< PreviousDo you remember when you first decided to become a lawyer? Was it when you were a kid, and everyone said you’d make a great lawyer because you liked to “debate” everything? Maybe it was from seeing injustice in the world? Or a family member was an attorney? Whether you went right to law school from college or returned after a being out in the world, it took a lot to get where you are. Remember how excit- ing it was that day you were handed your diploma, or passed the Bar? And yet, everyone knows a lawyer who is miserable or who has left the profes- sion. So why do lawyers have such high job dissatisfaction? Somewhere along the way, the pol- ish of the passion somehow faded to a jaded day-to-day existence. Maybe it was when you found that while striving to be successful and save the world (or just your clients), you were spending 10 or 12 hours a day or some 2,100 hours a year managing a large workload, dealing with the daily grind of client/management demands and having to meet grueling dead- lines and it was no longer the dream you had imagined. Where is the Joy? A.T. Kearney conducted a Joy at Work study in December 2018 and they found that nearly 90% of respon- dents said that they expected to experi- ence a substantial degree of joy at work, yet only 37% report that such is their actual experience. Lack of joy, purpose and meaning can contribute to gen- eral dissatisfaction as well as stress and burnout. Lawyers struggling with ca- reer burnout, stress, and the drive for financial and professional success are the leading factors for depression and substance abuse, according to the 2016 Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation and ABA comprehensive study, The Jour- nal of Addiction Medicine study. So how can you bring a sense of joy and purpose back to your career, increase your job satisfaction and re- connect to what got you here in the first place? Here are five ways you Five Ways to Reconnect to Career Passion BY ELLEN COHEN might consider to reignite your pas- sion. You can do these exercises by journaling, in a meditation practice or just in mindful contemplation when you are driving, in the shower, taking a walking, or any time you can let your mind wander! 1. Think About Why You Wanted to become a Lawyer in the First Place. •What made being a lawyer an excit- ing for you? •What did you see as fulfilling and meaningful? • Does that still resonate with you? • Are you fulfilling your purpose/ calling as a lawyer? 2. Connect with Gratitude and Focus on the Positive in Your Life. •Take some time to connect with everything you have gained from being a lawyer, whether it’s intel- lectually, meaningfully/purposely, financially, self-identity-wise or otherwise. • Write down 10, 20 or even 50 rea- sons why you’re grateful for where you are today and for all that your career has given you. 3. Think About You Really Enjoy and/or Makes You Proud in Your Current or Recent Job. • Was there something significant or exciting that resonated with you, that gave you a sense of accom- plishment, purpose or meaning? • What was it that you did that had a significant impact and why was this important to you either profession- ally or personally? •What do you love about your cur- rent job or from being a lawyer? 4. Determine what are your professional career goals in the Next One, Three and Five Years. Take some time to think about your immediate next steps and long-term goals. Maybe you want to be partner, start your own practice, go in-house, retire or do something completely dif- ferent either as a full-time career or a thriving side hustle. As an executive coach, I have consistently found that my clients feel more energized and focused when they have clear aspira- tions and goals. Once you have clarity on what you want from your career, create SMART (Specific /Measurable/ Achievable / Realistic/Time-based) action plans as a personal contract—what do you want to commit to and by when? Keep this action plan as a guide as you make choices and decisions so that you are consistently moving towards what you really want. 5. Remember: Work Is Not Life and Life is not Work. Stress has a deleterious impact on your overall wellbeing, psychology, physiology and performance. Finding the time to do things that bring you joy outside of work will have a posi- tive impact on your ability to main- tain your mental health, sustain your wellbeing and build resiliency to re- bound from adversity. While it seems contradictory, taking time away for work to refresh and regroup will actu- ally make you more effective and ef- ficient. Things that you can do include hobbies, exercise, meditation or yoga, connecting with friends and family, social action and vacations. Reconnecting with your passion is not only good for your practice, it’s good for your life! ELLEN COHEN, JD, CPCC, PCC., IS AN EX- ECUTIVE COACH AND ATTORNEY. SHE IS CERTIFIED BY CTI AND INTERNATIONAL COACH FEDERATION AND IS AN EN- HANCED PRACTITIONER IN CONVERSA- TIONAL INTELLIGENCE (CIQ). TO FIND OUT MORE: EBCCOACHING.COM OR LINKEDIN. COM/IN/EBCCOACHING. 20 ATTORNEY AT LAW MAGAZINE · SAN ANTONIO · VOL. 2 NO. 1AWARDS ANNOUNCEMENTS PRESS RELEASES EVENTS PROMOTIONS ACTIVITIES HONORS RECOGNITIONS TALK TOWN of the SUBMIT PRESS RELEASES FOR NEXT MONTH’S TALK OF THE TOWN AT WWW.ATTORNEYATLAWMAGAZINE.COM/SUBMIT-TOT/ Awards • Announcements • Press Releases • Promotions Events • Activities • Honors • Recognitions San Antonio, Texas based personal injury law firm Carabin Shaw P.C. is pleased to announce the launch of their new website. It is designed to help the firm reach out to clients in El Paso, Odessa, Midland, Big Spring, Pecos, Fort Stockton, Ozona, Carls- bad, Kermit and Monahans. People in these areas who may be in need of a personal injury attorney for any rea- son at all can finally end their search with Carabin Shaw P.C Clark Hill announced that Jason Schwent has joined Clark Hill as Se- nior Counsel in the Cybersecurity, Data Protection & Privacy Group. Schwent’s practice is focused on tech- nology with an emphasis on cyberse- curity and privacy advisory services, breach response and software and in- tellectual property licensing. The Houston Bar Association Auxiliary recently honored Stewart Gagnon (Houston) for more than four decades of community service and pro bono work by presenting him with the 30th Annual Leon Jaworski Award. Gagnon, currently of counsel at Norton Rose Fulbright and leader of its Family Law Practice, received the award in part for helping lead ef- forts to aid the high percentage of liti- gants forced to represent themselves during stressful divorces or custody disputes in Houston’s courts. Naman Howell is pleased to an- nounce the election of Larry Warren and Mark Craun to the American Board of Trial Advocates, San Anto- nio Chapter. ABOTA is a national as- sociation of experienced trial lawyers and judges, with its members being dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the civil jury trial right provided by the Seventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Haynes and Boone, LLP has pro- moted to counsel nine lawyers from the firm’s Dallas, Houston, London, Mexico City, New York, San Antonio, and Washington, D.C., offices. Palo- ma Ahmadi is a member of the Labor and Employment Practice Group in the San Antonio office. Her practice now focuses on labor and employ- ment litigation, investigations, and counseling, and the labor and em- ployment aspects of mergers and ac- quisitions The San Antonio Bar Foundation (SABF) recently announced its 2020 class of 25 newly-elected members to the San Antonio Bar Foundation Fel- lows Program, which included Lang- ley & Banack attorneys Ian McLin and Patrick Rouse. The Foundation’s Fellows Nomination Committee an- nually selects one-third of one per- cent of San Antonio Bar Association (SABA) members to become Fellows of the Foundation. Together, these elected members make a difference in expanding civics education, filling the gap for access to justice, and support- ing the pipeline of future leaders in the San Antonio legal family. Langley & Banack is pleased to an- nounce that Ian McLin has been named Co-Chair of their Construc- tion Law section. His practice is fo- cused on construction, surety, insur- ance, and commercial litigation. Jackson Walker proudly welcomed Joe Flack, David Parker, and John Wittenberg as partners in the Hous- ton and San Antonio offices. In addi- tion, the Firm added Dana Murphy as senior counsel in the Dallas office. Focused on oil and gas transactions, Joe F. Flack’s substantial upstream representations include buyers and sellers in acquisitions and divesti- tures, borrowers and lenders in re- serve-based lending transactions, and grantors and grantees in conveyanc- ing transactions. David Parker focus- es on all facets of development, leas- ing, and the acquisition, disposition, construction, and financing of various real estate projects. Bringing previous experience as an executive vice presi- dent and corporate counsel at one of the 60 largest U.S. banks, John D. Wit- tenberg, Jr. represents banks and oth- er financial services companies on commercial finance, real estate fi- nance, equipment finance, and busi- ness transactions. Dana F. Murphy counsels high-net worth individuals, family-owned businesses, publicly traded entities, and private equity and operational investors related to merg- ers and acquisitions, corporate gover- nance, and commercial contracts. Jackson Walker is pleased to an- nounce the election of 11 attorneys to partnership in February The new partner in San Antonio is Shari Mao. Shari Y. Mao represents privately held clients in a variety of general corpo- rate matters, including entity forma- tion, corporate governance, financ- ings, and divestitures. Jackson Walker is pleased to an- nounce John D. Wittenberg, Jr. has joined the San Antonio office as a partner in the finance practice. Most recently, John was an Executive Vice President and Corporate Counsel at one of the 60 largest U.S. banks. 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