Mr. Kristian Kalchev (Bulgaria): “I am convinced that habits and discipline trump motivation”

Q: What is your current working position?

A: I currently work as an attorney-at-law at a Bulgarian law firm based in Sofia, Bulgaria, that deals primarily with general corporate and commercial law, labour law, and migration law.

Q: What are your current working devices?

A: I use a laptop and a mobile phone. I use the former to execute the bulk of the work, but the latter often comes in handy as well when I have to respond in a prompt manner to very urgent matters, usually via WhatsApp or Viber.

Q: How would you describe your working style, in a few words?

A: Methodical, systematic, heavily relying on structure and proper organization.

Q: Do you have any websites or legal software that you use on a daily basis in your activity?

A: I use а Bulgarian legal information system called “Lakorda” that provides access to virtually all Bulgarian legislative acts as well as the case law of Bulgarian courts on a daily basis. In addition, I do my best to check the Bulgarian State Gazette, the Official Journal of the European Union, and the websites of different national public bodies (e.g. the website of the Ministry of Health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic) as often as possible in order to keep track of all latest developments in the legal framework.

Q: What gadgets do you use most?

A: In all honesty, I am rather conservative and minimalistic when it comes to work habits. I prefer to keep things as simple as possible, and I do my best to avoid any and all distractions. I often take notes by hand on a sheet of paper or in a small notebook (a roadmap/list of the tasks I need to complete by the end of the day/week, important details I came across while researching a particular subject, etc.) as a way of establishing/re-gaining my focus and getting into a rhythm of work that allows me to achieve efficiency.

Q: Do you have a favorite to-do planner? (Moleskine, web app etc.)

A: I tend to avoid web apps. I usually just write down the tasks I need to complete by the end of the work day on a blank sheet of paper. This is usually the first thing I do when I arrive in the office. There’s also a little trick I utilize, especially when I’m struggling to find my motivation and I find it difficult to get going – in such cases, I would include things such as „make coffee”, „drink the coffee”, „start writing down the tasks for the day” in my to-do list. In this way, I get to complete a few „tasks” and check a few boxes in my checklist without doing any actual work. It may sound silly, but it does actually help me kick off the work day, so I guess it works.

Q: How does your desk / workspace look like? Please describe it in a few short sentences.

A: I have already stated that in my work I rely heavily on structure and organization. This certainly does not apply to my desk. Most of the time, my desk is a complete mess (piles of documents and files all around me), but as long as everything is structured in my head, the chaos in my immediate surroundings doesn’t really bother me or affect my work in an adverse manner.

Q: What changed in your daily working routine compared to your first days starting out as a lawyer? Do you manage time better now?

A: There has been a dramatic change in my working routine since I first started working in a law firm. Thankfully, it has been a change for the better. During my university years, I would often procrastinate and end up pulling all-nighters in order to complete an assignment in time or to prepare adequately for an exam. It didn’t take me long to realize that I wouldn’t be able to work effectively in a law firm if I were to „preserve” those habits, so I made an effort to break them, and succeeded in doing so. I believe that it’s all about building a habit. Building good habits and breaking bad habits, that is. And I am convinced that habits and discipline trump motivation. Nowadays, I don’t even find myself procrastinating anymore, and I am satisfied with the time management skills I have picked up.

Q: Do you ever listen to music while working?

A: No, never. I listen to music on my way to work and after the end of the work day. Music is an important part of my life, but I’ve learnt to use it as some sort of reward – it is just not available during the day. During the day, while I’m at the office, I aim for deep work, deep concentration, and no distractions. Music and all other pleasant distractions are the reward I get at the end of the day. Of course, this is easier said than done. Sometimes, I manage to resist the urge to get distracted; other times, I may struggle with distractions all day long. It’s a daily fight.

Q: Sleep deprivation is famously one of the professional “traits” of lawyers. How much sleep do you get these days?

A: If there is one thing that totally kills my productivity, that’s definitely sleep deprivation. Good sleep is one of the few things that I’m unwilling to sacrifice. I usually try to get at least 8 hours of sleep. On average, I’d say I get between 8 and 9 hours of sleep per day.

Q: What do you to do unwind after a hard day’s work?

A: Nothing that involves staring at a screen. Generally, I try to spend as little time as possible on social media. Again, that’s a daily fight that I don’t always win, but I do my best. I like reading fiction, especially historical fiction, but I usually prefer to read on weekends. During the week, I’d rather play acoustic guitar (still a newbie) and/or go for a long run in the park. Generally, things that do not involve the processing of new information.

Q: What did you learn from your mentor in regard to your work as a Lawyer? Did he offer you a great advice for managing your workload?

A: Most of all, my mentor taught me to be a kinder and more sympathetic human being. I believe this is actually of paramount importance in the legal industry, if one wants to be both successful and satisfied with what they do for a living in the long run. As far as the management of my workload is concerned, yes, I must admit that my time management skills were far from excellent when I first set foot in a law office. I am really thankful to my mentor (who I still work with) for teaching me to “attack” unpleasant/difficult/mundane tasks straight away, with no further ado, and not let go of them until they’re done.

Q: How do you think the WOLEP network will change your working habits going forward?

A: I think that, based on the skillset I’ve already built, the WOLEP network would further solidify my working habits, rather than “change” them. I believe it will incentivize me to organize and execute my work even more efficiently, and manage my time in such a way so as to make time to do everything that needs to be done. And to do it properly.

Q: Any working tips for young lawyers out there?

A: Do not overrely on motivation. Sure, passion is extremely important. So is motivation. But that’s not enough if you wish to keep making progress. This is so because sometimes this so-called motivation is there, but other times it’s just not there and you can’t seem to find it. This is only natural. And this is where habits come into play. Build habits instead, ones that require time and a certain degree of „suffering”. Find something in your industry, in your field, in your desired area of expertise, something useful and valuable that you’re not yet good at and you think you’ll never be good at. Something you find extremely difficult, so difficult that you’re actually afraid of having a stab at it. Now that you’ve identified that thing, just start chipping away at it – slowly, consistently, and methodically. Even when you don’t want to do it (which is more often than not) and feel like skipping a day instead – do it anyway. Doing it even when you don’t want to do it is actually the reward. Of course, the reward crystallizes only after the fact; during the process it is disguised as suffering. There will be many instances when you feel like you are grinding to a halt – that’s illusive. The breakthrough will eventually come, it always does.

Q: Do you admire someone in particular (in Law or other domain) for their productivity?

A: Yes, that would be Lex Fridman. He’s an AI researcher/scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a podcast host, a guitarist, and a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, among other things. I admire his work ethic, his productivity, his versatility, his outlook on life, but most of all, his genuine kindness and humanity. I highly recommend his podcast, you can find it on YouTube.

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