The Stay at Home Order has been tough for everyone. Parents with older kids are making them go stir crazy, parents with younger kids are finding it hard to work from home, and divorce attorneys are expecting divorce rates to sky rocket after the lock down is over.

I’m in a different boat than most. As a bachelor, I’m staying at home by myself. At first, the Stay at Home Order wasn’t too bad. I got to finish some books, catch up on some TV I’ve had recorded, and binge watch my favorite streaming platforms. After a month, I streamed every show I’ve ever wanted to watch, read every book I haven’t yet read in my condo, and started to do arts and crafts (Cast Away was one of the movies I streamed). I was running out of activities, so recently, I began compiling some things to do to keep from going stir crazy while remaining productive.

1) Watch Webinars and Listen to Podcasts

I have always enjoyed watching webinars because I want to learn as much as possible. What new technologies are out there, what workflows are people implementing, what are new trends that I may not be seeing, to name a few. The problem is, for a lot of the webinars I sign up for I end up being too busy and by the time things cool down, I forget that I even signed up. Here are some of my go to places for webinars, but I’d love to hear if you have more.

• ACEDS has more webinars than you’ll know what to do with, especially since local chapters have had to postpone their meetings and events.
• The EDRM has also been putting out a lot of webinars, and has over 100 recorded webinars that you are easily accessible to look back on.
• Acorn holds weekly events, including round tables and mock trials with industry thought leaders as a part of our 20% Interaction Time series.

But, truth be told, I have NEVER listened to a podcast but have always been intrigued by the medium. Here are some podcasts that have been recommended to me that I’m going to be catching up on during the next few weeks.

• Stellar Women in eDiscovery is a monthly podcast, hosted by Relativity, spotlighting and celebrating female leaders in the industry we know and love.
• ILTA has been publishing insightful content for years now, and I’m told that their podcast is no different.
• Uncivil Procedure is a monthly podcast revolving around informal discussions on recent and relevant case law.

2) Study for Certifications

Since I’ve been in eDiscovery, I’ve always loved the idea of obtaining certifications, but it has always been one of those things that I’ve told myself that I’ll get to another day. 6 months later, it was still low on my list of priorities. With an abundance of free time, I think my calling has finally come to start studying. Relativity seems to be on the same page as me and has started offering free training and certifications. I have my eye on the Relativity Certified Sales Pro Certification but there’s an abundance of other options that I’m sure will pique your interest, such as:

• ACEDS is the industry standard when it comes to certifications. I’ve always told myself that I was going to study for it by now I finally have time.
• Relativity has new free resources to keep your eDiscovery skills up to par while you’re at home.

3) Attend Virtual Coffees, Lunches and Happy Hours

Social interaction is essential for your mental well being. For those of us living by ourselves right now, it’s more important than ever. Whether it’s doing video calls with your friends, family or colleagues, I highly recommend reaching out in any way you can. I’ve started holding standing Happy Hours every Wednesday night for my industry peers, friends and family every week. This month I launched my first Virtual Happy Hour to reconnect with my industry colleagues and peers. I attended (and hosted), and if I do say so myself, it was a lot of fun connecting with numerous old and new faces and sharing how we’ve been doing inside and outside the “office”. Beyond Happy Hours, my company Acorn has set up a full roster of events to allow our community to stay connected which all can be found on Acorn’s 20% Interaction Time homepage. A few of the events are:

• Top Chef Madness: Weekly Discussions with Lia Majid
• Coffee with Colleagues with Zef Deda
• Office Hours with our Project Management Team

But if you had to choose one, stop by my Virtual Happy Hour on Wednesdays at 6:00pm CT so it’s not just Wilson and I stranded.

This is a tough time for everyone, and I’m hoping that everyone out there is staying safe and healthy, mentally and physically. I’m going to try to use this time to be as productive as possible, learning as much as possible. If anyone wants to connect, feel free to connected with me and we can set something up or collaborate to hold future events.

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About Acorn 

Acorn is a legal data consulting firm that specializes in AI and Advanced Analytics for litigation applications, while providing rigorous customer service to the eDiscovery industry. Acorn primarily works with large regional, midsize national and boutique litigation firms. Acorn provides a high-touch, customized litigation support services with a heavy emphasis on seamless communications. For more information, please visit www.acornls.com.