and I will watch a show usually 9-10pm if we have time, and we/I'll fold laundry then or just sit if I can!
I love reading and fit it in by reading about 20mins right before bed every night.

Honestly, it is easier now that the kids are older and we have the afternoon-nanny. She is basically me when I can't be there, she is a godsend.
I am in bed by 9:45-10:15 each night, then I will read for about 20mins.

Communication, which seems obvious, but is a good reminder. My husband is great, but generally won't 'see' or 'realize' what needs to be done. If I tell him, he'll do it. It means I carry the mental load, but it's easier than trying to get him to learn.
For any doctor/dental appt, I book them but he will take the kids. He works fewer hours and this is possible for him.

We ski a lot as a family - most weekends (we have a place at Whistler). In the summer, the ski area turns into mountain bike heaven, and the rest of my family takes advantage - I sit at the lake or walk the dogs, sit on a patio and read or have a beer, etc.
I visit with friends, walk the dogs, have a beer or go for dinner with colleagues (who I include as my best friends) or other, outside of work friends. I will go on girls' trips and take time solo or with just one child for one on one time, at least a few times per year.

I work-out 3x per week- monday and wednesday evenings as well as Saturday mornings. I have a Peloton and take classes (weights/bootcamp/cycling) on my own time. I can't commit to a specific class time, so this is best.
I also ski at least once per week during the winter.

We have a cleaning lady who comes every 2 weeks.
I have grocery delivery - the online system is great as you can choose 'favourites' so it only takes me about 5 min to order, and then the order arrives the next day.
We have our afternoon-nanny as mentioned. She will also run errands, get skates sharpened, drop drycleaning, take kids to the library etc.
Our kids are getting older, so they walk the dogs during week.
We have a landscaping company do a clean up in the late spring each year including getting a handle on our large laurel hedge. My husband mows the lawn.

It is easier now that the kids are older - truly. I remember the days of 2 and 3 small kids where you would get home late, then need to make dinner and get them into bed within an hour so they didn't get overtired.... then start immediately on laundry, more work, etc. thinking the whole time that I don't have enough time and am a horrible parent for feeding them grilled cheese for dinner.
I switched to a boutique firm (which is v. family friendly) around 4.5 years of call and it has made all the difference. Being a lawyer in private practice is a tough ladder to climb. However, the further up you get, the more your time is your own. So, even though there is a lot of work, it is your own time and you can generally choose when to do it (as long as it works for your client, of course). In-house did sound appealing in my early years, but I am very glad I stuck with private practice - the flexibility (and money) can't be beat.

Thank you so much to this woman for generously sharing. These publish every Thursday!

Encouraging comments always welcome!
If you have questions or even hang-ups about what someone shared, you are welcome to ask a question for the sharer in the same kind, genuinely curious way you would if you were looking at that woman in her eyes. She might respond through me.
If comments are judge-y or mean-spirited, I reserve the right to delete comments. I can handle being criticized about my own work here (and even still, to a degree – I’m also a person), but I go into full mama bear mode when people come after my people – including women who are being vulnerable and sharing in the first place.
Thanks to the vast majority of people who are so kind!

HISMD: Equity Partner at a Boutique Management/Employer-Side Workplace Law Firm

Comments