Two Lawyer Moms Discuss Juggling Career and Family

Ellen Galinsky, is a mergers-and-acquisitions attorney in Phoenix and president and co-founder of the Families and Work Institute in New York. She observes that "work has gotten so much more hectic," and "the boundaries between when you're working and you're not are more blurred. People are multitasking. People are being interrupted all of the time. Those changes are, in a sense, trumping the good things."

See Galinsky's introductory speech at the recent 2006 Work Life Legacy Awards ceremony on June 12, 2006, in New York here.

Galinsky's work life tips:

• Be clear about your priorities. When deciding between attending a meeting or a school event, for example, use the five-year test. "In five years, will I look back and say, 'I wish I'd gone to a school play or that meeting?' You may decide you have to go to that meeting but give yourself a little bit of a time perspective about what your priorities are."

• In any one day at work or at home, don't try to accomplish everything that's important. Pick the things that are most important.
• Clearly separate work and home. "Find a spot on the road on your way home to try to switch channels, so that when you get home, you can be there."

Susan Wissink is a mergers-and-acquisitions attorney in Phoenix who made partner at Fennemore Craig six days before her triplets were born in 2003. She says she worked hard to become a partner by 33 and loves her job: "I've always done best in my life when I have a million things up in the air."

See full story here.