The 2024 Lawyer & Paraprofessional Gift Guide
November 22, 2024
It’s that time of year again, time for your inbox to be flooded with holiday gift guides with affiliate links. As is our annual tradition, we’re offering our zero-affiliate link guide with no ulterior motive other than to provide you with great gift ideas for the legal professional in your life (or yourself) that focus on au courant challenges and opportunities of those working in the legal industry.
Last year, with the talk of “returning to the office” heavy in the air, we focused on gifts for the office professional and the professional who works from home. This year we’re focusing on gifts to help with digital detox.
While many used to joke about the legal industry’s resistance to technology, lawyers were one of the first groups to be constantly chained to their electronic devices (even if they were the last people carrying around BlackBerrys) driven by the importance of responsiveness to clients in high-stakes situations. It’s been almost 2 decades since the first business-friendly BlackBerry was introduced which quickly became addictive.
With a tiny device in our hands that can do just about anything, the amount of technology being thrown at us out of necessity, not to mention the time spent on social media digesting world news daily, stress and overwhelm can become a big part of our everyday lives.
This year, we think the best gift we can give ourselves or someone else is the gift of unplugging from the chaos- especially those in the legal industry who face greater expectations of responsiveness that make it harder to tuck away those demanding little screens. Let Hire an Esquire be your guide through the holiday storm (just like a certain red-nosed friend)! Here are some suggestions for your favorite legal professional (or person) to remind them that it is both okay and necessary for mental health to carve out some tech-free time every day.
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A gift card to a spa to help release the tension and stress caused by day-to-day life and courtroom headaches from your or your colleagues' shoulders.
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A Hatch sleep clock. Legal professionals are lacking in the sleep department, and we all know how much poor sleep can affect mental health and work performance. The blue light and overall stimulation from pings and notifications that result from using a phone as a clock and an alarm clock (as so many of us do) can further disrupt sleep. Hatch+ helps with phone-free unwinding and other natural sleep support to nail down a better (and more screen-free) sleep routine.
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Give them a hobby to do offline and in real life! Try a starter kit for an array of different hobbies. Crafts are more popular than ever right now, with everyone looking for a way to de-stress sans screen and get creative! Uncommon Goods has crafts of all kinds for many different interests from crocheting to a 3D bookshelf display.
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The Phone Box. The best and easiest way to disconnect from the world is to put your phone down. Spending time with yourself or with friends and loved ones is fulfilling and rewarding but can often come with distractions from the use of cell phones. With the Phone Box, you and anyone you want to spend time with can store your phones here so that the concentration is on connecting with who is in front of you.
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A 12-month pass to all of America’s national parks and other recreation spaces. What better way to unplug from the digital world than to plug into the physical one? This is for the person who always posts photos of themselves at the top of a mountain on their Instagram.
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Like the idea of nature but not one for traveling? Try one of these Grow Kits to help you connect with nature and jumpstart a new hobby. It is proven that having indoor houseplants helps boost your mood and improve mental health, which is much needed in today’s digital age.
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A leather-bound journal to write down your thoughts rather than post them to Facebook. Connecting with self is top priority when stepping back from technology, and journaling is a great way to do it. (And this one includes free monogramming to make it an extra special gift!)
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A gift certificate to a nearby float therapy experience. This sensory deprivation experience generally consists of floating in warm salt water in a sound-proof dark tank. There are numerous health benefits linked to this experience, including not being able to access any devices for the length of the experience (and being so relaxed you don’t want to).
Looking for more gift ideas? Check out prior years' gift guides!
2023 Lawyer and Paraprofessional Gift Guide