By Jennifer Rene Kuyrkendall, Esq.

Have you ever wished that there were more hours in a day? Or wondered how you are possibly going to get everything done – whether it be a deadline at work, picking up the kids or volunteering for a local project? Have you looked at other bar leaders or local attorneys and wondered how they do it all? I certainly have.

When I started my career as an attorney, I was not extremely involved in Bar activities. As time progressed, that changed – in a big way! I personally feel like participating in various sections of The Florida Bar is a way for me to give back. I am a full-time Child Support Hearing Officer, so I can’t actually perform pro bono work. Yet, I’ve found a way to fulfill an internal desire to help my community by participating in various volunteer activities – at a local level through Rotary and on a statewide level through the various Bar committees on which I serve.

Now, you may say that that doesn’t sound like quality of life, as is the focus of the YLD’s Healh & Wellness month, but it actually can be! The key is to find the types of activities (that aren’t just your job) that you enjoy doing and then make the time to do them.

My job and my volunteer activities don’t define me. I actually have a hobby of writing. Even as a college student, I wanted to write a novel. I started one and got up to about 25,000 words, but ended up abandoning it. A few years back, I got inspired to write another one. I reflected back on my orientation at UF Law School where we were required to read A Civil Action. I thought the book was great, but why shouldn’t there be a criminal equivalent?

Thus, my brainchild for writing Deadly Escape was born. I’ve been in my current position as a hearing officer for five years; thus, I haven’t been actively involved in criminal cases. Writing a criminal procedural novel, with the goal of it becoming required reading at law schools, enabled me to combine things that I love – writing and criminal law.

Yes, I admit, I’m a bit of a legal geek, but the bottom line is that I found the time to do something I enjoy. Typically, that time only came about during the weekends, but it was a great way to escape (no pun intended). It took around four years to write the novel, but I did it. Granted, I would go a year at a time without touching it and then have to re-read everything I already wrote so I could pick back up, but I persevered and finished it in 2013 and then self-published in 2014. My ultimate goal was fulfilled when Prof. Joe Bodiford at Stetson Law School chose to use my book as his class’s fact pattern during the Spring 2015 semester.

I didn’t want to lose that momentum, so I started writing another novel in December of 2013. Sadly, I fell back into that rut of putting it down for months at a time (at least this time it was only for months, not years), but I’m happy to report that I’m almost done with my second novel. Trafficking will be released later this year. It was certainly fun to write. I even changed my fact pattern to fit a Florida Supreme Court case that I came across while researching the fictitious JOA argument in the book.

I find that I am the happiest when I am successfully completing my job, participating in community service (whether it is reading to children locally or filming Mentoring with the Masters videos for the YLD or chairing a statewide technology conference for the General Practice Solo and Small Firm Section) and believe it or not – exercising. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the dog training that I do with my two German Shepherd Dogs. They are awesome dogs and I love training with them. Training with them is also great exercise for me, so there’s some multi-tasking for you – spend time with the pets and exercise! When I stay busy, I have a sense of personal satisfaction that is unmatched by anything else.

The best advice I can give to anyone on maintaining a high quality of life is that you have to find some sort of an outlet that isn’t just work. I know there are pressures to bill hours or to pay your bills, but if you run yourself so ragged that you can’t enjoy life too, then, well, you might want to evaluate what is important to you in life. Easy to say and perhaps hard to implement, but you aren’t alone in this endeavor.

There are so many outlets and resources available to young lawyers. If you started your own practice, check out the PRI (Practice Resource Institute) website. You aren’t the first person that started a law firm, so why re-create the wheel? Do you want to save time on billing? Check out the various time and billing companies. Did you have someone walk through the door with a case, yet you don’t know how to handle it? Pick up the phone and call someone who can help. You’d be surprised at how many seasoned attorneys are willing to help you. If you don’t know anyone to call, call The Florida Bar’s Lawyers Advising Lawyers. They will match you with an attorney in the field in which you need advice. Or, check out my pet project with the YLD – the Mentoring with the Masters video series. You’ll find an entire library of videos helpful to your practice.

I am passionate about helping young lawyers, so I offer this to every one of you – feel free to give me a call or shoot me an e-mail if you are trying to find a way to get involved with the Bar or want to bounce ideas around about how to improve your quality of life. Good luck with your practice and improving your quality of life!

Jennifer Rene Kuyrkendall, Esq.

The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Health and Wellness Month 2015