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EXTRA FEATURE

THE IMPORTANCE OF RESILIENCE

BY SCOTT R. MOTE, ESQ.

s a lawyer, you are faced with the technicalities. You learn from it. You people. If you are resilient, you choose to
many circumstances that are resilient. spend time with friends, acquaintances and
require you to be resilient- If you are one of the many lawyers who colleagues who lift you up and help you
-the ability to bounce back has trouble controlling your thoughts, try become a better person.
A to “normal” after a setback. the ABC Technique of Irrational Beliefs
For example, a resilient attorney accepts developed by Dr. Albert Ellis to help you You know that you are not perfect.
criticism and learns from it; a lawyer who determine why your thought process is As you review your tasks for the day, you
has low resilience takes criticism personally off-track. realize that you scheduled two different
and challenges feedback. “On a percentile Let’s break down this example of a negative meetings at the same time. You might think:
scale which ranges from zero to 100%, the reaction to criticism: “I received a less-than- “How could I be so careless?” Resilient people
average for this trait [resilience] among perfect annual review; I am a terrible lawyer.” know that they will make mistakes. A resilient
the public is the 50th percentile; among • Activating event: An event that leads to person will problem-solve to determine how
lawyers, the average is the 30th percentile. some type of high emotional response or to reschedule one of the meetings.
Even more telling is the distribution — negative dysfunctional thinking. In this
90% of the lawyers we test score below the example, “the less-than-perfect review” is Resilience is a “must-have.”
50th percentile!” 1 the activating event. Terri Mottershead, Director of Professional
Unfortunately, most of us are not born • Belief: The negative thoughts that occurred Development with DLA Piper LLP in San
resilient. The good news is that you can learn to you. “I am a terrible lawyer.” Francisco, California, says “In the new normal,
this important trait. • Consequence: The negative feelings and it is critical that law firms place [resilience] high
dysfunctional behaviors that ensued. “I doubt on the list of ‘must haves’ in their leadership job
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE myself as a lawyer, and now I am stressed.” descriptions and support its development in
2
RESILIENT? Breaking down your thoughts this way emerging leaders.” As the legal world continues
helps you see that your thinking is irrational. to change and evolve, so should you. Being
You are aware of your thinking. In the example, the lawyer thinks he is resilient is a good trait to have if you want to be
If you are resilient, you know how to control “terrible” only because he did not receive a an effective lawyer leader.
your thoughts. Imagine this scenario: You perfect score on his annual review. This leads If you find yourself stressed, anxious, or
spend weeks on a project that takes extra him to self-doubt, which then leads to stress. overwhelmed, seek help. The Ohio Lawyers
time away from your family and other When analyzing the thoughts, you begin Assistance Program helps lawyers, judges and
personal responsibilities, yet your boss to realize that 1) no one is perfect; 2) one law students manage life’s stresses.
still criticizes your work. How do you “less-than-perfect” review does not make OLAP has saved lives, careers, marriages
respond? What are the thoughts that are you a terrible lawyer (think about all of your and families. All inquiries are confidential.
going through your mind at that moment? accomplishments as an attorney) and 3) (800) 348-4343 / ohiolap.org.
You might think, “I’m terrible at my job. I getting a perfect score on a review is not a
spent extra time on this project, neglecting normal occurrence for any employee. If you 1 “Resilience and Lawyer Negativity” by Dr. Larry Richard,
https://www.lawyerbrainblog.com/2012/09/resilience-and-
my family, only to be criticized. I can’t do received a perfect score, you would not be lawyer-negativity/.
anything right.” You might immediately able to improve, and we all have room for 2 “Five Mindsets That Undercut Your Ability to Think Like a Leader,”
get defensive and start an argument with improvement! by Paula Davis-Laack, Law Practice Today, www.lawpracticetoday.
org/article/5-mindsets-undercut-ability-think-leader/.
your supervisor.
A resilient person knows how to You surround yourself with positive people.
control negative thoughts and react in a You know the saying “Misery loves Scott R. Mote, Esq. is the Executive
professional manner. You might disagree company.” People take comfort in knowing Director of the Ohio Lawyers
with some of the critiques, but you know that others are unhappy, too. You can often Assistance Program (OLAP). If you
how to share your opinion without getting see this in offices where employees huddle are an attorney who is stressed,
upset or confrontational. You realize together and talk about who is treated the anxious, or overwhelmed, OLAP
that it is beneficial for other people to worst, who is paid the least, how unfair the can help. OLAP has saved lives, careers, marriages
review your work so that they can offer practices are, etc. Resilient people do their and families. All inquiries are confidential. He
alternative opinions or correct some of best to surround themselves with positive can be reached at (800) 348-4343 or ohiolap.org.
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