As you stand on the threshold of a new year, considering ways to make the upcoming year the best one ever, take a moment to clearly measure where you stand now across factors that are important to you. To help you do this, I devised a simple tool called Pillars for a Fulfilling Life in the Law (download it here). This one-page instrument depicts 13 “pillars” each one labeled with an aspect of a lawyer’s life. As you peruse the assessment, feel free to add a component(s) that is important to you that I neglected to include. Similarly, ignore any factor that is not relevant to you.
Let’s begin — On a scale from 1-10 (with 1 being: “I am not at all satisfied with the way I am experiencing this part of my life,” and 10 being: “This aspect of my life is perfect.”) ascribe a value that best depicts how fulfilled you feel with each characteristic.
Now let’s turn to the year ahead. To help you to make clear, concrete plans for 2015 ask yourself the following questions for each pillar:
1) What would an increase of one degree look like? How would this aspect be different if I were able to move it up just one notch?
2) What, action(s) would move my fulfillment of this aspect up a small step?
Now for the hardest part: choices and commitment. Having come up with an idea of what it will take (even minutely) to enhance your experience of each aspect, you must make choices about whether or not to take action and, if you want to move forward, when would be best to begin. SUGGESTION: work on one aspect at a time and, if you so choose, gradually integrate new behaviors into your regime. Working on too many “new year’s resolutions” at one time is typically more change than most of us can handle successfully. Start with the pillar that is either most important to you or seems easiest to blend into your routine.
As a psychologist/coach who has worked exclusively with lawyers for many years, I marvel at the intensity of your efforts and the enormous pressures to achieve greater quantities of service and at increasingly advanced levels of accomplishment. While many in your firm evaluate what you do, I hope you will use this exercise to turn inward and explore how to enhance enjoying the professional parts of your life. If I can help in any way, please let me know.
What have you done throughout your career that has nurtured that greatest satisfaction? Please comment below to give others ideas.
Happy New Year from the entire Threshold Advisors team.