Episode 11: Defining Wellbeing + Lawyer Wellbeing

Redefine wellbeing and take control of your life as an attorney with the latest episode of The Grace Period. 

Ever wondered how you can maintain your mental health and wellbeing while thriving in the high-stakes world of big law? This season aims to redefine your approach to wellbeing, moving beyond tired clichés and superficial tips. 

Emily Logan Stedman dives into authoritative definitions of wellbeing, from Psychology Today and the American Bar Association, breaking down the multi-faceted nature of lawyer wellbeing—emotional, occupational, creative, spiritual, physical, and social health.

Discover the SPIRE framework and actionable strategies to nurture every aspect of your life. From mindfulness practices and physical fitness to deep intellectual engagement and building meaningful relationships, this episode provides a roadmap for building a toolkit to support your wellbeing and professional success. 

Challenge the stigma surrounding mental health, recognize the ethical duty of competence tied to wellbeing, and learn how to be your best self both in and out of the practice of law. Join us for an empowering conversation about prioritizing our shared humanity and finding your grace period in the chaotic world of law.

Find out more at https://thegraceperiod.substack.com/.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Welcome to the Grace Period where we get real about attorney mental health and well-being and pull back the veil on the high-stakes world of big law. I'm your host, emily Logan Studman. In this demanding profession, it is crucial that we do not lose ourselves in the hustle for billable hours. On the Grace Period, we have honest conversations about finding consistency, minimizing chaos, developing coping strategies and destigmatizing mental health. It is time to prioritize our shared humanity, to find our grace period. Welcome to the first episode of season two of the grace period. This season I'll break down well-being lawyer well-being and try to provide real-world solutions and practices for improving your well-being and supporting or creating a culture of well-being in your firm or workplace Today. And to start, we will define well-being and lawyer well-being. But first a caveat this topic is often misunderstood and stigmatized. It is often couched in doom and gloom or discussed superficially or approached from a reactionary rather than proactive position. I will try my best to do it differently. This is not another yoga and work life balance talk. In fact, I try to remove the word balance from my vocabulary and my talks on this topic. We will talk about things like meditation and some other maybe woo-woo topics, but I really want to redefine what well-being means for attorneys and explain why it is crucial for both our individual and corporate success, for our personal and professional goals. So let's start by defining well-being.

Speaker 1: 2:04

There are two definitions of well-being that I come back to again and again. The first is from Psychology Today. Well-being generally is the experience of health, happiness and prosperity. It includes having good mental health, high life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose and the ability to manage stress. More generally, well-being is just feeling well. The second definition is from the American Bar Association, and it addresses lawyer well-being Lawyer Wellbeing. Lawyer Wellbeing is a continuous process whereby lawyers seek to thrive in each of the following areas Emotional health, occupational pursuits, creative and intellectual endeavors, sense of spirituality or greater purpose in life, physical health and social connections with lawyers. Lawyer well-being is part of a lawyer's ethical duty of competence. We'll come back to that last part in a later episode, but I think it bears repeating. Lawyer well-being is part of a lawyer's ethical duty of competence. As you listen to this season's episodes, I encourage you to ask yourself can I provide competent or diligent representation to my clients? Can I zealously advocate for my clients if I am not taking care of myself? I think that answer in many ways, is a resounding no. What I like about these definitions of lawyer well-being and well-being generally is that they expand beyond mental health. Of course, well-being covers our minds and our mental health, but it is also so much more. It is about taking care of ourselves as a whole human being, not just an attorney, not just a thought or service provider or a thinking professional. And I recently learned about the acronym SPIRE, s-p-i-r-e.

Speaker 1: 4:27

Each letter covers one of those parts of well-being mentioned in our two definitions spiritual, physical and mental, intellectual, relational and emotional. I'll briefly define each. Spiritual well-being means leading a meaningful life, mindfully savoring the present moment. Physical well-being means caring for your body, tapping into the mind-body connection. Intellectual well-being means engaging in deep learning and being open to new experiences. Relational well-being means nurturing relationships with yourself and others. Emotional well-being means feeling all the feelings, reaching towards resilience and positivity. Reaching towards resilience and positivity. Now, you are never going to excel or feel stable in every aspect of your well-being at one time. Like everything else in life, there will be ebbs and flows in each of these areas.

Speaker 1: 5:37

But what this definition and these five areas of well-being remind us is that if I'm feeling low, if I'm feeling stressed, anxious or burnout. I have lots and lots of options to tap into, to try to pause recenter, regroup and care for myself. Maybe I go to church or meditate or touch grass, maybe I work out or go for a walk on Lake Michigan. Maybe I read a book or schedule some time with my friends, my dogs, my husband. Maybe I sit with my feelings and note them instead of fighting against them, and note them instead of fighting against them, or maybe I try a whole host of varied combinations of many other things. These principles will guide season two of the grace period. I will share why well-being matters for attorneys. I will share my own experience with low mood and burnout, and I will try to provide things that you can try as you build a toolkit for improving well-being while working in this very demanding profession. Every aspect of ourselves improves performance, avoids burnout or helps us recover from it faster, and it helps bring joy and fulfillment to our lives, alongside a sustainable and fulfilling career.

Speaker 1: 7:16

Thank you for joining me on this first episode of season two of the Grace Period. I hope this episode has provided some insights about what well-being means beyond yoga and spa days. Next week, we'll talk about why well-being matters in the law, for big firms, for big law attorneys and beyond. Remember you don't have to sacrifice your well-being for career success. By prioritizing self-care, setting boundaries and seeking support, you can survive and even thrive in the law and in big law Until next time. Take care of yourselves and each other. That is the path to our grace period. Disclaimer this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only. It does not constitute professional advice of any kind, including legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by listening to this podcast.