Page 16 - CCCA Magazine Fall 2018

{ fEAturE }

“i realized that pursuing balance requires temperament. The equilibrium
we search for is not a static destination but one that is (and always will be)

in fux and dynamic, no matter where in the world we might be.”

My Tipping Point
I realized I enjoyed doing
Then a little thing happened last year. I heard about a once-in- them for fun, but without any
a-lifetime chance to travel around the world as a professional strings, proftability or other
(lawyer) nomad. expectations attached.
Remote Year (remoteyear.com) was the platform. I would join I’m sure my fellow Type As
approximately 80 professionals who would travel, work and live can identify with this, as it re-
in a different country each month, connecting with local com- minds me of Schwartz’s caution
munities and experiencing new cultures and adventures. around excessive virtues:
While it meant leaving my in-house role at Vision Critical, ● Taking honesty to an extreme = cruelty;
the support of my employer and a few amazing mentors gave ● Overdoing tenacity = rigidity;
me the confdence I needed to say yes. So, in January 2017, I set ● Amplifying courage (without prudence) = recklessness; and
up my own law practice (through which I would engage a few in my case,
clients and provide services remotely for most of the year) and ● Exploring and exploiting my passions fully (without tem-
made a plan to pursue a few of my passions. I would also have perament or restraint) = unfulfllment.
the chance to work as counsel and contributor to Law Made, a This brings me back to the question of scale tipping and, as
company supporting the digital transformation of legal services demonstrated by the list above, tipping the scales to excess.
and legal education. I realized that pursuing balance requires temperament. The
equilibrium we search for is not a static destination but one that
is (and always will be) in fux and dynamic, no matter where in
Goal for the Year the world we might be.

Expand the life slice of the pie to achieve a Renewal & Rest
work-life style where life can be lived more For as long as I can remember prior to
fully, without guilt, stress or sacrifce. my nomadic year, I was one of those
people trying to make the most of each
This time, the shift in my external environment allowed me day by maximizing every hour in it. Not
to learn and grow more than ever before. particularly surprising given our tradi-
tional legal-business value equation of
Let Go & Work Hard the billable hour. I even went so far as to
say—and actually believe—the expression,
Alongside my modest law practice, I had the space and time to “I’ll sleep [more] when I’m dead!”
pursue my passions of teaching barre-ballet dance (in a studio in The harsh reality and latest in sleep science: getting less than
Buenos Aires, Argentina), harvesting and mak- 7-8 hours of sleep a night means reducing the length of your life
ing organic wine (as a farmhand in Lagos, and the quality of life in the hours you are alive.
Portugal), and writing short children’s Scoring a hat trick in a polo match in Buenos Aires, cruising
stories and mouth-watering foodie tight corners on an MV Agusta motorbike outside Sydney and
tales (on writers’ retreats in Salento, learning traditional Thai dancing in Chiang Mai were certainly
Columbia, and Tigre, Argentina). treasured experiences. However, surprisingly, some of my most
These experiences were exquisite. treasured moments abroad were when I was not doing anything.
However, after time and with an Instead, I learned what it means to just be. To sit and enjoy
earning expectation attached to a morning (bonus points if a sunrise is involved). To take a
them, they too became work—in the walk without headphones, company or an agenda—just me,
tiresome, less enjoyable sense. the sidewalk, dirt path or green grass. To breathe in mountain

16 CCCA MAgAzIne | FAll 2018 AuTOMne