Today we welcome Christen Morgan, guest writer and foreclosure attorney, to talk about how to juggle work and social events at your summer associate job.

Before beginning your summer associate position, you knew what to expect. Your law school mentors already warned you about the long nights you would spend in the office just trying to understand an assignment. They also warned you about the nights that you may forego sleep, and instead opt to complete the assignment that the partner dropped on your desk right before you left work for that day. So when you began feeling overwhelmed your second week in, you weren’t surprised, but, despite knowing about this pressure beforehand, you panicked and resorted to the only response you knew, “burning the midnight oil.” You began turning down offers to hang out with law school friends. Even worse you began to avoid the many social events offered by your firm, as if they were actually optional (Hint: they may appear to be optional but they really aren’t). Overworking one’s self is undoubtedly a favorite pastime of the average law student and, although this reaction may have proven successful in the past, in all honesty, it may be hurting your chances to receive a full-time offer from your current position.

Overworking yourself and staying long hours at the firm may be inefficient and negatively impacting your productivity. Additionally, working long hours and overexerting yourself may be communicating that you’re horrible with time management. I assure you this is not a good look to the hiring partners – especially when you begin flaking on social events that they’ve put together just to get to know you better. So before deciding to skip out on the next happy hour social, consider the following:

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