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It’s OK to be human—even if you’re a lawyer.


And if you’re a human lawyer who’s not exactly happy, check out The Lawyer’s Guide to Being Hu­man: How to Bring Who You Are to What You Do, a just-published book by Michigan solo Timothy D. Batdorf.

When Batdorf became dissatisfied with big-firm life, he opened his own estate planning shop in Troy, Mich. Yet the more things changed, the more they seemed to stay the same. “I still felt like a paper pusher,” Batdorf says.

So he turned inward. He adopted a holistic approach to his practice and started training to become a professional coach. In 2005, he officially added to his law practice an additional client roster: young lawyers searching for fulfillment in their legal lives.

“I think lawyers can be happy in any type of situation. It’s just about be­ing introspective enough to find out what brings meaning to your practice,” says Batdorf.

With chapter titles such as “Live in the Possibilities” and “Trust Your Intu­ition,” Batdorf shares personal anecdotes and motivational messages he hopes will help lawyers along their individual paths to enlightenment.

“I think in our generation there’s a sense that work is im­portant, but it’s not an either/or thing—it doesn’t have to be hor­rible or nothing,” he says.

“There may be a possibility that we can do what we do and find satisfaction, and maybe even meaning.”

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