Perseverance & Follow Through...

"Genius begins great works; labor alone finishes them." ~ Joseph Joubert

It Is All Relative.

Life is lumpy. And a lump in the oatmeal, a lump in the throat, and a lump in the breast are not the same lump. One should learn the difference. ~Robert Fulghum, Uh-Oh

Welcome Spring!

There are exactly as many special occasions in life as we choose to celebrate. ~ Robert Brault

Integrity

"If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters." ~ Alan Simpson

"Character is much easier kept than recovered." ~ Thomas Paine

"I never had a policy; I have just tried to do my very best each and every day." ~ Abraham Lincoln

Happy New Year!

“New Year’s eve is like every other night; there is no pause in the march of the universe, no breathless moment of silence among created things that the passage of another twelve months may be noted; and yet no man has quite the same thoughts this evening that come with the coming of darkness on other nights.”  ~ Hamilton Wright Mabie

The Best of the Season's Greetings!

“Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love!” – Hamilton Wright Mabie

To my clients and my colleagues, thank you for your trust and your business this year. May your holiday season and your New Year be wonderful and bright.

Happy Thanksgiving!

“If a fellow isn’t thankful for what he’s got, he isn’t likely to be thankful for what he’s going to get.” ~ Frank A. Clark

"Work Is Key To The Soul" - Chai Feldblum

I recently saw a television advertisement for this organization: Think Beyond the Label | Evolve Your Workforce. Their website, www.thinkbeyondthelabel.com, says that they are ”committed to making the business case for employing people with disabilities.”

“Our goal is simple: to raise awareness that hiring people with disabilities makes good business sense. Employees with disabilities have unique, competitively relevant knowledge and perspectives about work processes, bringing different perspectives to meeting work requirements and goals successfully. Hiring someone who ‘thinks outside the box’ might be thinking too small when there’s an opportunity to hire someone who lives outside the box.”

The EEOC recently celebrated 20 years since the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act. One quote from the article stuck with me: “Work is key to the soul.” Chai Feldblum, the EEOC Commissioner, is quoted as saying that work is not just about paying bills. “It’s about feeling important, about feeling useful.” http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/7-22-10.cfm

Anyone who ever met my cousin would understand this sentiment first hand. She was born with a host of physicial disabilities: legally blind, legally deaf, dwarfism, you name it. For more than 15 years, she has worked part-time at her local library alphabetizing and organizing. This job, which some would deem unimportant, means everything to her. The idea of missing a day of work is inconceivable to her. Work gives her purpose.

Many employers panic when it comes to handling issues related to employees with disabilities. The reality is that the multitude of laws surrounding disabilities, accommodations and leave are daunting. That said, I have witnessed many a success story involving an employer who took the time and the heart to work with a disabled employee. This website has pages devoted to such stories. They have a page devoted to debunking the myths associated with hiring individuals with disabilities. They also have a page devoted to the “Business Case” for hiring individuals with disabilities. Additionally, they have an informatin page related to the tax incentives for businesses who employee people with disabilities: http://www.thinkbeyondthelabel.com/Learning-Tools/TaxIncentivesTipSheet.aspx .

My cousin is an inspiration to me. She reminds me to value my good fortune and that my good fortunhe includes my abilitiy to work and be a productive member of society. I believe she has that impact on everyone she meets. Her very presence at the local library breaks down the barriers and the myths of working with individuals with disabilities.

"Try Not To Become A Man Of Success, Rather Try to Become A Man Of Value." - Albert Einstein

I spoke today with a law school classmate, a former partner in a long-standing national law firm. The firm, like so many of our institutions of late, went under. My friend found himself not only without a job but, as a partner, in debt to the bank for the firm’s outstanding loan. He told me that he had, in response, taken the job that was going to help him “make the most money.” He has a family and responsiblities and an urgent need to get back on track financially. He found work with little difficulty and is back on track for a “successful future.”

This got me thinking about the definition of success and thus the quote above from Albert Einstein. As a former “big firm” lawyer, opening my own firm was an adjustment in more ways than I ever imagined. Yes, I became responsible for the IT work in my office, the supplies, the marketing, and the book keeping. Yes, I alone am responsible for my earnings. But the hardest part of this transition has been redefining success to myself.

In that “big firm” world, I got sucked into the idea that success was partnership in a national, or international, firm. I felt the pull of competing for those positions and having the bragging rights that came with such a title. Yet, on my own, I have felt true pride and gratitude in knowing that my earnings are a direct result of my work, of my relationships with my clients and others in the community. I no longer have the fancy office with the fantastic view of Elliott Bay that I never had time to really appreciate. Instead, I have satisfaction in knowing that I provide a service, a value, to my clients. And somehow I now feel more successful than I ever did in my big firm years.