20 Low-Stress Ways to Keep Your Practice Moving in Hibernate Mode

Hibernate mode is for rest. But rest doesn't always mean doing nothing, and for many of us, a little light puttering is part of what makes a break feel restful. A quiet hour with a cup of tea and a messy folder can be oddly satisfying.

This is a companion to our series on the three modes of a divorce practice. Below are 20 small, low-stakes tasks you can do during Hibernate mode if you feel like it. None of them has a deadline. None requires you to reply to anyone. Each one can be picked up and put down whenever you like, and the practice will still be a little further along when you return.

If you don't feel like doing any of them, don't. That's also Hibernate mode working as intended.

Tidy up

1. Organize your digital files. Make folders, rename the documents called "final final v3," and delete what you no longer need.
2. Clean up your contact list. Merge duplicates, add notes about how you know people, and tag your referral sources.
3. Unsubscribe from newsletters you don't read. Your inbox will be quieter when you return.
4. Tidy your email folders and labels. A simpler system now means less sorting later.
5. Review your subscriptions and software. Make a note of anything you're paying for and not using.
6. Back up your files. It takes very little attention and it matters a great deal if something goes wrong.
7. Clear out old drafts. Archive or delete half-finished posts, emails, and documents you know you won't return to.

Gather what you already have

8. Collect your testimonials in one place. Pull kind notes and reviews you've already received into a single document.
9. Start a list of client questions. Jot down the questions you hear most often, with no identifying details. It's a ready-made content list for later.
10. Sort your photos. Flag headshots, event photos, and office images you might use on your website or social media.
11. Reread your old content. Note which blog posts, articles, or videos could be updated, repurposed, or shared again.
12. Start a swipe file. Save websites, newsletters, and posts you admire, so you have examples when you're ready to refresh your own.

Think, without committing

13. Look back at the past year. Notice what worked and what didn't. No decisions required, just observations.
14. Sketch your Grow mode ideas. Write down the course, the book, the partnership. Writing an idea down is not the same as starting it.
15. Draft a fresh bio. Write it for your eyes only. You can decide later whether to use it.
16. Record voice memos. If an idea shows up while you're walking or cooking, capture it in a minute and get back to your day.

Learn and connect, lightly

17. Listen to podcasts in your field. Bonus: note which shows you'd like to be a guest on someday.
18. Read at your own pace. A business book, a book in your field, or something completely unrelated. All count.
19. Leave a kind comment. Liking or commenting on a colleague's post keeps relationships warm with almost no effort.
20. Write a thank-you note with no deadline. A handwritten card to a referral source or a mentor, sent whenever you get around to it.

A simple rule of thumb

If a task needs a deadline, a reply, or a decision, it can wait until you're back.

Everything on this list passes that test. Pick one if it sounds pleasant, skip them all if it doesn't, and know that the practice you come back to will be in good shape either way.