Law practice is often busy, stressful, and hectic on its own. Most lawyers know that lawyers often must do more than just practice law. Business development, networking, and community involvement are the extracurricular activities of a healthy law practice. This raises the question: how do you make time for these extras and still maintain well-being?
I talked about these ideas with some other high-achieving lawyers in a recent podcast interview. I am sharing it with you here today because it offers some good insights and tips.
Why Lawyers Take on Extra Projects
As I have shared over the years on this blog, I have a lot of extras on top of my law practice. I manage this blog, teach mindfulness, have a family, and practice law. Last year, I added another big role to this list when I edited a legal treatise for LexisNexis.
This may seem like a lot. In fact, many people tell me it sounds like a lot. Sometimes it feels that way, but I enjoy having multiple facets of my life. New experiences allow for the development of new skills. They also offer me a chance to meet new people by doing things I enjoy. This has helped develop business, cultivate a solid network, and create confidence in myself as a lawyer.
The podcast interview shared here reveals that a motivation to grow and experience new things is important for many lawyers. Many of us take on extra projects for professional and personal benefits.
How Can Lawyers Make Time for Extra Projects
The best way to answer this question is not to look for a one-size-fits-all solution. Most lawyers have to find a balance that works for them. Many of us must use our best judgment or trial and error to find this. That’s why I asked two of the lawyers who worked with me on the treatise to talk about this.
Paul Finamore and Caroline Berdzik are exceptional employment lawyers and active community leaders. They have a lot on their plates. When I approached them about authoring a chapter for the treatise, they both accepted.
In the interview, they both shared how they enlisted support from colleagues. They also explained how they blocked off time to complete the project. Finally, they shared that project leadership helped them comply with deadlines and get the work done.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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As a mindfulness teacher and blogger, the connection between mindfulness practice and writing comes up for me a lot. Though I have always been drawn to writing and I do it every day in my work as a lawyer, I didn’t always consider myself a writer. It took many years for it to emerge as a real passion and part of my life.
How Meditation Led to Writing
If I never started meditating, there’s a good chance that I never would have discovered this meaningful pastime at all. As I have explained before, meditation helped me create the mental space that was necessary to recognize some of my copious thoughts as ideas. Over time, I also cultivated self-compassion and became more aware of latent judgments, so I could get ideas on the page.
Then, finally all the time sitting in meditation and the benefits it imparted convinced me of something fundamental: using some of my time to please myself was worthwhile. This helped me get over all the fears about writing being a “waste of time” or “too much work” or that “nobody would care.”
The Interview Discussing Mindfulness and Writing
I was fortunate to get a chance to discuss all of these things and more with fellow writer and coach, Shonda Ramsey. I met Shonda online when I saw her searching for self-published authors. Writing my first book was a great experience and one that has led to many other wonderful opportunities in my life.
I was glad to get to talk to Shonda about it and explain how mindfulness and creativity are interconnected. I was also pleased to discuss the fact that writing, a traditionally lonely endeavor, was something that led me to cultivate greater community. In fact, I was proud to share that I got help from a book coach to make the leap from blogger to author quickly.
How to Watch or Listen to the Interview
If you are interested in writing or wonder what mindfulness can do to help you get more creative in life, check out the full interview on the Dear Indie Author podcast. You can listen online, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify or watch the interview on YouTube here:
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Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
Though I have had a few experiences as a lawyer on the side of the plaintiff, most of my legal career has been on the defense. Lawyers of all kinds may share certain stresses, regardless of practice area. But the demands of working as a lawyer for injured people seeking compensation can be uniquely intense. In this interview, Kathryn (“Kate”) Conway, Partner at Power Rogers and an experiencedmedical malpractice attorney in Chicago shares her personal experiences and insights on how mindfulness and compassion have helped her navigate the emotional complexities of high-stakes cases.
Question: Can you share a little about the emotional challenges lawyers face, particularly in cases like personal injury or medical malpractice?
Kate: Absolutely. Advocacy, especially in emotionally charged cases, can be incredibly demanding. I often work with families who’ve experienced catastrophic injuries or loss due to medical errors. Their pain and grief are palpable, and as lawyers, we feel a deep responsibility to do right by them. Early in my career, I struggled with drawing the line between caring deeply for my clients and maintaining the clarity needed to handle their cases effectively. Over time, I realized that mindfulness could help me strike that balance.
Question: How has mindfulness played a role in your work as a lawyer?
Kate: Mindfulness has been transformative. It allows me to stay present for my clients while ensuring I don’t become emotionally overwhelmed. For instance, I once handled a particularly tough case where a young family lost a loved one due to a preventable medical error. Their grief was overwhelming, and it was challenging to compartmentalize my emotions during trial preparation. I turned to mindfulness techniques, like grounding exercises and pausing to breathe, which helped me stay emotionally available for them while making sound, strategic decisions.
Question: What are some mindfulness techniques that have worked well for you?
Kate: There are three techniques I use regularly:
The Power of the Pause Taking a brief pause during emotionally charged moments can make a big difference. Whether it’s a few seconds of deep breathing or simply stepping back to reflect, pausing helps me respond intentionally instead of reacting impulsively. For example, during contentious negotiations, I’ll take a moment to collect myself before responding. This helps me stay calm and focus on achieving the best outcome for my clients.
Setting Boundaries It’s essential to set emotional boundaries. As lawyers, we care deeply about our clients, but their struggles aren’t ours to carry. After a particularly heavy client meeting, I’ll go for a walk or spend a few minutes journaling. This helps me process what I’ve absorbed and reaffirm my role as their advocate, not their emotional caretaker.
Compassion Without Attachment Active listening is key. I strive to be fully present when clients express their emotions, validating their feelings without becoming entangled in them. Afterward, I often reset with a short breathing exercise or a guided meditation.
Question: Do you have any resources you’d recommend for lawyers or professionals exploring mindfulness
Kate: Absolutely! Two books I found particularly helpful are The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thích Nhất Hanh and Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn. For more accessible content, I recommend the Headspace YouTube channel and The Mindful Lawyer podcast. These resources offer practical ways to incorporate mindfulness into daily life.
Question: How do you see mindfulness benefiting lawyers in their professional lives?
Kate:Mindfulness benefits both lawyers and their clients. For us, it helps reduce burnout and improves decision-making by keeping our minds clear and focused. For clients, it fosters trust and empathy in the lawyer-client relationship. At my law firm, where we handle high-stakes medical malpractice cases, maintaining clarity and emotional regulation is crucial. It allows us to advocate effectively without being overwhelmed by the stress of the case.
Question: What advice would you give to lawyers looking to integrate mindfulness into their practice?
Kate:Start small. Mindfulness doesn’t have to mean meditating for hours. It could be as simple as taking a few deep breaths before walking into court or setting aside time to reflect at the end of the day. Over time, these small practices can make a big difference.
Conclusion: A Sustainable Path Forwa
Advocacy in high-stakes legal cases is demanding, but mindfulness provides a sustainable path forward. Kate’s insights show how lawyers can balance compassion with professional detachment, ensuring their advocacy is guided by strategy and care—not stress or overwhelm. Whether you’re a lawyer or navigating the challenges of life, mindfulness is a powerful tool for staying grounded and effective.
Bio: Kathryn (“Kate”) Conway, Partner at Power Rogers, is a seasoned trial lawyer specializing in personal injury and wrongful death cases. Beyond her legal achievements, Kate advocates for compassion in law through her work with nonprofits like Sarah’s Inn and Chicago Jesuit Academy. As a mentor and past President of the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, she promotes mindfulness and empathy in legal advocacy, drawing on her experience supporting clients through emotionally challenging cases.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
Though I am a mindfulness teacher, I am still a lawyer so that means I love competition. I like to win. I want to be number one in all things. And after a decade of meditation my ego is still going strong.
The drive to compete and win is necessary for most lawyers. I am not here to tell you it’s entirely bad. I’m sharing this post, though, because competition and naked self-interest have some down sides.
The book, Enlightened Self-Interest, analyzes something that most lawyers know all too well: competitive individualism. Most of us who live in the western world, especially the United States, probably don’t need more explanation on this. In case you do, though, this is referring to the societal and professional emphasis on attaining money, power, and fame.
Despite common assumptions that these things lead to health, happiness, and safety, the book explains that they often do the opposite. They foster worldwide inequality, rampant loneliness, incentivize unethical conduct, and often contribute to mental health challenges.
Enlightened self-interest, then, is the recognition that the cultural messages many of us get about what we are supposed to want and pursue in life may not truly be in our self-interest. This recognition then opens up possibilities for cultivating a more balanced, sustainable, and collaborative practices that support individual and collective well-being.
Why Do Lawyers Need Enlightened Self-Interest?
Enlightened self-interest matters for lawyers and others in the business world for some obvious reasons. Law practice itself is highly competitive and confrontational. Not only are lawyers often competing with other lawyers in representing clients, they also may face business competition in their own firms and externally.
What are the most common incentives for a job well done in this system? You got it: money, power, and reputation enhancement. In this way, whether intended or not, law practice sets many lawyers up in a system where success and happiness may be at odds. As a result, it behooves lawyers, especially law firm leaders, to incorporate approaches that mitigate the impact of individualistic competition.
What Can Enlightened Self-Interest Do for Lawyers and Professionals?
What I liked most about the book, Enlightened Self-Interest, is that it was balanced. It didn’t claim that competition was entirely bad. It didn’t argue that the hyper-individualistic Western world should wholesale adopt the collectivism more prevalent in Asia. Instead, it acknowledged that there are pros and cons with every social system, including collectivism, and agreed that competition has its place in a healthy life and culture.
I’ve told you why the focus of the book is relevant to lawyers, but you may also be interested to know that the author of the book, Tom Bussen, was a lawyer. Bussen is now an academic and organizational psychologist who has taught and trained companies and businesses around the world about ways to create healthier workplaces.
As Tom shares in the book, though, he used to practice law and left in part because the competitive and individualistic environment was not for him. I got a chance to interview Tom for the FDCC FedSpeaks Podcast and he graciously shared the challenges he experienced with law practice. Because Bussen’s first-hand knowledge of many of the challenges that lawyers, professionals, and their firms ensure that he remains practical in his focus and recommendations.
Why Should I Read the Book?
Enlightened Self-Interest is a needed examination of the role of individualist competition in our society and the impact it has on the lives of most lawyers and professionals. It offers balanced analysis of research, case studies and true stories, and practical strategies to help lawyers and professionals craft happier and more fulfilling lives. If you want to learn how you can remain competitive as a lawyer without sacrificing your own well-being, Enlightened Self-Interest is one to read.
Where Can I Buy the Book?
You can find Enlightened Self-Interest on most online booksellers, including Amazon (paid link). However, for those of you who wish to support smaller booksellers, Bussen was gracious enough to provide a 30% code (“TGUF”) to purchase the book from Georgetown University Press.
The link to the book mentioned in this review is an affiliate link. The review is unsponsored and sincere but the link to Amazon is paid.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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It’s been a while since I have been on a podcast, but I have come to recognize that sometimes there are seasons in life. For much of the year, I have been working on other big projects, including editing a legal treatise and developing new courses for mindfulness and attorney well-being. In the last few weeks, though, the season started to shift. I’m finishing up the treatise and the courses are now out in the world.
As if on cue, I got lined up to do several podcasts and I may be launching one myself soon for FDCC, a legal association for which I now serve as the chair of the wellness committee. Today, I am pleased to share two that I recently did with the Tattooed Buddha podcast.
Podcast 1: My interview
In the first podcast episode, I am the guest. As I have shared, I recently started contributing posts to the Tattooed Buddha blog under the fun name , The Boddhisattva of Power Suits. The blog’s founder, Dana Gornall, invited me on the podcast to talk about all of my favorite things: meditation and my path to it, writing, and how we both manage life.
Dana made the interview easy and enjoyable. It’s always fun to chat process with other writers and I love talking about meditation with people who really understand it. Dana does both.
I was also pleasantly surprised to find that Dana and I had another thing in common too: special education. Dana is an ASL interpreter and sometimes works in education meetings and settings. As a school lawyer, part of my practice relates to special education.
When I started writing on the Tattooed Buddha, I joked about whether I fit there since I not a tattooed lawyer. The conversation with Dana is proof that sometimes, when you look below the surface, you can find many ways in which you fit.
I had done a review of the book Confidence by Ethan Nichtern for The Tattooed Buddha. In the course of planning that review, I reached out to Ethan to request permission to use the book cover in the post. He replied and granted consent.
Then Dana had the brilliant idea to invite him on the podcast. Dana couldn’t make the time when Ethan was available so Kellie Schorr, another Tattooed Buddha writer, author, and someone well-trained in Tibetan Buddhism, served as the host.
As I wrote in the review, I found Nichtern’s take on confidence to be refreshing and useful. It was gratifying to see that he avoided the hackneyed tropes that characterize confidence as rising above the muck and anxiety of life. Instead, his book offers strategies for living fully engaged in life but learning to handle it better.
All of these things came through well in the interview and the questions from two different perspectives offered a thorough discussion. I encourage you to listen and then check out Ethan’s book.
Where Can You Listen to the Podcasts?
You can find all the podcasts in the links to the Tattooed Buddha page above. You can also find them on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Stay tuned for more episodes because I am recording 3 more in the next few weeks and hope to get the one with FDCC that is specifically for lawyers launched soon.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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As I have written before, I am a fan of LinkedIn. It is where I honed my skills as a writer (outside of legal writing) and it is where I have encountered so many wonderful people. Ted Meissner is one of those people. When he showed up in my feed, I followed right away. Ted offers a unique perspective on mindfulness.
Ted shares studies on mindfulness and educates about how to talk about mindfulness practice. As a teacher (and lawyer too), I appreciated this right away. Who doesn’t need reminders now and then about taking care with our speech?
After I engaged with Ted a few times about his great posts, he asked me to be a guest on his podcast, Mindfulness Voyage. In the brief interview, I shared with Ted some information about the Mindfulness in Law Society and my work with it. This includes bi-weekly virtual sits, special events, and retreats both in-person and virtual.
I also share the ways that mindfulness practice supports my law practice. In particular, I explained how mindfulness practices fosters stability and kindness in my law practice. And I explained why I emphasize self-compassion when I teach and speak about mindfulness for lawyers.
You can check out the podcast episode on YouTube and other podcast streaming services and follow Ted on LinkedIn.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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Sometimes, though, when I talk about meditation its impact on my life I feel like the answer is incomplete. In truth, starting a meditation practice is one of the best things I have done for my life as an adult. It is hugely important to me because it helped me get out of thought tangles, care for my anxiety, and move forward in life.
As I have shared several times on the blog, though, meditation did not help me so much because it calmed me down. Instead, it helped me because it gave the skills to follow what made me excited. When I started practicing meditation, I was lost in thought, overly rational, and had no self-compassion. I was nearly exclusively focused on what I “should” do and so didn’t spend much of the time I had doing what I wanted.
This is how meditation led to an explosion of innovation and creativity for me. After I got my bearings, healed from depression, and learned to curb my anxiety, I saw that I was hungry to write and create and let myself do it. Importantly, I let myself invest time and money into writing even though my writing was not squarely related to my law practice.
In his podcast and book, Matt Mueller often talks about a very different type of innovation. Most commonly, he’s talking about business innovation, including new products, processes, or service models. Though my story is more personal, it has affected how I practice law too and how I network and market my law practice. The reality is that our personal stories often shape our business strategies.
If you want to learn how mindfulness can do more than help you manage stress, check out the episode on Matt’s website or your podcast streaming service. If innovation is an interest to you, Matt’s podcast and book are excellent places to start.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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Founder’s Note: I had the great pleasure to teach a session during the Mindfulness in Law Society annual online retreat in October. The speaker for this event was Chris Punongbayan, the Executive Director for Changelawyers in California. In his talk, Chris shared how mindfulness practices can help us build a better, more equitable world. I could not believe how much I needed to hear it. I wanted to share some of his insights with you so I asked him to participate in this interview.
1. Tell me about yourself and your work, both as a lawyer and yoga teacher.
I remember my law school admissions essay clear as day, although it was 23 years ago when I wrote it. I wanted to be a lawyer because I wanted to start a Filipino American Legal Defense Fund. I was living in New York City at the time and saw there was a great need for lawyers for community members on issues like immigration and employment, especially for domestic workers. But there were very few lawyers who looked like me and who came from my background who wanted to serve those who could not afford a lawyer.
So, I went to law school with a strong public interest focus. It was there at UCLA Law School that I also discovered Critical Race Theory. I’ve never looked back. In 2003, I received a scholarship from the California Bar Foundation. I am proud to say that now, 20 years later, I am leading that very same organization as its Executive Director. We are now called California ChangeLawyers. Our mission is to build a better justice system for all Californians.
I’ve always had an interest in yoga, but it was purely from a physical vantage point. I thought of it more as stretching than anything else. In 2016, I decided to take it to another level. I took a sabbatical from the civil rights nonprofit I was working for at the time, and decided to do an intensive immersion training program.
I crammed 200 hours into one month. This decision changed the course of my life. I learned so much more about what the true purpose of yoga is, how the physical is a doorway into a much deeper experience of self. I learned how to truly be a student. I love teaching yoga today, as well as mindfulness, because of the inherent benefits of practices that invite us to truly wake up and be fully present.
2. Politics and policy are challenging now on almost every level and may affect those doing any kind of social change work acutely. How have you been able to stay engaged as a citizen and lawyer?
What I try to do is be mindful in the everyday sense of being mindful, not just through seated meditation. I am aware of how I consume media and the torrent of bad news, and notice if I am starting to doom scroll. I feel like I have a strong North Star and so I try to keep looking up, rather than getting stuck in the energy of fear, worry, and doubt.
4. What role can mindfulness practices play in helping lawyers to create positive social change?
Mindfulness can help lawyers become more kind. Our profession can be brutal and, in fact, being ruthless is often preferred in comparison to being vulnerable. Can you imagine being vulnerable in a legal setting? As lawyers, we are taught to put on our armor and our masks. And yet, vulnerability is an undeniable human experience.
5. What resources, practices, or groups have been particularly helpful to you in your work or life? (this can be about mindfulness practices but it doesn’t have to be)
Right now, I am taking the online course, Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet. It is a global community practicing in the Plum Village tradition of Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh. We are coming together to address the issue that binds us all together, the fate of the planet. The teachings are beautiful and the sangha (community) is equally potent. The book that it is based on is also poignant.
I also recently joined the ARISE Sangha listserv. ARISE stands for Awakening through Race, Intersectionality, and Social Equity. They regularly examine issues of our day through the dharma (teachings) and offer very relevant practices and skillful insight that aren’t part of the mainstream discourse on race in the United States.
The last resource I would offer is Home is Here: Practicing Anti-Racism with the Engaged Eightfold Path by Lien Shutt. The book offers an important perspective on racism that exists in the mindfulness community against Asian Americans. It is also an excellent refresher on the Eightfold Path in the context of fighting against racism in its various forms, from the individual level to the institutional level.
Chris’s Bio: Christopher Punongbayan is the Executive Director of California ChangeLawyers, a community foundation that empowers the next generation of legal changemakers through grants and scholarships totaling $1.5M+ annually. A native of Massachusetts and the son of immigrants from the Philippines, Chris graduated cum laude from Brown University with a degree in Asian American Studies and UCLA School of Law where he completed the Critical Race Studies concentration and the Epstein Program in Public Interest Law and Policy. Chris is a 500 hour certified yoga teacher and completed the Mindfulness for Lawyers training with Warrior One in 2022. He lives in San Francisco with his husband, 2 adopted sons, and 3 adopted cats.
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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They asked me to explain some ways that mindfulness has made my law practice a little bit more calm and kind. I was happy to share some examples with them. I have many such stories that I have compiled over the years.
But I had to admit that the practice didn’t make me perfect and it didn’t make law practice suddenly become easy. That’s because mindfulness practices aren’t magic. Instead, they are deeply practical.
I mentioned a few meditations in the podcast to help lawyers who have to deliver bad news to clients or avoid email wars with opposing counsel. If you want to check those out here they are:
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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Founder’s Note: One of my favorite stories from the Buddha is when he tells his right hand man, Ananda, that “noble friends and noble conversations” are the “whole of holy life.” Sometimes you show up to a new place and these people are clearly labeled for you. Sue Noble is one of the first people I met on my first residential retreat. She seemed like a leader in the group but never acted authoritative. She was open and kind and always made me feel welcome and included. Sue has been meditating for many years and active with the Buddhist Dharma Center here in Cincinnati. I know other may feel strange visiting the Dharma or Zen Center in their community, so I asked Sue to do this interview to help others envision what they might expect.
1. Please tell me about yourself and your work with the Dharma Center.
I’m in a 12 step recovery program and the 11th step has to do with prayer and meditation. I was rather resistant to the idea of prayer to some deity and focused more on meditation. After a couple years of trying it on my own (with not much of what felt like success!) I spoke to a couple people I had heard talk about meditation. One person gave me a copy of Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn. The book was intimidating, but it came with a CD of guided meditations. My other friend directed me to the Buddhist Dharma Center’s Wednesday evening beginner’s session.
I attended those sessions for 10 years, eventually becoming one of the peer leaders, introducing others to the practice of meditation and the teachings of Buddhism. That led to me begin teaching some University of Cincinnati Communiversity courses, starting a Buddhism and 12 Steps group, and becoming a member of the Board. I’ve also started a book group and a couple contemplative reading groups at the Center.
2. What does a Dharma Center do? Why would a professional like a lawyer want to visit a Dharma Center? What could they expect to gain from the experience?
The Buddhist Dharma Center of Cincinnati provides an open and supportive environment for practicing meditation and studying the dharma. Our purpose is to cultivate a path which leads to awakening through:
Maintaining a weekly schedule of silent group meditation
Providing instruction in simple sitting and walking meditation common to all Buddhist traditions
Offering opportunities to deepen one’s practice through dharma study, periodic extended meditation, open discussions, and dharma talks
Supporting dharma practice at all levels
Sharing a compassionate approach to life with the larger community.
Openness and inclusivity are at the heart of dharma teachings and practice; the center is committed to kindness and respect for others, regardless of race, religion, cultural expressions, gender, gender identity, age or abilities. All are welcome!
We’re really a very casual, relaxed place. There’s no teacher, no affiliation with any other group–we truly are just a group of people who want to practice and study together.
3. How might the discussion or practice of meditation/mindfulness differ from what someone might encounter at a yoga studio or other source of secular mindfulness?
I practice in the Theravedan, or Insight Tradition, where the primary form of meditation is Vipassana which means “seeing clearly.” So for me the reason for meditating isn’t to relieve stress, calm my mind, or become less reactive (those are all great things!), but to clearly see how this mind works. The Buddha taught that suffering arises from craving and that craving arises in the mind. The way out of suffering is to clearly see the nature of the craving and how it leads to suffering. So meditation is part of the path to total liberation!
I use the example of experiencing opera. My first experience was listening to Sunday afternoon opera from the Metropolitan on a small radio. It was probably AM! But I was enchanted. Then some years later I heard and saw Beverly Sills on the Ed Sullivan Show and a new appreciation grew. Then I saw an entire production of an opera on TV and experienced the visual element of opera. And finally, I saw a live opera in a theater and was blown away by the sensory/emotional experience. Every single one of those experiences was valid and valuable. Any form of meditation is valid and valuable, but when held in the context of the Buddha’s teachings, meditation takes on a much more profound and life-altering meaning.
4. Is there any etiquette or are there rules for visiting the Dharma Center? How can someone be a good guest?
We ask that you follow the below guidelines to help ensure an environment and culture that honors the Dharma and this space of practice, teaching and inquiry.
Please arrive a few minutes before a session starts
Once inside, before meditation begins, please remove your shoes and place under the bench along the wall.
Maintain silence during meditation.
Dress modestly, in attire appropriate to the occasion.
Turn off your phone and other noise making devices.
You may leave a session during walking meditation, which is also the time to use the restroom.
Keep your valuables with you during meditation.
The center has cushions, chairs and benches for meditation. Please brush off and straighten your cushion after meditation concludes.
5. Do you have to be a Buddhist or a religious person to benefit from practices or teachings at the Dharma Center? Is any experience with meditation required?
In our Buddhism and 12 Step group we say “No meditation experience or particular faith or spiritual practice is required. Neither is membership in a twelve step program. We are simply people exploring the path out of the suffering brought about by craving and clinging in whatever form it arises.”
Our Wednesday night group is especially good for people new to meditation. There are shorter guided meditations, brief teaching and time for check-in and discussion.
6. Are there any resources you’d like to share for those new to meditation?
I’m a huge fan of the Insight Timer Meditation App. There are thousands of guided meditations, a timer so you can set the length of time you want to sit, and even a way of tracking your meditation. I’ve also found tricycle.org to be very helpful. It’s a print/online magazine with articles from all different Buddhist traditions. It’s a great way to explore different styles of meditation.
7. What is the most important thing you’d like those new to meditation, mindfulness, or Buddhism to understand?
Want to learn more about mindfulness and compassion? Check out my new book, How to Be a Badass Lawyer, for a simple guide to creating a meditation practice of your own in 30 days. And to share mindfulness with your little one, check out my new children’s book, Mommy Needs a Minute.
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