Most jobs require you to focus on many different subjects at once. This is especially true if you’re a lawyer.  Our profession requires us to think about every possible aspect of every case and what could go wrong. Trying to worry about every little thing, even when it is something beyond our control, can drive anyone mad. Learning not to worry about what you cannot control is extremely important.  It is a learned skill.  Those without this ability continuously suffer anxiety, stress and even low self-esteem.

One area that most lawyers will never admit to themselves is that they can’t control the verdict of a case. While some lawyers will argue that they are able to control it if they do their job properly, this is delusional in its conclusion. Doing everything that you should be doing as a good lawyer certainly helps to increase the likelihood that you will win the case, but it does not guarantee that since nothing in life is ever guaranteed. Rather than obsessing about the outcome of the case, you are much better off to focus on your influence and what you can do to help your chances of succeeding.

It’s also important to think about potential failure. Don’t allow yourself to settle for failure. Recognize that it is a potential outcome in any situation, and come up with a what-if scenario that helps you realize that you can cope with a loss in any situation. This should help you worry a bit less about potential failure if you know that you’re going to be fine either way.

Another helpful strategy is to start problem-solving rather than obsessing. When you end up playing a scenario in your head over and over again without coming up with solutions, you’re just obsessing about that thing and are not doing yourself any favors. If you’re taking the opportunity to replay a scenario in your head to come up with a solution to that scenario, then this is productive problem solving and will help you worry less about the uncontrollable outcome.