I started running this week.
I was reaching a perilously unsafe place in my personal and professional life- panic attacks, eating unhealthy, no outlet for stress, and then I started making mistakes due to all these things: I almost missed a big deadline, I couldn’t remember important information, and that’s when I knew I needed to make a change.
So I started running. I’m slow, I’m walking a lot, too, but I am running. And after only one week, I feel so much better. I feel cleansed, somehow. It’s made me a believer in running. And I have a goal: a 5k in December!
And it’s dawned on me that I need to run in order to run my law practice, or else not only will my law practice run me, it will literally collapse.
My law practice is my baby- I opened it up right out of law school and have poured my life into it for the past 5 years, but, if I don’t take care of myself, my law practice will suffer. I have always been one of those people that made excuses about not having time to run–I realize now that is an awful excuse, and it’s not even true! And by running, my work is more productive, and GASP!, I may be able to work less. These have been big revelations and I am excited to see where my running takes me, I am excited to continue to see the motivation it gives me to work smarter, and I am excited to continue to see it impact my personal life as I experience substantially less anxiety and stress.
Running has also appealed to me because it is “me” time—society has taught us it’s selfish to have “me” time. But in my work, I deal with people- lots of people. Clients, other lawyers, judges, court personnel, other professionals. It’s exhausting. And then I have a family and home to care for. And between personal and professional, there was no time for ME. I am enjoying me time. I deserve me time.
Here’s to being a running lawyer!
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