The Courage to Be Great

Did you know that April 8^th was International Be Kind to Lawyers Day? Neither did I. At first I thought, “that’s cool”, but upon further reflection it seemed a bit unfortunate that lawyers have become reviled by so many that they would even need a day such as this.

It’s no secret that here at Generation Generosity, we strongly believe in the nobility of the practice of law as all of our history’s most important ideas, movements and events were all possible because of a lawyer. Somewhere along the line however, perception got off track; so how do we reclaim that nobility?

A recent post by Sasha Dicher provides a great and accurate look about what it takes to be great. He recalls walking past a young blind woman, with her guide dog, walking down a crowded New York street in rush hour. They walked as one projecting comfortable confidence in the crowded caucus and, she was smiling.

Can you imagine the obstacles this woman faces daily? The faith she has to have in a creature that can’t even speak to her and in the strangers that surround her daily? How easy would it be for her to say, “I just can’t today; it’s too hard”. But on this day, this woman didn’t give in, and she did it with a smile.

Sasha reminds us that, “The thing about accomplishing great things is that it requires consistently making the decision to be brave, to show up, to overcome your own doubts and fears and the voices in your head.”

“What is hard, though, is getting out of bed every morning to prepare for the fight.” The fight is what wears you down and distinguishes the fire that once burned in you.

If you aren’t ready yet to create Great Law, or if you have lost your belief or passion for law, we challenge you to look for, seek out and celebrate other’s acts of courage, fortitude, innovation and ability to persevere on that day.

Don’t you find greater joy in helping to create greatness than in working to destroy it? Perhaps one day the nobility of law will be honored by all. Until then, take courage and continue to show up every day and if you just can’t that day, celebrate someone who can.