Lawyers hold a lot of power: the power to bring about change, to protect, to enforce, to uphold, to honour, and to bring peace. There are many lawyers out there fighting for good in so many different areas. From human rights lawyers, to prosecutors, to commercial lawyers, there is no limit to the forum or the opportunity to be an agent for change.
But as often happens with any profession, we forget. We forget what drove us to law school in the first place. We forget our ideologies and our motivating force. We forget that behind our day to day grind lies something bigger, grander, and critically important.
I have been a very proud member of this profession for 20 years now. I have seen the highs and lows, felt the pain of my clients and the despair in fighting the good fight and losing, and felt the elation when winning. I have cried and laughed and lost sleep trying to do the best that I can for those who entrust me with their faith and their problems.
And I have learnt something along this journey. When we, as lawyers, are able to step up ourselves and work on our own consciousness, we are not only better people for us and our families, but we are better able to serve those who come to us for assistance.
As a corporate commercial lawyer, Conscious Leadership and Conscious Business has dominated my practice for a few years now. Seeing the ins and outs of corporate life, business growth and operational demands led me there. It was a culmination of years on the field, in management roles, in back offices and as an advisor at the highest levels that cemented something I already knew: We must expand our minds to be better able to serve those we care about, and by doing so, we help our clients expand their minds also.
This is why I believe that Conscious Lawyers are the new Conscious Leaders we have been so desperately waiting for.
Lawyers historically do have a reputation for unconscious behaviour: uncontrolled emotions; ego at the forefront of negotiations; convoluted communication streams; blaming; victim consciousness; misrepresentation of facts, and I’m sure there are many more.
But as with all industries, we must firstly recognise what needs to change, and then offer the solutions to effect such change, instead of going around in circles blaming, criticising and judging.
Instead, we provide a different way of doing things: a way that serves ourselves, our clients, our community, our industry, and our planet.
This different way is the way of the Conscious Leader. By taking responsibility, mastering emotional intelligence, acting with integrity, focusing on open and honest communication, learning from all those around us, increasing our self-awareness and acting from a place of love at all times, we can shift the behaviours that are holding us back from growing and moving into a more resilient, empowered and innovative space.
We can proudly say we are working on ourselves so that we can better serve those who rely on us. We can improve our own mental health by becoming more aligned, present, and mindful. We can recognise the power of our word, our place in society, and our obligation not only to the courts, but to the people.
We can help our clients become Conscious Leaders themselves as we provide the tools they need to be more ethical, purpose-driven, empowered, and mindful in their pursuits.
We can see our profession for what it really is: a calling for fulfilling a higher purpose, and a calling for good.