This June, I had the pleasure of attending a workshop in Maryland presented by Stewart L. Levine highlighting key themes from his 2018 book, The Best Lawyer You Can Be: A Guide to Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual Wellness. Stewart is the editor and curator of the book, which was published by the American Bar Association’s Law Division Practice. His excellent presentation sold me on ordering the book, which was delivered to me in a few days for a total cost of under $40. The book can be ordered as a paperback or e-book on the American Bar Association website, or as a paperback for a few more dollars on Amazon. It is money well spent!

The book is 288 pages long and it is organized into 27 chapters, with an afterword by my longtime colleague and friend, Louise Phipps Senft, Esq. of Baltimore. Prominent professors, lawyers, commentators, and practitioners address a variety of aspects of wellness and of being a lawyer from a 360-degree perspective.

This is not a book about how to win more cases or how to improve specific technical or soft skills. However, social science research indicates that if certain habits and best practices surrounding wellness are integrated into a lawyer’s daily life, then he or she can more effectively represent their clients.

The book is subdivided into three parts: Self-Awareness; Self-Management; and Engagement.

Some of the contributors for the Self-Awareness section of Stewart’s book include Elizabeth Bader, Professor Nathalie Martin, Anne Brafford, Esq., Mapp, and Paula Davis-Laack, JD, MAPP. These chapters cover subjects such as mindfulness, spirituality, teamwork, and lawyer wellness.

The Self-Management section of the book addresses some of the business aspects of working as a lawyer. Chapters include contributions by Rachelle J. Canter, PhD., Edward Poll, JD, MBA, CMC, Eva Selhub, MD, and Martha Knudson, JD, MAPP.

There are ten chapters in the final Engagement part of the book. These chapters cover subjects like volunteerism, pro bono legal work, and diversity and inclusions initiatives. They include contributions by Dean Joan R. M. Bullock, Julia LaEace, Esq., William Gibson, Esq., and Linda Alvarez, Esq., among others.

An example of the content that you might expect to find in the book is in Chapter 1 by Larry Krieger, who has studied the well-being of lawyers extensively. He conducted a recent in-depth survey of over 6000 lawyers, which concluded that the usual markers of success—money, status, and outperforming others, did not consistently produce happy lawyers. Attorney income ranked 7^th after autonomy, relatedness, competence, internal motivation, autonomy support, and intrinsic values. Human factors, rather than traditional concepts of success, have been shown to drive happiness. Similar findings have resulted from numerous other researchers and attorneys, including Randall Kiser.

The afterword of The Best Lawyer You Can Be, which explores the Relational Mindset, is also an excellent read. I’ll be exploring this mindset further with an example from my own practice in my next blog post, so stay tuned.

Stewart Levine’s book may indeed help you become the best lawyer that you can be, as it provides invaluable wisdom from some of the sharpest minds in the legal world, confirmation and refinement of best practices, and advice and tactics to enhance your professional and personal development.

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Stewart L. Levine, The Best Lawyer You Can Be: A Guide to Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual Wellness

The most effective communication involves connecting with people on a rational, emotional, and moral basis. Aristotle referred to these three pillars as logos, pathos, and ethos. Humanity has come a long way since Greek times on the many ways we communicate with and influence others. With the advent of technology, it is easy to dehumanize, and truncate not only our message, but the way it is delivered. When people are together, the richness of communication modalities are obvious, as all our senses are potentially engaged—see me, hear me, feel me, smell me, touch me, and some would say, sense or intuit me. 

People in the influencing and persuasion business, especially lawyers, must not only be competent across these modalities, but more importantly, must deliberately choose the best ways to interact with clients and opponents to solve problems. Some lawyers enjoy the competition and gamesmanship of confrontation. Many of us do not, and most of us have at one time or another ducked a potentially unpleasant conversation with letters, emails, or texts. 

Technology has made us somewhat lazy…we use tools that are convenient and easy. Technology, especially email, allows us to avoid unpleasant conversations, or even allows us at time to be more direct and unpleasant. Emails and texts are great ways to engage the disagreeable and pass the proverbial “hot potato” literally at the speed of light. “I sent an email” can be the ultimate shortcut to CYA (Cover Your Ass) or abdication of professionalism with its express or implicit “it’s not my fault!”

My practice tips can be summarized in an obvious hierarchy of preferred communication choices, although the order may vary as it is adopted to specific relationships or circumstances. Personalized contact is prioritized as the fundamental objective, however. 

My communication hierarchy, which honors the speaker being “in” as much as possible, is as follows:

            In person meeting or activity 

            Live Video, Skype, Facetime

            Telephone

            Intermediary-Envoy

            Handwritten Letter

            Photo or other video, audio message

            Email

            Text

As corny as it sounds, there is value in looking people in the eye, pressing flesh, and breaking bread together. It reminds me of the old United Airlines commercial where the company owner enters the meeting to pass out airline tickets to his employees, concerned that they have lost touch with their clients.

Recent scientific research has examined the role of Oxycontin as a chemical that is transferred by touch that promotes trust. I participated in two workshops with Professor Paul Zak, a leading researcher in this area, and came away convinced that we have underestimated the power of touch to build rapport, trust, community, and to aide in the resolution of conflict.

Many lawyers also have come to the conclusion that my lifelong friend, Gregg Rosen of McGuireWoods, expressed as advice for effective representation— deliver to your client the bad news as quickly, and personally, as possible.

No lawyer will finish a career without “losing” a case, position, or transaction, failing to solve a problem or obtaining a suboptimal result. It is in the nature of the business we have chosen. Don’t hide behind technology to avoid what is part and parcel of our work. Choose carefully and wisely the “how” of sharing your message by working from the top of the hierarchy downward!

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Wellness programs and initiatives are cropping up at law firms all over the country. Firms both large and small are recognizing the need to focus on mental health and happiness for their employees.

As lawyers, we all know that our profession can be stressful—we dedicate our intellectual and mental energy to problem-solving, long hours, and sometimes challenging clients. Stress can lead to addiction-forming behaviors like drinking and drugs, which are prevalent issues in the law industry. Furthermore, there is an epidemic of depression among lawyers.

Firms are finally taking note of these problems and choosing to address them proactively.

Recently, Morgan Lewis committed to the American Bar Association’s Wellness Pledge and launched ML Well to provide programs that support the “intellectual, physical, emotional, and occupational health” of their employees. They also hired Krista Logelin as the firm’s first Director of Employee Well-Being.

ML Well hosts educational programs about “how to design lives of meaning and fulfillment, including with Patrick R. Krill, a recognized thought leader on addiction, mental health, and well-being in the legal profession.”

ML Well also focuses on physical activity and community service and provides their lawyers with an online resource portal.

Other firms who have signed the pledge include Pepper Hamilton, K &L Gates, and Duane Morris, among others, plus several university law schools.

Dorsey, another law firm, has a Well Ahead program and also signed the ABA’s Pledge as part of their commitment to wellness.

Their Chief Administrative Officer, Patrick Lutter, says, “The ABA’s Campaign aligns with our initiatives and the importance of Well Ahead’s holistic approach to our employees’ well-being. We will continue to add new components to Well Ahead in support of the ABA Campaign” (apnews.com).

It’s uplifting news to hear that big firms are paying attention to wellness. We’ll be keeping an eye on this space to see what programs they design and how much of an impact they make.

Does your law firm have a wellness program? What would you like to see firms do to better support attorney wellness? 

Feel free to respond in the comments!