better lawyering through mindfulness
TRANSCRIPT
#ClioWeb
Better Lawyering Through Mindfulness
A Clio WebinarJeena Cho – Anxious Lawyer
Joshua Lenon - Clio
#ClioWeb
Instructors
Joshua Lenon
• Lawyer in Residence at Clio• Attorney Admitted in New York
Jeena Cho
• Bankruptcy attorney at JC Law Group PC
• Author – The Anxious Lawyer• Podcast – Resilient Lawyer
#ClioWeb
Agenda
• Mental health in the legal profession (5 minutes)• Understanding stress and anxiety (10 minutes)• What is Mindfulness? (10 minutes)• What is Mediation? (15 minutes)• Increasing Productivity (15 minutes)• Finding Time to Be Mindful (10 minutes)• Questions (5 minutes)
Better Lawyering Through Mindfulness
hello!I-am-Jeena-Cho
I-am-here-because-I-love-to-help-lawyers-cultivate-a-saner,-happier,-and-healthier+
law-practice-using-mindfulness.-
You-can-find-me-at-@jeena_cho
The Numbers
⊡ Lawyers rank fourth among professions with highest suicide rates. [1]
⊡ 7 in 10 lawyers would change careers if the opportunity arose. [2]
⊡ ABA estimates that 15-20% of lawyers suffer from alcoholism or substance abuse [2]
⊡ 40% of law students suffer from depression by the time they graduate. [1]
⊡ Lawyers are 3.6 more likely to suffer from depression than non-lawyers. [1]
⊡ 41% of female attorneys were unhappy with their jobs. [3]
Be#Here
Topics Covered
□ Understanding and Working with Stress & Anxiety
□ Mindfulness 101□ Meditation Practice□ Increasing Productivity &
Focus□ Tips for Increasing
Wellness & Self-Care
1. Understanding Stress & AnxietyHow Do I Work With It?
“ Stress is a reaction to a stimulus that disturbs our physical or mental equilibrium.
“ Anxiety is the subjectively unpleasant feelings of dread over anticipated events.
The Stress Response
In Case of Emergency
Working With Stress Response
● Stop
● Take a breath
● Observe
● Proceed mindfully
“ University of Wisconsin researchers tracked 30,000 American adults for eight years. They found that subjects with a lot of stress had a 43% increased risk of dying — but only if they believed stress was harmful.
“ Angry people tend to rely on cognitive shortcuts — easy rules of thumb — rather than on more systematic reasoning. They're also quick to blame individuals, rather than aspects of a situation, for problems. — Harvard Business Review
2. What is Mindfulness?What It Is, What It Isn’t.
Big conceptMindfulness:Being#in#the#present#moment#without#preference#or#judgement
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Your mindDoes it feel like this?
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Present moment?
What does that mean?
Mindfulness
□ Paying attention to life = Increased enjoyment
□ Being present: connected to the here and now
□ Basis for insight — provides clearer vision (“sight”) or what is within
□ React vs. Respond□ Accepting what is
3. What is Meditation?What It Is, What It Isn’t.
What it is:▧ Formal tool for
practicing mindfulness
▧ Training tool for the brain
▧ Inner exploration and reflection
▧ Change our relationships to thoughts/feelings
Meditation: What It Is (and Isn’t) What it’s not:
▧ Not about clearing or having a blank mind
▧ Not about obtaining peaceful state or nirvana
▧ Not about pushing away thoughts/feelings
▧ Not a religious practice
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Your Brain – On Meditation
http://www.fastcompany.com/3015486/howMtoMbeMaMsuccessMatMeverything/10MsimpleMscienceMbackedMwaysMtoMbeMhappierMtoday
Poll #1
Do you meditate?A. NeverB. Occasionally (less than twice per week)C. Frequently (more than three times per week)
Poll #2
How stressed are you?(Scale of 1 - 5)1 - 2. Little to low levels of stress3. Moderate amount of stress4 - 5. High or very high levels of stress
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Let’s Practice
Poll #3
How stressed are you?(Scale of 1 - 5)1 - 2. Little to low levels of stress3. Moderate amount of stress4 - 5. High or very high levels of stress
4. Increasing Productivity
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1,440+Minutes+Per+Day
What will you fill your 1,440 minutes with?
Tips for Increasing Productivity 1. Set your intention
2. Stop wasting time on unproductive, unhelpful thoughts
3. Let go of what you cannot control
4. Understand your boundaries
5. Stop multitasking!
Tips for Increasing Productivity with Clio
1. Set your practice’s goals2. Prioritize your tasks3. Shift remembering to your
systems4. Let your clients help5. Centralize your systems
Physical
Wellness:Caring for...
Mental Emotional
STAY WELLSleep: 6-8 hours p/nightTake breaks: add movementAllies: spend time w/ people who love youYoga: Yoga, mindfulness, deep breathing
Well-balanced mealsExercise: 20~30 minutes p/dayLet goLaugh
Cultivating a Meditation Habit
Credit: Tina Leggio License: Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
“ Keys for Cultivating a Meditation Practice
Practice. Practice. Practice. 1. Set a timer2. Find a comfortable position – sit or
lay down3. Check body4. Close eyes5. Bring the attention to the breath.
Breath in and out.
Working With Our Thoughts
Start Today!
www.resilientlawyer.com/Clio□ Introduction To Better Lawyering
Through Mindfulness Virtual 21-Day Program
30% discount code: clio30
Credits
Special thanks to all the people who made and released these awesome resources for free:□ Presentation template by
SlidesCarnival□ Photographs by Unsplash
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QUESTIONS?
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Advance Legal ResearchMay 28, 2015 11:00 AM PST
http://gocl.io/research
