Each of the 5 days in Well-Being Week is focused on one dimension of overall well-being. Below, you’ll find tips and downloadable activity guides to practice different dimensions of well-being.
If you decide to participate, we’d love to see you on social media. Please post about your experience, use the hashtag #WellBeingWeekInLaw, and follow along as the week unfolds!
Tell us how you will be participating in Well-Being Week in Law and be entered in a raffle for some fantastic prizes…including a 3-night, all-inclusive Pathway Experience at Canyon Ranch.
MONDAY: May 2, 2022
Striving for regular activity, good diet and nutrition, enough sleep and recovery. Limit addictive substances and seek help for physical health when needed.
“When you invest in proper sleep, nutrition, exercise, and play, you’ll have the self-control to manage your own reactions, the energy to be fully present for your team, the patience to listen and empathize, the wherewithal to make good decisions, and the stamina to keep it up for weeks or months. Investing in your resilience isn’t indulgent; it’s mission critical.”
Liane Davey (2020).
Reframe How You Think About Self-Care. Harvard Business Review.
The Joy of Movement on the One Idea Podcast (2020), 41:40 mins. Luke lorio interviews Dr. Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University, about the latest research on why movement is so important for many facets of our wellbeing. Dr. McGonigal shares research about how collective activity enhances belonging and how movement can curb the modern epidemics of depression, anxiety, and loneliness.
Regular physical activity (at least 150 minutes per week) is essential for mental and physical health—and all types of movement count. The Get Moving Activity Guide offers ideas for moving more while working and in our lives and recommends trying new activities to boost fun and motivation. Try out a new activity and post about it on social media during WWIL using the hashtag #WellbeingWeekInLaw.
Encourage members to do all of their meetings (or even just one!) on Monday while walking or standing up and post about their experience on social media using #WellbeingWeekinLaw.
Live Webinar
Monday, May 2, 3:00-4:00 pm ET | Regroup on Tuesday, May 31, 3:00-4:00 pm ET
IWIL-Sponsored Webinar: Free to All
An important pathway to well-being that positive psychology seeks to harness is the activation of positive emotional states to promote mental health and protect against depressive symptoms. In this session, you’ll learn an evidence-based positivity exercise that invites you (alone or with others) to practice 10 discrete positive emotions–including joy, gratitude, and awe. Research has shown that this practice can increase the experience of meaning, pleasure, engagement, and life satisfaction and curb depressive symptoms. After the session, you’ll receive reminders to practice specific positive emotions all month and ideas for how to do so. You’ll then be invited to join a debrief session on Tuesday May 31 at 3:00 pm ET to discuss your learning and experiences. These sessions will be led by Tara Owens Antonipillai and Krista Larson, who have studied positive psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Read their bios here.
Register here for the May 2 session: Register Now
Register her for the May 31 debrief session: Register Now
Direct questions about IWIL-sponsored webinars to iwil@lawyerwellbeing.net.
Live Webinar
Monday, May 2, 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ET
ABA-Sponsored Webinar: Free to ABA Members
Evidence supports that mindfulness can foster wellbeing and increase productivity. It is a mental state achieved by focusing awareness on the present moment, while calmly accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations. Mindfulness is a skill and a state of being that lawyers and other legal professionals can develop and cultivate away from the meditation cushion. This program is presented by four lawyer mindfulness practitioners with a variety of legal work experience. Its aim is to demystify mindfulness practice, illustrate how it can be incorporated into one’s everyday legal work, and provide a direct mindfulness experience to better understand the potential benefits one can gain. Panelists will share their personal stories and testimonials about the value of mindfulness for their lawyer selves. There will be ample time for questions related to common scenarios and personal resistance to mindfulness practice. The program will leave you with the ability to begin or deepen a mindfulness practice, tools for integrating mindfulness into your legal practice and personal life, and serve as a reminder of the value that it can provide. Speakers: Phillis Morgan, Esq., Stewart Levine, Esq., Cheryl Connor, Esq., Timothy Lambert, Esq. CLE credit is available. More details are available on the ABA website.
Direct questions about ABA-sponsored webinars to Lindsey Kent, Lyndsey.Kent@americanbar.org
TUESDAY: May 3, 2022
Cultivating a sense of meaning and purpose in work and life. Aligning our work and lives with our values, goals, and interests.
“Spiritual goals are any intentions that you have related to discovering your purpose and living a meaningful life. It doesn’t matter if you follow the teachings of Christ, Buddah, or you’re not religious at all. Setting a spiritual goal helps you connect to your spiritual side and gain clarity on the purpose of your life.”
Connie Mathers (2021).
21 Spiritual Goal Examples to Grow in 2022. Developgoodhabits.com.
Filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg offers stunning time-lapse photography of awe-inspiring nature scenes, accompanied by powerful words from Benedictine monk Brother David Steindl-Rast as a meditation on being grateful for every day.
Purpose In Life Quiz. Take a free Purpose in Life Quiz and receive automatic feedback and recommendations for purpose-building activities courtesy of Greater Good Magazine—a nonprofit based at the University of California, Berkeley. To take the Purpose in Life Quiz, you’ll need to register (for free) on the website, but there are no strings attached. Greater Good is a fantastic source for (mostly free) science-based well-being resources.
Spiritual Well-Being involves cultivating a sense of meaning and purpose in work and life and aligning our work and lives with our values, goals, and interests. Chronic misalignment between our values and behaviors can contribute to disengagement, burnout, anxiety, and depression. Use this Activity Guide individually or in teams to identify your core values and ways to align those values with your work and personal life. Post on social media about your experience using the hashtag #WellbeingWeekInLaw.
Live Webinar
Tuesday, May 3, 2022 1:00-2:00 pm ET
ABA-Sponsored Webinar: Free to ABA Members
There are countless examples where what we perceive as rejection is really redirection that leads to an even higher level of success, better relationship, job, friends, place to live, than we imagined possible. This program will show attendees how to see through the disappointment to the deeper truths that line that experience and lead them to a more meaningful and authentic self. Speakers: Joey McCall and Jihane Elizee of McCall, Elizee. CLE credit is available. More details are available on the ABA website.
Direct questions about ABA-sponsored webinars to Lindsey Kent, Lyndsey.Kent@americanbar.org
Live Webinar
Tuesday, May 3, 4:00-5:00 pm ET
IWIL-Sponsored Webinar: Free to All
Well-Being is a continuous process needed to stay healthy, mentally, physically and spiritually especially in today’s unpredictable world, especially professionals working in higher stressed environments. Tuesday’s focus will be on the alignment of life and work with our values, so that we can develop a sense of awareness and purpose in all aspects of life. To help us connect to our natural awareness and perseverance in all aspects of our lives, James “Wolf” Yoxall, MA, CSC, Pavillon’s Spiritual/Wellness Director (view his bio here) will provide an interactive lesson on 4 spiritual practices that you can incorporate into your daily routine.
Morning, lunchtime, end of the workday, or before bed, anytime you are feeling stressed: these practical spiritual wellness applications will help you on your journey.
Direct questions about IWIL-sponsored webinars to iwil@lawyerwellbeing.net.
WEDNESDAY: May 4, 2022
Seeking personal satisfaction, continuous learning and growth in our professional and personal lives, and financial stability. Engaging in creative or intellectually challenging activities that foster ongoing development and monitoring cognitive wellness.
We all want work to feel positive and engaged. Who doesn’t dream of waking up on a Monday excited to go to work? Positive Psychology explores the science behind positive emotions, which are linked with the benefits of improved health, well-being, longevity, and a greater quality of life. We spend (on average) half of our waking hours at work, and many business leaders are starting to acknowledge the importance of instilling positive psychology techniques in the workplace.
Brad Desmond (2021).
Positive Psychology in the Workplace: Thank God it’s Monday. PositivePsychology.com.
The Happiness Lab Podcast (2021). How to Be Happier at Work, 54:29 mins. Dr. Leslie Santos, professor of psychology at Yale, talks with Dan Harris (from Ten Percent Happiness) about how to create greater happiness at work—including making better use of your time, finding meaning in even the worst aspects of your job, a simple practice to overcome jealousy about others’ accomplishments, engaging in higher quality leisure activities, and setting intentions to shape your attention.
Dr. Martin Seligman (founder of positive psychology) created the PERMA model of well-being, which identifies five key pillars or pathways to happiness: P-Positive emotions, E-Engagement, R-Relationships, M-Meaning, and A-Accomplishment. First read Brad Desmond’s short article Positive Psychology in the Workplace referenced above to get more details about PERMA at work. Then take the Workplace PERMA Profiler (the brief survey is free on U Penn’s Authentic Happiness website; you’ll just need to set up a free account). Finally, make a plan on how you’ll work on increasing one PERMA element at work over the next month.
Individually or in small groups, work through the Job Crafting Activity Guide, which is aimed at shaping work experiences to more closely align with your values, interests, and strengths.
Live Webinar
Wednesday, May 4, 2022 1:00-2:00 pm ET
ABA-Sponsored Webinar: Free to ABA Members
Law is a crisis profession, yet most lawyers fail to recognize the strain crises put on clients and on themselves. Lawyers receive virtually no training in how to address crisis as a potential form of trauma and longstanding emotional harm. This presentation equips lawyers with tools to understand and respond to the emotional landscape of a business crisis, including (1) an overview of the emotional experience a business crisis (2) the ineffective and unhealthy but common ways people deal with crisis;. (3) the phenomenon of litigation trauma and its effects on clients and attorneys; and (4) practical interpersonal and professional tools to help attorneys recognize and ameliorate the negative effects of crisis. Speakers: Aaron Solomon, Meredith Parfet, Robby Larkin. CLE credit is available. More details are available on the ABA website.
Direct questions about ABA-sponsored webinars to Lindsey Kent, Lyndsey.Kent@americanbar.org
Live Webinar
Wednesday, May 4, 4:00-5:00 pm ET
IWIL-Sponsored Webinar: Free to All
Loads of studies have found that many different types of writing promote and protect well-being, including positive effects on mood, mental health, and personal and professional development. (See the session materials here for a summary of many of the well-being benefits of writing.) Nate Johnson JD, the Executive Director of the nonprofit FreeWriters (see his bio here), has seen the power of writing first-hand. FreeWriters provides inmates in a Minnesota county jail system with writing opportunities that improve mental health, reduce recidivism, and inspire hope about life after incarceration. Nate will bring his inspiring story and skills and experience with the benefits of writing to this interactive session. He will share his own mental health story and lead a writing activity that you’ll likely want to add to your long-term well-being toolkit.
Direct questions about IWIL-sponsored webinars to iwil@lawyerwellbeing.net.
THURSDAY: May 5, 2022
Means building connection, belonging, and a reliable support network. It is contributing to our groups and communities.
“[C]onversations that encourage cooperation and understanding result in the release of different set of hormones, including Oxytocin, which reinforce a bonding experience. That is when we stop being protective and begin to connect with others and build lasting relationships based on mutual trust.”
Manbir Kaur (2020).
Want Stronger Relationships at Work? Change the Way You Listen. Harvard Business Review.
Drew Dudley talks about how we should redefine “leadership” as everyday acts of kindness or social connection by people at all levels, recognizing that even the smallest gesture can have a large, lasting impact on a person or situation. TEDx, 6 mins.
When someone shares good news with you, how do you respond? When you use Active Constructive Responding (ACR) to react, you magnify your conversation partner’s excitement and help them savor the moment. ACR builds trust and connection, boosts well-being, and reduces conflict. ACT is such a simple yet effective technique that the U.S. military has taught it as part of its resilience training for service members. You can try it out during WWIL by using this ACR Worksheet created by the Consortium for Health and Military Performance (CHAMP, 2020). You can learn more about ACR here in this article by PositivePsychology.com.
Feeling and expressing gratitude and doing acts of kindness are science-based ways to help protect and promote our physical and psychological health and strengthen our relationships at work and at home. There are countless ways to express gratitude and do kind acts as part of our daily routines—even for the busiest among us. One especially easy way to do so is to send a note of thanks, support, or affection to friends, family, colleagues, and clients using IWIL’s e-message form. Just click the link below, fill out the form, and we’ll send a customized email with your message to the recipient. It’s quick and easy—but can be so impactful! It’s free to use as much as you like, and we encourage daily use during Well-Being Week in Law!
Live Webinar
Thursday, May 5, 2022 1:00-2:30 pm ET
ABA-Sponsored Webinar: Free to ABA Members
How can creative pursuits and collaborative practices help lawyers redefine success and connect better with others? The panel, which includes two judges, will review Gormley’s newly-published novel, “The Heiress of Pittsburgh,” in light of well-being issues for lawyers such as work-life balance, career satisfaction and community engagement. They will discuss the novel protagonist’s struggle to create a life of meaningful work and successful relationships in the face of professional, ethical and personal challenges.This Webinar is a must for any lawyer seeking to integrate creative passion and community connections into the definition of professional success and wellbeing. Speakers: Ken Gormley, Alison Sulentic, Hon. Thomas M. Hardiman, and Hon. Timothy K. Lewis. CLE credit is available. More details are available on the ABA website.
Direct questions about ABA-sponsored webinars to Lindsey Kent, Lyndsey.Kent@americanbar.org
FRIDAY: May 6, 2022
Valuing emotions. Developing an ability to identify and manage emotions for health, to achieve goals, and to inform decisions. Seeking help for mental health when needed.
As the pandemic slogs on, many of us want to feel more vitality and motivation and get unstuck. An evidence-based practice called behavioral activation—committing to engaging in valued and enjoyable activities—might help.
Brad Stulberg (2022).
You’ve Done Self-Care. You’ve Languished. Now Try This. New York Times.
In this Smart People Podcast (2022), the host interviews Dr. Ethan Kross, an award-winning professor of psychology and author of bestseller Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It. They discuss how the conversations people have with themselves impact their health, performance, decisions, and relationships. 1:07 hr.
After reading the New York Times article above by Brad Stulberg (You’ve Done Self-Care. You’ve Languished. Now Try This), take action using the Vanquishing Languishing Activity Guide. It offers guidance on how to use behavioral activation strategies to incorporate more enjoyable and valued activities into your life to foster greater engagement and vitality.
Intentionally engaging in thoughts and behaviors that heighten our good feelings about positive events is strongly related to mental health. It includes anything that generates, intensifies, or prolongs our enjoyment. This Activity Guide will help you assess your own savoring habits and make a plan for more savoring. Post about your experience on social media using the hashtag #WellBeingWeekInLaw.
Live Webinar
Friday, May 6, 2022 1:00-2:30 pm ET
ABA-Sponsored Webinar: Free to ABA Members
Research shows that over two-thirds of the population has experienced trauma, and the numbers are even higher for law students and lawyers. Because of the work lawyers do, many are perched in the pathway of client trauma and prone to experiencing vicarious trauma by absorbing others’ stories, pain, and fear. Unresolved trauma and grief can lead to serious challenges both personally and professionally. Join this candid conversation about the very real and debilitating impacts of trauma and grief on lawyers’ emotional well-being. This program will emphasize how to protect yourself professionally from vicarious emotional impacts as well as strategies for understanding and healing your own personal trauma. Speakers: Kendra Brodin, Heather Horton, Denise Tordella, and Helgi Maki. CLE credit is available. More details are available on the ABA website.
Direct questions about ABA-sponsored webinars to Lindsey Kent, Lyndsey.Kent@americanbar.org.
Live Webinar
Friday, May 6, 12:00-1:00 pm ET
IWIL-Sponsored Webinar: Free to All
To paraphrase neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor, people are emotional beings who have thoughts rather than thinking beings who have emotions. Yet, we allocate our time and energy in ways that suggest the opposite, especially in the legal workplace. In this session, lawyer-turned-DEI & wellness advocate, Denise A. Robinson, will use inspiration from Jazmine Sullivan’s Grammy-winning song, “Pick Up Your Feelings,” to explore simple, accessible practices legal professionals can engage to regulate our emotions throughout the workday. These practices will range from a breathing technique to down-regulate the nervous system, to how we can use music to shift our mood, to stimulating the vagus nerve. Come ready to move your body, hum along to some tunes, and breathe into greater emotional well-being.
Direct questions about IWIL-sponsored webinars to iwil@lawyerwellbeing.net.