Posts

Lawyer’s Hopeful Essays an Antidote To Modern Cynicism

By Amber Nimocks

For anyone who has ever fought in vain to quiet all the little voices in their head so they can get something accomplished, Sean Doyle offers an alternative: Let them speak.

That’s what Doyle, an attorney and consulting psychologist, has done in his new book of personal essays, “Mud and Dreams,” a collection of small stories and memories that build upon one another to form a powerful call to embrace the world with positivity and love.

In addition to a law degree from Loyola University, Doyle holds a master’s degree in positive psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. He currently serves as general counsel to RTP-based MCNC, a position he balances alongside writing, teaching, working as a well-being consultant and serving on NC BarCARES Board of Directors and the NCBA’s Professional Wellness Committee. All of these pursuits inform “Mud and Dreams,” a tidy book that is part memoir, part personal growth manual and impossible to read in public because it will make you cry like a small child.

Read more

Vince Lombardi, ‘Groundhog Day’ and the Pursuit of Perfection

By Russell Rawlings

What, pray tell, does legendary football coach Vince Lombardi have in common with the comedic actor Bill Murray?

The pursuit of perfection.

“Perfection,” Lombardi famously stated, “is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”

As for Murray, it wasn’t what he said about perfection, it was what his character did about it in the movie “Groundhog Day.”

The movie is set in Punxsutawney, Pa., the epicenter of this nation’s annual observance of Groundhog Day — where this morning Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, forecasting six more weeks of winter. In the fictional “Groundhog Day,” the main character, played by Murray, starts out as a thoroughly disgusting weatherman who ultimately wins the hand of his beautiful colleague, played by Andie McDowell.

Read more

Lessons Learned From the Former ‘Fat Boy’: Tackling Childhood and Adolescent Obesity

By Russell Rawlings

Rumor has it the incidence of childhood and adolescent obesity has reached epidemic proportions in this country. That would stand to reason, considering the fact that obesity has also become rampant within the adult population.

In other words, the kids ain’t driving themselves to the grocery store.

I am neither a physician nor a psychologist, so nothing I would ever say about weight and wellness should ever be mistaken for professional advice, especially when it comes to childhood and adolescent obesity.

But I have lived through both, and although it has been nearly 40 years since I experienced my transformative weight loss, I will never forget what it was like to be young and overweight. I will never forget what it was like to be the “fat boy.”

Read more

Wellness: When Feeling Good Feels Even Better Than Losing Weight

By Russell Rawlings

Wellness was not a familiar term when I did something about mine in 1978. That was the year I lost 140 pounds and changed my life forever.

Whether that qualifies me to write on the subject of wellness remains to be seen. There’s certainly more to wellness than losing weight. On the other hand, wellness would be difficult to achieve without some semblance of weight control.

If there is any advantage to having been the fat kid in school all the way into my senior year of college, it would be my experience with weight. From gaining it to losing it, from living with it to keeping it off, I know weight, and it knows me.

Read more

Young Lawyers Are Doing Good, But Not Always Doing Well

By Matt Cordell

The Young Lawyers Division recently held its 62nd Annual Meeting in connection with the NCBA Annual Meeting in Charlotte. As the ceremonial gavel was passed across the room from our former YLD chairs, including past NCBA presidents, our current president, and our president-elect, I thought about how the YLD has truly been a training ground for leaders of our profession and our state.

I then looked around the room at the remarkable young lawyers present. What an honor it is to serve alongside such an incredible group of people. The young lawyers who make up the YLD’s leadership team truly represent the best of our profession. They are smart, hardworking, selfless people who give their precious time and abundant talents, and together they are leading our more than 6,400 YLD members to achieve some remarkable things.

Read more

A Gift for Those Who Walk the Extra Mile: A FitBit Review

By Russell Rawlings
“He likes this more than any present I have ever given him.”
So says my wife of 28 years in regard to the Fitbit activity tracker that my staff gave me for Christmas last year. I didn’t know what to make of the Fitbit One when I opened the package because the only Fitbits I had ever seen were of the wristband variety. Fitbit One proved the perfect choice because I can clip it to my pants pocket and track my steps throughout the day.

Read more