THREAD:

Thanks to @LizzCGibson for flagging this…ummm…let’s say… “troubling” headline from @lawdotcom about BigLaw maxxing out on caring about #DEI and #mentalhealth and well being.

Nope.

/1

https://twitter.com/lizcgil/status/1553125063934738433

From the synopsis of the article:

“Over the past two and a half years, law firms became more empathetic to the plights of their employees. That meant being attuned to the needs of parents who had child care issues and being open to flexible working schedules,

/2

I founded Lawyering While Human in January of 2022. I’d always wanted to be the Chief Enthusiasm Officer of something –but for some reason CEOs never seemed to want to let me take that title– so when I started @law_while_human, I appointed myself Chief Enthusiasm Officer too.
/1 The story of Lawyering While Human began, in a way, in 2016. A friend of mine, let’s call him Kevin (because his name is Kevin Cranman), was involved with an IP law conference (the In-House Innovates: East Conference) that had lost their keynote speaker at the last minute.
/2

THREAD 🧵

Mini-Rant About The Phrase "Work-Life Balance," Which I Didn't Know I Felt So Strongly About Until Just Now. The phrase "work-life balance" is a hallmark of the problem we have with authenticity — how can we be authentic leaders if the very language we use to talk about our lives is falsely compartmentalized?  

/2

THREAD:

The parallels between dominance-based traditional masculinity (AKA “toxic” or Patriarchal masculinity or “the Man Box’) & traditional law firm culture, the internalized lawyer identity, & law firm lawyer’s resulting poor mental health & well-being.

A discussion.

/1 I have been a law firm lawyer for over two decades, and have worked in Big Law, boutique specialty firms, and medium sized law firms.

/2