Do what you love to love what you do
The last 3 months have been some of this Zen Curious Lawyer’s busiest months for 2024 culminating in a fantastic conference where I had the pleasure of meeting and networking with many inspiring people ~ the overall Zen lesson, sometimes balance finds you!
Last year it was decided that FLENA would run an in-person CLE with a difference. The plan was to deliver a full-day conference with short, sharp presentations that provided a key message.
FLENA is the brainchild of my dear friend, and boss, Amanda Little. It was a company started to help Family Lawyers in practice with an underlying focus on wellness and advocacy for practitioners. Watching it grow into something that supports the legal fraternity, gaining a sense of community by being part of the movement and being able to use my creative skills in new and interesting ways has been life changing.
So many new skills
I love this picture – I feel like it almost resembles my brain with 15 windows showing different elements of the conference, a control deck that on the press of one button moved about 15 operational dials and somewhat sketchy internet connections which meant constant monitoring and problem-solving.
Thankfully there were 2 AV contractors operating this monster whilst I directed from behind nervously pacing the room and trying to keep on top of the cues (and checking that dodgy internet that wreaked havoc on the music).
Sounds stressful, right, or at least not particularly Zen but watching the vision of Amanda and our team come to life brought me an incredible amount of joy!
Stress with joy … this is new????
Or is it … at the conference Amanda delivered an enlightening presentation that encouraged practitioners and businesses to consider working by values instead of traditional goals.
Value-orientated Work Goals
Being values-orientated is about being able to focus on those things that fulfil you in your work. It’s not about the absence of traditional goals or targets or budgets – these are necessary in life and not inherently bad.
Being values-orientated is about incorporating into your measurement and reporting structure a value-based goal, a goal that fulfils your soul, and your sense of self. The consequence of this approach is that achieving this goal will promote your well-being, assist you in managing the stress of your traditional goals, and hopefully makes you a more fulfilled person.
What is the Zen Curious value-orientated goal?
The development of my value-oriented goal is a work in progress, and perhaps it always should be, but the last 3 months culminating in our event on Friday showed me that at least one aspect of my value-orientated goal is making sure that I am working with a great team. Seeing our team each day, and working with them, fulfills me.
The takeaway
This month’s takeaway is to find something that “fills your work cup” and if you can’t find something, add something to your work cup to give you fulfilment.
Do you want to work on more creative things? Talk to your employer about how that might be incorporated into your workload
Do you want to do more pro bono work? Talk to your employer about volunteering at your local legal centre.
Do you want to do something for your community? Find a local Not for Profit and see how you can volunteer your skills.
Want to educate your community about an important legal topic? Discuss with your employer delivering an information session for your community and team up with other local experts for support.
Filling your cup will give you a far greater sense of Zen, and fulfilment in life.
On that note, one last picture from my day – myself and James Castrission who once slept closer to a shark in the Tasman Sea than I have ever slept to the spring in Posturepedic – check out his documentary Crossing the Ditch.
