Wellbeing & Resilience: Modern skills: making time for refl ection By Georgina Portus

Modern skills: making time for reflection

GEORGINA PORTUS, NORTHERN COMMUNITY LEGAL SERVICE

Our memories of law school – recent for some and more faded for others – all likely share some key commonalities. Endless case reading, anxious mooting, long lectures periodically interspersed with demanding exams. Typically, there is a noted absence of emotion in favour of sharp critical thinking and “emotionless objectivity”. However, this is changing.

In a reflection of teaching shifts that are present worldwide, Matthew Atkinson at the University of South Australia has introduced reflective writing, emotional intelligence teachings and practical interpersonal soft skills into his student’s ultimate year.

These programs equip students with skills to thrive not only with challenges of legal work but also within their relationships with colleagues and clients. Atkinson’s program is an obvious curriculum addition in a changing legal education landscape where practical learning is being championed.

The course works on two complimentary components. Students develop experience and ‘soft skill’ through professional placement, legal clinic work and reviewing actual case files. This is paired with reflective practices which allow students to ‘build their reflective muscle’.

Whilst reflecting and ruminating on your day is arguably an inherent human quality, courses such as Atkinson’s use teachings and guided reflection to help students develop new perceptions.

By creating a generation of introspective lawyers with honed skills of self-reflection, you are creating a class of professionals with heightened analytical skills. These skills help with appreciating perspective, responding to issues with critical thought and understanding behavioural motivations.

In a profession that can be characterised by ethical dilemmas, competing duties and complex relationships (with both colleagues and clients) within an adversarial paradigm, the ability to be able to step back and reflect should be viewed as invaluable.

Law school typically teaches you to look to legislation or common law to find your answers. However, in practice and a professional setting, you often come across problems that cannot be solved by a book.

In any given legal workplace there are already a number of settings where these reflective behaviours can be implemented, such as case reviews, general meetings or performance reviews. By using these opportunities to engage in reflective practice, promote emotional intelligence and motivate colleagues to articulate their values, we can help build each other’s skills and encourage resilience.

Atkinson’s course structures its reflection in two distinct ways. He notes the benefits in both personal reflection, in the form of private blogging, and open discussions. Both hold distinct value and both can be used in a professional setting.

There are notable benefits to the anonymity of private blogging, with students being more willing to share vulnerability and truthfulness. This approach fosters an environment where mental health can be discussed with candour.

Within our own professional settings, we can reach out to our colleagues to discuss the impact of work stress, their own capacity for balancing work and life and how they are meeting challenges.

Conversely, there are also great benefits in fostering and encouraging open dialogue. Speaking to these issues more broadly works to demystify others and the perception of others’ perfection. By encouraging reflective group discussion concerning workplace challenges, we can help others to realise that our colleagues also meet challenges and are impacted by the stresses inherent in legal work.

The practical execution of these practices can be achieved in a range of ways, and are already being accomplished in many workplaces. With thoughts to the unique challenges of 2020 and COVID-19, the use of technology to achieve this is more relevant than ever. Technology can be used as another tool to help support those within our workplaces or wider fraternity and to encourage reflection and input.

Atkinson found that young law students tend to be more comfortable with sharing on tech platforms. That in the days of social media “everything is up for grabs”, we have fast become a society with the capacity to share somewhat relentlessly. There is potential for this to be used in workplace communications.

Atkinson also notes that there are issues and anxieties that are created by our increased dependency on technology, which would benefit from open dialogue and shared expertise. We need to be mindful as to how technology, and tech communication, is influencing our ability to connect with colleagues and build relationships of trust with clients.

We can have discussions within workplaces that help to solve these issues and address any disconnect rather than allowing professionals to blame their own ability. It is important to view the systems that we are currently operating in and openly discuss the challenges they create.

To encourage these discussions, in whichever format or context suits, is to encourage emotional intelligence and reflection of values. Inspiring reflection encourages wellbeing and resilience and heightens a professional’s capacity to deal with stresses. B