Meditations for attorneys

Lawyers are an analytical bunch, but are they also reflective and meditative? The American Bar Association has just released a new book, “The Reflective Counselor: Daily Meditations for Lawyers,” in hopes of helping attorneys find balance in their lives.

The book gives attorneys one meditation a day and is designed to help lawyers “recover from spiritual bankruptcy,” according to the ABA’s description of the book. Themes in the book include overcoming fear, personal beliefs and values, maintaining integrity, and dealing with difficult people.

When I first heard about this book, I chuckled. It immediately made me visualize attorneys sitting in their offices, reading their mediations a la Al Franken’s Stuart Smalley skits on “Saturday Night Live”: “I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!”

But it’s true; attorneys have high-stress jobs and any way they can find to balance the demands of their personal and work lives is a good one. A happier attorney may mean a happier client. Taking five minutes out of the day to refocus and re-energize seems like a great idea, as long as attorneys don’t start finding a way to bill clients for their meditations.

And good news – special bulk pricing on the book is available.