#39 Franca Baroni- Love the Law

Explicit content warning

01/19/21 • 43 min

Our guest for today’s interview, Franca Baroni, shares how we can break out of that mold and bring our hearts into the work that we do. She talks about what HeartMath is and how coherence plays into an overall healthy well-being, which ultimately leads to a better impact in the industry. Yes, this might sound a little “spiritual”, but it’s all backed by over 300 scientific studies!In the podcast, Franca also tells us how her career has shifted from being a full-time lawyer to being an actress, how HeartMath principles helped with her well-being, and her take on governance. It’s Not About Winning or LosingIt’s easy to accept the mindset that finding success in the law is all about winning or losing. After all, this industry stands on an adversarial system, where everyone’s so focused on the results. Many think that lawyers have to be tough all the time, like robots that just need to get the work done. But we’re humans, not machines. It’s not natural for us to be consistently insensitive to the world around us. As much as we lawyers may want to avoid the word “feelings”, our emotions are still a part of how we function and make decisions. Why else would there be so much conversation surrounding mental health and burnout among our peers? It’s because we’re not bringing our hearts to what we do and our continued acceptance of these practices hinder us from what we truly want. Franca emphasizes that no one has to go through this conundrum and shows us a path to a win-win situation where you don’t have to change what you for your clients, but only how you do it. As you change your ways, the outcomes become more fulfilling, creating satisfaction for yourself and those around you.The Relationship Between Our Thoughts and Emotions with PhysiologyThe world’s accustomed way of thinking is undeniably outdated. These thought patterns have led us into a state of incoherence, which Franca describes as driving a car with one foot stepping on the gas pedal and the other on the breaks. This phenomenon results in an unfortunate wear and tear situation, which causes unnecessary stress. And because our nervous systems regulate 90% of our body functions, our physiology is significantly affected when we work with a harmful mindset. The manifestations of this would be all too relatable to us, like migraine, headaches, adrenal exhaustion, and many more! Franca also paints this idea of wear and tear through the analogy of drained batteries. We may feel that our energy runs out quickly throughout the day. Some of us could even claim being consistently exhausted from the time they wake up to the moment they go to bed! If that’s you, then you now know what’s going on. Being in a coherent state makes the driving experience a lot smoother. If only one foot steps on the gas and also steps on the brakes whenever needed, there’s noticeably less stress (mentally and physically), and you also get to your destination much faster. Not only will you be able to control how you drive yourself, but Franca says that you could also develop the ability to charge your batteries and even increase their capacity!HeartMath and CoherenceIf you think that all of this sounds a little too far-fetched, don’t worry, there’s a science to the process called HeartMath. Research in this field has shown that the heart has its own energy center, which can be observed and measured. If you can link the heart and the brain, you get into the state of coherence, where stress is neutralized! In this state, you can radiate the same energy through the measurable electromagnetic field of the heart. Franca shares that before meetings, court proceedings, or any other problematic negotiations, she would always utilize various HeartMath techniques to prepare herself for potential frustrations. She’s even extended her energy through an entire courtroom and managed to positively shift the behavior of immigrant officers to make interviews less challenging! Don’t get us wrong here. Just because you’re putting HeartMath principles into practice doesn’t mean you’ll win all arguments in court. We’re only human, and we can still get stressed out no matter what “anti-stress measures” we employ. But what’s happening is that when we utilize our hearts, we can access solutions that are not available when we’re trapped in our own heads. It becomes a new resource for answers to questions that you once couldn’t figure out. To put it into simpler terms, a “connection” with a stranger makes for better conversations since both parties are “in the same wavelength”.
So if there’s such a dire need for a change, what exactly do we need to do? How do you put HeartMath into practice? What are the steps to start moving out of an incoherent state? Make sure to listen to the episode to learn more about the benefits of HeartMath ...

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#38 Ritu Goswamy- Love the Law

Join Adam and Casey with their guest, Ritu Goswamy, as they talk about meditation, mindfulness, and productivity. Ritu shares her expertise in these topics to help you find clarity in your life’s mission. The three get into having a passion for work while having balance in life, properly embracing your identity as a lawyer, and why meditation might not have worked for you before. We know there’s a lot of people rolling their eyes when they hear about meditation and mindfulness. As lawyers, we’re expected to be skeptical, so that's only natural!. But that doubt also makes us look at those who claim that meditation turned their lives around for the better. Tune in to the podcast, and see that it’s not as “woo woo” as you might have thought! What You’ll LearnExtinguishing an Exhausting Fiery ConstitutionAccording to Ritu, lawyers tend to be very driven and passionate like a burning fire. We’re almost always trying to produce results left and right. Just because we can continue to push, we’ll go all out with everything we have. It’s not a bad thing to be an achiever, since we’ve got to where we are now because of all the hard work we’ve done. However, going literally “above and beyond” is not always the best thing for ourselves. Instead of going at 150% every time, dial back to 75% and find that balance you've always been looking for. Once you start this practice of toning things down, you might think that you’re not doing enough for the day. However, that’s EXACTLY the issue that we’re trying to deal with here. You’re not supposed to feel exhausted every single day. But how do you pull back? Well, one of the reasons you’re doing this is so that you could define the things that you want to do. So, if you look at your workload, figure out which ones you love doing and stick with those. Adam mentions you could keep your A and B clients while “firing” the rest! Another solution you could utilize is delegation. Sometimes we may be hesitant to let others do our job because of our overachieving nature, but what we don’t realize is that there are other people much better (and more efficient) than us on some of the tasks we do each day.Once you’re able to create a good system for yourself, you’ll find more time to love yourself, clarity with what you want to do, and opportunities to act on your newly-discovered (or reawakened) passions. Not only that, but you might also find yourself earning much more than you are now!Setting Expectations with Meditation and MindfulnessNow that we’ve established the value of slowing things down, it’s time to talk about taking care of the mind. Because we’ve overworked our minds to point of exhaustion almost every day in the span of our career, it’s essential to let it rest now. This is where meditation or mindfulness comes into the scene. Without getting too technical about it, mindfulness is simply giving yourself time to be in the moment. There are a plethora of ways to go about it, but one example mentioned in the show is staying still for at least five minutes and getting your mind out of the hamster wheel of “more”, “fast”, and “next”. This state of mind allows you to be clear, giving yourself some room to breathe. If you have special space for yourself, you can proceed with whatever you have next with more intention.While all of this sounds good, many people still give up. Why? It’s because mindfulness is a lifestyle that one has to develop. A few sessions of meditation can’t just immediately bring alignment into our lives. Success with this practice is a matter of starting somewhere and putting in the effort. Some people can do it by themselves, but others may do better a little guidance. Listen to the full episode, learn more, and get the opportunity to avail of Ritu’s book for free!About Ritu Goswamy:Ritu Goswamy, Esq., is a lawyer and productivity strategist for lawyers. She is the best-selling author of The New Billable Hour: Bill More Hours, Be More Productive, and Still Have Work Life Balance and The Holistic Lawyer: Use Your Whole Brain to Work Smarter Not Harder. Ritu is the creator of the New Billable Hour ® system, which helps lawyers increase their productivity by billing themselves first. She teaches this system directly to lawyers in a way that is engaging, fun, and practical. Ritu hosts "The New Billable Hour Podcast" available where you like to listen and on YouTube. She consults with lawyers individually and in groups and is an active speaker and trainer in the areas of lawyer productivity, competence, and mindfulness. For a free copy of her first book and other resources, visit: www.ritugoswamy.com.Show NotesOutline of the Episode:

[01:19] The problem with the overworking and overachieving culture among most lawyers. Self-care is still possible even with the limited time we have!
[05:03] The legal pro...