Futurelawyer

Becoming A Photograph On The Great Mandela.

I look at this photo every day, and, as in Dead Poets' Society, I look into the faces of my grandfather and his law school colleagues, and think about their hopes, their dreams, their lives. Someday, my photo will be stared at by a living person, and will prompt the same questions. It is the great Mandela, the circle of life. Live it, one day at a time. Soon enough, we will all be photographs.

#WhyIAmASolo - Tom Brady In Tampa Bay - A Lesson For Lawyers And Everyone Else.

Why Tom Brady Really Left New England.

"You had to want to live in the world the job created. Working with people you like, a tribe with a common goal, would make your professional life far happier than any accolade, salary, or a company’s prestige could. You need to do the work you love at a place you love with people you love. You have to feel—Brady repeatedly returned to this word—“appreciated.”"

This excerpt from a cocktail party conversation with a Syracuse University Junior is great advice for lawyers contemplating leaving a firm for solo practice, or, for anyone in any profession. It isn't enough to make a lot of money, or to have great success. The environment in which you live, the people around you, and feeling love and appreciation from others, is the most important thing. If you aren't feeling that passion in your work, you need to ask why. Then, seek it out. When you find it, you will understand. That is why I am a solo lawyer. That Tom Brady came to Tampa Bay is great; but, his reasons are an inspiration for us all. Welcome to Tampa Bay, Tom. I am glad you found what you wanted. 

 

 

#TBT - Hey Virgins, Better Make Much Of The Time You Have Left.

One of the most thought provoking scenes of one of my favorite movies, Dead Poets Society, follows the Memento Mori theme by which I live my life. A rational person must acknowledge the fundamental truth of the poem and the movie and the simple fact that death comes for us all. I am always explaining that living a life being conscious of the coming of death isn't morbid at all. Only the focus on death as a desired end is morbid. Memento Mori is, rather, a celebration of life, and a reminder to savor every moment every day. 

 

Execupundit Gets It. Be Like Execupundit.

Time Management Laziness and Life. Laziness has its benefits. A lazy man figures out how to get essential tasks done, while leaving time to live. Execupundit has a list of things a lazy man would do. Be lazy.

Watch Your Back, Roscoe. Not.

It is never too soon to learn the lesson that we all die. Memento Mori is not about death at all. It is about life, and living, and a daily reminder that we have too little time to live. So, Roscoe, learn the lesson, and you will find you are too involved in looking for a fireplug to worry about what is coming up behind you.

#MondayMorningWisdom. - Be Like Professor Feynman.

"I was an ordinary person who studied hard. There's no miracle people."

Every person has something. That something can be built into something better. All it takes is dedication, hard work, and perseverance. Define success in terms that fit your abilities. Apply hard work. You will succeed.

#WhyIAmASolo - I Don't Have To Listen To Advice From Hamlet Wannabes.

Everybody wants to tell everyone else what is wrong with their choices. Some want to control our choices. Parents, friends, politicians, clergymen, Doctors, other lawyers, and a rogue's gallery of human beings who think they are the repository of wisdom about how you should live your life. Hamlet lectures poor Horatio on the futility of life: "Alas, poor Yorick. I knew him, Horatio" begins an oration that is generally about Hamlet's superior understanding of life. The quote in today's cartoon that demeans Horatio's understanding of life and the way to live it. However, it is Hamlet who makes bad choices, and dies, isn't it? Nobody can make better choices about your law practice and life than you can. Precisely because there are many things that depend upon fate, and luck, and being in the right place at the right time. Seek your inner counsel, and listen, but don't blindly follow the alleged experts. I am not telling you to pursue a solo law practice. But, I am telling you to make the decision yourself. Sooner or later, we are all poor Yorick.

Vitamins And The Immune System - It Isn't Only About The Vaccine.

Vitamins And Virus. I don't understand rational people refusing vaccination against COVID-19. Don't misunderstand, I believe everyone should have the right to choose to remain unvaccinated, even though the odds strongly favor it. The risks of COVID-19 to the vaccinated are far less than the dangers and risk of vaccination. Everything involves risk. What risk you accept is up to you. However, there are other ways to reduce the risk of diseases like COVID-19. For some years, I have used vitamin supplements to assist my immune system. Megadoses of Vitamin C and Vitamin D3 are key. This monograph details the immunosuppressant capabilities of vitamin therapy. We all will die; but, you can control your exposure and increase your odds. The rational person shouldn't be worried about mandates, and responsible persons shouldn't be touting mandates. Those are issues of control that shouldn't be in the discussion. The rational, odds based, decision making should be discussed, and recommended. Your life. Your decision.

Are You A Tigger Or An Eeyore?

I wrote this post in 2009. Isn't it interesting that it still resonates, even though, instead of a recession, we are dealing with a Pandemic, and in the interim, other world enveloping issues? Whether you are facing an early death from cancer, like Randy Pausch, or financial challenges, or any of a number of challenging issues, the advice still rings true. What time you have is limited. You have the power to enjoy it.

"Today I offer a short note on optimism. In these recessionary times, the stress and aggravation of law practice seems amplified. It appears that we are in a perfect storm of financial and legal problems, and lawyers are, this time, having trouble with everyone else. In large law firms, layoffs are becoming commonplace. In solo practices, many of us are missing paychecks. We are becoming frugal out of necessity, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Struggling to make ends meet, like a terminal illness, requires us to focus on what is really valuable. Randy Pausch, facing a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, knew that, and, in the Last Lecture and his book, eloquently explained it to us. One of Randy's bits of wisdom was to advise us that it is better to be Tigger than Eeyore. After all, what real choice do we have? We can be happy and optimistic, even in the face of financial or medical disaster, or we can be depressed and sad. Happy and optimistic is more fun, and, in the final analysis, reality is reality, whichever we choose. Why not choose to have fun, and enjoy what life we have left? So, if you are a solo missing paychecks, cut back on things that cost money, and look for enjoyable things that don't. If you are laid off from a large firm, start a small one. Look for a new career that you enjoy. A law degree is always going to be helpful in any job. I have always tried to smile and say "If you aren't having fun, don't do it". Be a Tigger, not an Eeyore."

Learning Is Available To Everyone. Have Fun Doing It.

There is one human activity that cannot be suppressed by tyrants, bullies, oppressors, politicians, bureaucrats, clergymen, or any other person who tries to control other human beings. Learning is, or should be, a lifelong activity, and it should be fun. I often get the comment that I am not serious enough. I joke, I laugh, and I try to have fun all day every day. My favorite meme: "If you aren't having fun, you shouldn't be doing it. One of my heroes is Richard Feynman, who is perhaps the most famous physics professor who ever lived. His lectures are still viewed, since he had fun teaching. One of Professor Feynman's quotes: "If you're not having fun, you're not learning. There's a pleasure in finding things out." When I speak about having fun, I sometimes use it to defuse a stressful, or potentially troubling situation. "Are we having fun yet?" tends to remind someone having a difficult time that fun and humor are what makes life worth living. Perpetually unhappy people are sad to me. If we can't have fun doing this, what is the point?