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If folks don't want to interact, let them be. I can't speak for everyone but 95% of us are in the office involuntarily. If you want to socialize, socialize out of work
Op, don’t listen to the haters. At least 20% of people at firms think like you. Try to find them and schedule a daily lunch. International associates are great for this because they take the immorality of praepropere seriously.
Come work at my office where they chit chat continuously throughout the day both inside offices and in the hallways. I don't know how some of these people get any work done it's so bad. It all distract me enough that I am FAR more productive WFH than in the office.
Rising Star
Yeah, I don’t think this is what OP is looking for lol. This would annoy anyone short of the most relentlessly gregarious people. A happy medium (one or two genuinely meaningful human interactions during the day) seems like the sweet spot for both productivity and actually getting something out of being in the office.
No so much chit chat but the intent is that you should interact with your coworkers but everyone’s door is closed. Might as well be fully remote if that’s the case
Coworkers are not your friends
It is odd, but how things are in law firms that are chasing the billable hour. Before law school, I thought practicing law would be more social. But I actually talked with co-workers more often as a computer programmer than in law firms. If you head in-house, you can find more of that friendly chit-chat, as you don’t have to worry about it being non-billable.
Yep, it’s that ever present pressure to bill that makes non-billable time seem like an unnecessary chore. No real way to fix that without upending the model.
Rising Star
OP, I feel you. I’d focus on finding your tribe of like-minded people and kicking it with them from time to time when you’re in the office. I actually prefer a hybrid setup bc I love the flexibility of working remotely, but if I HAVE to be in the office, I don’t mind some human interaction every now and then. This job is miserable as it is, and sharing a quick laugh with a friendly coworker often makes the drudgery more bearable.
Beyond that, if your goal is to stay in biglaw for the medium-long term, building relationships is crucial to actually thriving. So when there’s a chance to build something organic in person, it makes sense to take it. And I say all of this as an introvert.
If you are in the office and have work topics to discuss, try scheduling an in person meeting. Maybe your in office days are more meeting focused and head down work on remote days.
This is not universal. My offices have always had a decent amount of in person contact. Obviously, things were different pre-pandemic, but even today I meet with people multiple times a day. From my perspective, this is a people job. I do not see how we can be effective practitioners, colleagues, mentors, or mentees without regular human contact. We are not monks (appellate specialists excepted). The office is not some prison that we’ve been sentenced to endure for 12 hours a day until we are released to our families for the night.
OP, if you like where you work but want more social interaction, you can make it happen. Knock on someone’s door at 11:30 and ask if they want to grab a sandwich in a bit. Or, at 2:30 when you’re going for coffee. Or on a Wednesday to organize happy hour for Thursday. And don’t give up. Maybe they can’t that day, so ask again the next week. If you discover that your firm really is full of duds, then you can make a decision about whether your firm’s culture is a fit for you.
I know I like to work uninterrupted most of the time. I could do 70 percent of my job without interacting with my colleagues. I wish I could be hybrid.