November 2, 2022
Tis' the season for cold, flu, and the never-ending covid... Despite all kinds of vaccinations effort and safety precautions, our household has fallen ill from time to time in the last month or so because of the lingering germs. Let's face it, witnessing your toddler having a fever over 40 degrees C and coughing his/her lungs out in the middle of the night for days is no fun for anyone. And, to top it off, you still have to be 100% (if not 200%) committed to your work because you are a legal professional and it holds you to certain standards and your piling deadlines are simply merciless.
However, at this exact moment, one of the Chinese proverbs flashed across my mind: "小病是福" or "a small ailment is a blessing". I begin to take comfort that what we are experiencing is only acute and transient which is a blessing in itself, and that a little flu/cold will only make us stronger. And then I take another leap in thoughts and feel so grateful that I have my kind, incredible, lovely, and smart (yet rambunctious) kids to keep me busy (in a good way) and let me experience the wonders of being a mom.
Having said that, the emotional and physical roller coaster is real. I look back and revisit all the wise words, encouragements and inspirations given by our esteemed Fireside Chat guests and instantly feel a boost of energy (no bias)!! And I am sooooo grateful to have our guests' tremendous support to share, inspire, and encourage our readers as I completely understand they are participating out of ultimate altruism and kindness despite their super busy schedules.
If you are in the same boat as me, I hope you will take care of yourself and also receive an instant boost of encouragement and inspiration from our Fireside Chat guests. I encourage you to check out each Fireside Chat if you haven't already, but do check out below if you only have one minute to spare:
Erin Cowling:
Confidence
" ...learned to ignore the naysayers, acknowledge what was out of my control, and did my own thing."
Selena Kim:
Grow
"Don’t worry about your kids not benefiting from you being home all the time. They will be fine. You need to find the balance that makes you happy."
Amy Grubb:
Breathe
"Put self-care in your calendar and consider that your sacred time. Don’t let anyone interrupt that time."
Sarah Eisen:
Persevere
"Make your own choices and ignore the negativity around you. Also, look for mentors who can support you."
Jung-Kay Chiu:
Perspective
"It is easy to get lost in the stresses of everyday and our responsibilities, so regularly take a step back and reflect on what is truly important and what we are thankful for."
Neha Chugh:
Resilience
"When you fill your life with things you like to do, work you like to do, family commitments you like to do, even if you are overflowing, you will be overflowing with joy as well."
May Cheng:
Zen
"...it’s important to be constantly evaluating whether you are good at your job, whether you enjoy the work, and whether you are getting positive feedback... you need to follow your heart a little and also be attuned to listening to your own intuition."
Olga Mack:
Authenticity
"Remember that we are all only human. When your personal life picks up speed, you'll need to make adjustments in your professional life, too. It is up to you to decide to what extent."
Victoria Loh:
Consistency
"These Dual 10 years are the learning years where mistakes don’t have grave consequences because these are not the years where 'you should have known better. Just enjoy it for all of the stress and bumps because those scars are what you build your foundation on."
The Wisdom Cloud
Equilawbrium (www.equilawbrium.ca) is an online platform for legal professionals to find their equilibrium as a working parent. It is specifically designed for legal professionals who are in their first 10 years of practice and have kids who are ≤10 years of age, which I dubbed as the “Dual 10 Challenges”.
Please subscribe to the Fireside Chat newsletter (https://lnkd.in/dUAE3tDs) and you will never miss a great chat!
P.S. If you (or someone you know) are a legal professional AND a parent, and are willing to share any parenting/career tips, tricks, or advice with the legal community of working parents at Equilawbrium, please DM me! Equilawbrium and our readers need you!
Disclaimer: Any views, information, and personal opinions expressed by the authors or guests are entirely their own and do not reflect or represent those of their employers or clients.
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