Page 6 - CCCA 292467 Magazine_Spring 2019

{ MENTAL HEALTH }

Flourish or Flounder:

Aligning With your VAlues

By Wendy Lund, RN, BScN, MSc in Mindfulness Studies

In-house counsel understand how to adapt, survive and even day likely came from or were reinforced
thrive in an ever-changing world of regulations, technology and in law school. They are meant to guide
your behaviour in the right direction, like
cultural infuences. Organizations hire legal teams in large part a compass.
to ensure compliance around many competing internal and If you haven’t heard of Vincent Foster,
or even if you have, his words are an im-
external rules and priorities. Keeping on top of it all can be portant reminder of how we pass along
invigorating or debilitating—or both. such professional values.
Vincent Foster was the Deputy White
House Counsel during the frst year of the
nevitably, lawyers can fnd themselves mindful awareness (or a kind curiosity) Clinton administration. He died at the age
in ambiguous moral situations or about where we’re at can be an important of 48 in July 1993. Only months before his
itugged between doing what’s right for step in assuring or redirecting ourselves passing, he gave a commencement address
the organization and what’s right from when it comes to living and working in a to his alma mater, the University of Arkansas
their own perspective. Such experiences way that honours our values and beliefs. Law School. In the speech, entitled “Roads
can be described as “stress of conscience” If you discover you are not living in We Should Travel,” he shares the following:
(stress related to troubled conscience), alignment when you take your values —––——
providing fertile ground for fourishing inventory, you’ll know the area of your Practice law with excellence, with pride in
or foundering. world that needs attention. For example, your product. Treat every pleading, every
Mindfulness practices help us build if you value family and relationships but brief, every contract, every letter, every dai-
awareness of how our inner world works your workplace has consumed 60 hours of ly task as if your career will be judged on it.
and how it communicates to us through your week for months on end, you may —––——
our thoughts, emotions and behaviours be struggling to fnd joy because of those Powerful? Yes. Inspirational? You bet.
when we are aligned with our values— long hours and missed family functions. Problematic? Possibly.
and when we are not. If you are feeling Now aware of the values confict, you may The values he is sharing here, in them-
more stressed or less happy at work, tak- feel more discomfort—ignorance is bliss, selves, are not problematic. However, if
ing stock of your values can be a mindful as they say—but you have created space we are going to help shape the profes-
strategy to bringing awareness to what is for change. sional values of novice lawyers to guide
important to you now. their ethical behaviour, we ought to be
Remember that values can and do providing a moral Compass extra sure we teach them how to cultivate
change over time. What was important to A compass doesn’t tell you where you’re and operationalize this value when it’s not
us when we were 19 is often different than going, but rather, which direction you are easy to do. We have to acknowledge that
when we are 39 or 59. Reviewing our pro- traveling in. Our values work in a similar there is a natural gap between theory and
fessional and personal values regularly is fashion: they guide our actions toward practice, and education should include
critical to helping us assess whether we are meeting our goals. As in-house counsel, a shortening that gap.
living in alignment with them. Bringing a number of the values you operate by to- This high professional expectation can

6 CCCa MaGazInE | SPRInG 2019 PRInTEMPS