Houchin Consulting PLLC
Here’s the video from my Ignite Fort Collins #7 talk. It comes down to this: Wisdom is only found when we share a combined experience with a mutually understood language. Those languages can be in any form, written, spoken, symbolic, etc. Engage the experience. Learn the language. Share the Wisdom.
Take a look a the other great Ignite Fort Collins talks while you’re on the site.
I have a habit of living in the future. I make big plans. I break those big plans into big goals with realistic deadlines, then into smaller goals with even more realistic deadlines.
Most of the time I reach my goals.
But, I’ve rarely felt fulfilled by those achievements.
Being a rational, over-achieving, lawyer – the thing to do was obvious.
Dream up bigger goals with UNrealistic deadlines and WORK HARDER.
Obvious. Rational. Logical.
Duh. I’m right, right?
Well, maybe not so much. Because when I create unrealistic goals and deadlines, and work even harder to find that fulfillment in achievement, I fall short. So, no fulfillment in achieving the realistic goals and no fulfillment in falling short of the unrealistic goals. This cycle leads to some outward success, but leaves a void inside.
Maybe you’ve been there. Maybe you’ve felt that void.
Now, I’m REALLY good a this. I’ve been practicing for about 25 years. It’s what got me through college. It’s what motivated me to work hard and get promotions & bonuses. It’s what drove me to law school and whipped me into passing a couple bar exams. This process helped me start my own firm, borrow too much money to go after a few too many unrealistic goals, fall short and go through bankruptcy. The constant feeling that setting better goals and working harder to achieve them caused a lot of damage in my life and it also created some great stuff. I’ve done some good things and I’ve helped a lot of people. So, I’m unwilling to stop creating goals
But something has to change.
I think there will be three primary changes:
1. I will strive to set fewer rather than more goals. After 25 years, I’m realizing that putting less pressure on myself just MIGHT leave room for more happiness.
2. The goals I DO set will always include an open top – in the form of either “at least” or “or better.” For example: “Average monthly revenue will increase by AT LEAST 15% for 2011.” or “Average monthly revenue will increase by 15% in 2011, OR BETTER.” This will allow me to set realistic goals, but not get trapped into limiting thoughts.
3. I’ll strive to live by a set of core principles (or maybe my “Guiding Values” – Accept, Show Up, Pay Attention, Irons in the Fire, Stewardship) instead of rules and goals in an effort pay more attention to the EXPERIENCE and FEELINGS of the present moment instead of always sitting in the future goal.
However, I’m not comfortable feeling “rudderless” and just drifting along (although drifting downstream takes way less energy than trying to paddle against the flow). At least I’m not comfortable with that YET, although maybe it IS the secret to enlightenment and daily happiness & fulfillment – complete surrender and faith in God….
So, all of my principles must be themed around what I understand to be my purpose in life – the reason God put me on the planet.
My understanding of my purpose goes something along the lines of helping people reach their potential by fueling their inner spark of divinity through creativity – more specifically, creative business. I’m here to help people align who the are inside with what they do in the world. First people need to recognize their inner spark of divinity, then it’s time to share that spark with the rest of us. The sharing is the fuel. The sharing, in our culture, CAN take the form of a business venture. When people create businesses that are motivated by the inspiration to share who they are with the rest of us, it becomes easy to do the things entrepreneurs need to do.
Are these the answers for everyone? Probably not, they might not even be the answers for me. What I DO know is that what I’ve been practicing to become very good over the last 25 years hasn’t been the answer either and I’m getting tired of that same old story of not being fulfilled by my successes or failures, so I’m going to turn some pages.
How about you?
Leave a comment. I’d love to get more input on this line of thinking.
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Need a Few Last-Minute Ethics Credits?
I’ll be doing two full 4-hour versions of my Fuel The Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law & Life CLE Ethics Programs in the next few weeks.
“A Massage for Your Career.”
– ABA Annual Meeting Program Participant.
“The Best CLE Program I’ve Attended in 27 Years.”
– Program Attendee, Reno NV
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If you’re in Northern Colorado, attend:
Friday, December 17th, 2010
8:30am-1:00pm
General Credits: 4.0
Ethics Credits: 3.5
Jury Assembly Room, Larimer County Court House
$60 in Advance. $75 at the Door. All proceeds go to the Larimer County Bar Association Young Lawyers Division.
(Compare to $199 CoBar Home Study CLE Program)
REGISTRATION:
Young Lawyers Division, Larimer County Bar Association
c/o Josh Dart, Esq.
19 Old Town Square, Ste. 238
Fort Collins, CO 80524
For more info:
email: josh@dartlegal.com
phone: (970) 407-0090
NOTE: The Jury Assembly Room only has space for 50 people, so you’ll want to reserve your seat early. Tickets will go fast.
If you can’t attend in person, you can join online via a Webinar hosted by my friend Kendra Brodin and her Women Lawyers Online group.
Dates: December 8th & 9th @ 3:00-4:30PM EASTERN
Location: Online
Fee: TBD
Credits: (3-4 General & Ethics – will have final details soon)
Registration Information: kendra@kendrabrodin.com
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Sometimes we all need to look at things from a different perspective. This applies to both our personal and professional lives and how they blend into a successful and fulfilling legal career. Join Kevin Houchin for this nationally recognized Ethics program devoted to finding a more balanced perspective on the rules of professional responsibility and how we can put the rules into an easy system for finding more success in our practice and our lives. This intensive interactive workshop could be the best 3 hours you’ll invest in yourself this year.
Topics
The most profound choice any of us make is either to accept things the way they exist, or to accept our personal responsibility to change them.
PR Rules:
1.2: Scope of Representation
1.7 & 1.8: Conflict of Interest
1.13 Organization as Client
1.18 Duties to Prospective Client
Many successful people have found the simplest rule to success in anything is to “show up.” However, deciding where to show up and how to manage yourself when you get there can be a challenge.
PR Rules:
1.4: Communication
7.1: Communication Concerning a Lawyer’s Services
7.2: Advertising
7.3: Direct Contact with Prospective Clients
7.4: Communication of Fields of Practice
One of the hardest things to do in legal practice and in life is to truly pay attention. We get pulled in so many directions, so how can be do a better job of staying in the moment and how does that help our clients and colleagues?
PR Rules:
2.1: Advisor
5.x: Series
It’s easy to get bored and it happens to us all, so how can we avoid boredom and stay sharp? The answer is to keep multiple irons in the fire at once, paying attention to each in turn.
PR Rules:
1.1: Competence
1.3: Diligence
True fulfillment in legal practice and in life comes when you take the time to give back. Stewardship is the combination of giving ones time, talent, or treasure. This portion of the program helps define how you’ll make your greatest contribution.
PR Rules:
6.1: Voluntary Pro Bono Publico Service
6.2: Accepting Appointments
Faculty
Kevin E. Houchin is a different kind of lawyer. First, he has a fine art degree in graphic design and a dozen years of brand development and small business consulting before going back to law school. He uses both his marketing and legal skills every day in his efforts to help creative people reach their potential.
Kevin counsels creative people about how to maximize their creativity, build their businesses, and protect their intellectual property. Discussions tend to turn toward relationships and creative collaboration often, so sometimes Kevin plays the role of business and life coach in addition to attorney and marketing consultant. He truly enjoys the role of trusted advisor to his clients.
Kevin is the author of the book Fuel the Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law School and Beyond (March 2009). He is also the author of the forthcoming book The Secrets of Creative Business. He contributed a chapter on the legal issues of social media in the best-selling book Twitter Power, and is featured in KaChing, both by Joel Comm, published by Wiley Brothers Publishing.
Kevin is expert at helping people reach their creative potential, whether as an entrepreneur or as an attorney. He is the Founder of The Space Between Center for Creative Spirit in Business – an organization to helping entrepreneurs including attorneys align who they are with what they do. In addition to working with clients, Kevin writes a regular column for the leading business journal in Northern Colorado, blogs regularly at his several sites, and enjoys one of the top legal followings on Twitter.com. He speaks regularly for creative entrepreneurial business, continuing legal education, and law school audiences throughout the United States.
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Those Annual events intended to bring joy, hope and love. Sometimes they bring anxiety, stress, depression and exhaustion.
And all the family, business and social gatherings to celebrate the season.
Oh, and the shopping.
And the kids’ programs. Those incredibly long kids programs filled with other peoples’ kids who really aren’t THAT cute.
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It doesn’t matter if you’re a lawyer, doctor, or pro coffee barista–we can all use a few pointers on dealing with the Seasons’ Feelings.
Join professional coach and attorney Kendra Brodin as she joins Space Between Center founder and entrepreneurial lawyer Kevin Houchin on Tuesday, November 9th at 12:00 Noon EASTERN for a free “Seasons’ Feelings” conference call.
This call is really a free gift from us to you in this hectic season. We take work-life balance seriously for ourselves, our members and our community. We want you to join the discussion of how to deal with holiday stress.
Kendra and Kevin will help you understand and implement with:
They will be sure to save some time at the end of the call for YOUR questions.
Get the holiday season off to a positive start and give yourself the gift of tools for staying in the positive holiday season. Make the most of these opportunities to share who you really are with the people in your life.
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Some More Information on the Hosts
KENDRA BRODIN
Kendra Brodin, MSW, JD, is Founder and CEO of Kendra Brodin Companies, LLC and WomenLawyersOnline.com, the premier online resource for women lawyers. Kendra’s work focuses on consulting, training, and the creation of products and services with the ultimate goal of reducing gender bias in the legal profession by increasing the attraction, retention, and advancement of women lawyers. With a powerful background as a social worker, lawyer, and consultant, Kendra supports women attorneys and their law firms.
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KEVIN HOUCHIN
Kevin E. Houchin is the founder of The Space Between Center for Creative Spirit in Business. He advises creative people on how to maximize creativity, build businesses, and protect intellectual property. Kevin has a BFA in Graphic Design from Iowa State University, 20 years of conventional and online marketing experience, and a JD from The University of Iowa College of Law where his studies focused on small business and intellectual property law. Kevin writes about how to get the most out of law practice in his book Fuel the Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law & Life. He is also the author of the forthcoming The Secrets of Creative Business.
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Introducing the new Space Between Center “Inside-Out” Development Program. If you’re looking to get your act together and finish strong in 2010 with the momentum to have an outstanding 2011 – this is for YOU.
Visit the INVITATION PAGE for the program details.