May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.  ~Nelson Mandela

It’s easy to create a long list of reasons to feel downright despondent about the state of the world today.

• The prevalence of gun violence in the U.S.
• The war in Ukraine
• Climate change and its global impact
• Police violence
...

Did you know that January is considered one of the most stressful months of the year? Think about it. You've just wrapped up the past year. Maybe it was a great year where you checked everything off your work to do list and hit all your personal improvement goals. Or...maybe you ended the year somew...

Grateful people are happier people.  Have you heard that?  I have. I’ve even said it myself in many of my wellness workshops.  But I often work with legal services lawyers and professionals who help people who are experiencing extreme trauma.  And many of the lawyers and advocates themselves are exp...

On this 68th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, I am reminded of the honor I had in addressing a 2017 class of new U.S. citizens at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka, Kansas. Here's what I said to them:

I wonder how each of you would describe you...

We have the innate ability to learn resiliency. Whew. I felt relieved to learn that.

We all could use some resiliency right now. Resiliency is the ability to cope with all types of challenges and crises, whether it’s something that disappoints us, something that breaks our hearts, or some tragedy t...

Most law students begin law school as reasonably happy and well-adjusted people. After 3 years, up to 40% of law students experience depression. What about law school contributes to such a decline in student wellness? What can law schools do to better support students?  Here are some of my suggestio...

This blog was originally featured in the NALP PD Quarterly in January 2022

Millicent is a third-year corporate law associate at a major law firm and loves her job. She sometimes works 10-hour days when closing a big business transaction, but those days are balanced by days off or shorter workd...

This blog was originally featured in Best Practices Legal Ed on May 24th, 2021.

I’m not always okay.

It’s the end of the semester and I’m mentally and emotionally exhausted.  My fuse is a bit shorter than normal and my cynicism is a bit longer.  I’m ready to distance myself from my work and m...