• How do we support the mental health of lawyers while we deny there is a problem (love this one)
• Setting boundaries - including when people above you dont respect them/ignore them. How to do this the right way [this came up a lot]
• Why are firms so afraid of talking about this? Like what is their real fear in your mind
• Taking vacations without being scrutinized for it
• How do you drive more real/deeper discussions about mental health in your organization, so that people can be more authentic and champion change?
• Supporting those with mental illness in a firm environment
• We talk about it so vaguely (ie just enough to acknowledge it’s a problem); want tips on how to get managing partners/leaders to address lawyer burnout
• Balancing work and life
• Understanding when my challenges are because of unrealistic expectations vs reasonable growing pains.
• Normalizing mental health issues in law firms and how to improve things
• Is it possible to run a law firm without exploiting associates?
• How to deal with mental health issues as they arise while also managing deadlines
• What does failure look like?
• How does shaming in law school by profs when you dont know answers contribute to ongoing issues in profession - rather than showing compassion?
• Do you have impostor syndrome? How do you manage it? [hearing that people at all stages still have it is key]
• The impact of law school on negative mental health and impostor syndrome
• Dealing with aggressive and unprofessional opposing counsel
• How can leaders foster psychological safety [hint - it starts with vulnerability - I wonder if that can be part of the pledge too - have to get the vulnerability train going, if I’ve learned anything from Brene]
• How do we go from mental health conversations to actual deliverables/impact?
• Breaking through stigma to have HONEST conversations and come up with actual solutions