Practice Well(Being)

“Everything I’ve done to date in the fitness industry is a search for truth. How do we live and perform and manage all of the stressors of life in the best ways possible?” On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we kick off 2023 with Anders Varner, the host of the Top 10 Health and Fitness Podcast, Barbell Shrugged and a founder of R.A.P.I.D. Health Optimization, a high precision, custom-health solution designed to optimize health and achieve peak performance. We all aspire to perform to the best of our ability. Anders describes his pursuit to spearhead change in “performance healthcare.” In this conversation, we discuss what optimal health means and the importance of assessing the root causes and hidden stressors that can be hindering optimal performance. “We can never perform beyond the level that our physiology is constrained.” As we look to a fresh start on the year, Anders encourages us to understand the truth of our health today, make data-driven decisions that enable us to take action, build habits, and confidence toward a more optimal future.You can find Anders at www.andersvarner.com and www.rapidhealthreport.com. His podcast is title Barbell Shrugged and you can follow him on Instagram at @andersvarner and @barbell_shrugged.  You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com  

How can you run a great team? How can you really be a servant leader, an empathetic leader, a grateful leader, whatever you know you're working on, and not address mental health? It's by far the number one issue in the workplace, you know, And the pandemic just accelerated everything on anxiety and mental health. The statistics are stark. Pre-pandemic 18% of workers had an anxiety disorder sufficient to interfere with their ability to do their job. By 2022 that number jumped to 32%. Moreover 42% of workers in their 20s had an anxiety disorder.  And 50% Millennials and 75% of Generation Z workers have quit a job for mental health reasons.  In this conversation, we talked about ways to address anxiety – and mental health more broadly - in the work place including:The importance of being an empathetic leader. Four questions you can answer as a leader to reduce the anxiety of your team. The role of gratitude and recognition. Chester made a compelling business case for making a cultural investment in mental health as a tool for engagement and success. This is a must listen conversation for every leader.You can find Chester on LinkedIn or at https://thecultureworks.com/.  You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com   

"When we think about mental health, the first thing is we must understand that it's something we all have all of the time. So from the moment you are born to the moment you die, you have mental health. There isn't a moment on earth that any human being has ever been alive and they've not had mental health.” October is Mental Health Awareness Month, and on this very special episode of Practice Well(Being) we shared deep conversation with Nick Taylor, co-founder of Unmind and former lead clinical psychologist with the NHS. Nick and his team at Unmind are transforming mental health and well-being in the workplace with their platform that helps drive performance for organizations, while empowering people to lead healthier, happier lives.Nick is incredibly inspiring, with a background and story that draw you into the human experience – what is it that makes us who we are? This is a conversation that explores destigmatizing mental health, the variables that impact our mental health and well-being, the role our place of work plays in our mental health, and the critical role of data to measure and manage baselines and progress.You can find Nick on LinkedIn or at nick.taylor@unmind.com.  You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com   

“[A]t every single generation people are thinking way more intentionally ... about, hold on, how am I showing up? What am I doing? What am I giving? What am I getting? How do I make sure that I'm not ... overgiving under receiving ... how do I put that in balance? On this episode we take on one of the biggest buzzwords of 2022: Quiet Quitting.  Join us to learn:The wide variety of behaviors that are being characterized as quiet quitting and what’s really at the root of quiet quitting.Some tactics you can use to move out of burnout and quiet-quitting.What quiet quitting and connection have in common.  You’ll also hear why we ultimately believe that quiet quitting is an invitation to us all to figure out how to do life – including work – better.You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com   

On this episode of Practice Well(Being) Bree Buchanan joins us to share her story which took her from developing a panic disorder in law school, to practicing attorney in the domestic violence space using alcohol to cope with stress, to losing her marriage and job which prompted her to go all in on recovery. This personal journey ultimately propelled her to be the Chair of ABA’s commission on Lawyer’s Assistance Program and the Founding co-chair of the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being and co-author of its groundbreaking 2017 report, The Path to Well-Being: Practical Recommendations for Positive Change.  Now she’s the president of the Institute for Well-Being in Law (IWIL). In this deeply impactful conversation we talked about:How who we are and what we do as lawyers works against well-being. The importance of understanding the ways that the world is different and how the “calcified culture” of the legal profession is negatively impacting lawyer well-being. Spoiler alert – we all agree it’s time for some serious evolution. A new vision for the future of work in law which includes well-being and the leadership and army of advocates it will take to get there. You can also find Bree on LinkedIn or at IWIL. You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com  

“If you have a defined purpose, I think that you can also call it the true north or whatever you would. You would say if you have that, I think you can take decisions and link it back to, to this.” On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we explored critical topics around sustainability and purpose with the co-founder and CEO of impactvise AG, Adrian Peyer. impactvise is driven by the belief that law firms and in-house corporate counsels are key players in the modern value chain, with a unique position to support the move towards a sustainable future. Adrian co-founded impactvise after 20 years as in-house counsel, General Counsel and Company Secretary. In this episode you will hear how:-        ESG moved from back office to boardroom and from a corporate proposition to a law firm proposition.-        To identify, articulate and differentiate purpose so that it can be used a tool for decision making, employee retention and client attraction.-        Purpose is fundamental to sustainability. You will also learn a little bit more about the ways that impactvise is helping law firms identify and leverage their purpose with an eye towards ESG progress. If you want to learn more you can find Adrian on LinkedIn or at  impactvise You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com  

“What happened during the pandemic, some [organizations] were leaning on training resiliency in the time of chaos. That’s not the time to do it. Train resiliency when things are calm, cool, and collected…that’s how you build resiliency. Then, when things get cranked up, you focus on peoples’ strength because that’s what brings the best out of people.” On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we went on a journey with Adam Reiber, Director of Well-Being at Morgan Lewis – a multi-national law firm with over 2200 lawyers and legal professionals. Adam served 20 years in the US Army before moving into the corporate space and applying the theories of positive psychology he learned in the military at Microsoft and now at Morgan Lewis to fulfill his mission: so that others may thrive. This is an incredibly powerful conversation where we discuss with Adam the importance of building resilience individually and organizationally to thrive in work and in life – both when times are good, and especially when they’re chaotic. Adam’s study of human excellence really highlighted for us the power of not just self-care, but of understanding one’s self. We discuss growth and strengths, and why love is the supreme emotion, even in an organization. You can also find Adam on LinkedIn or at Morgan Lewis. You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com  

“Life is always going to happen…you’re going to have a time when you need a time out…I always try to remember the people who stood in the gap for me, and I will always stand in the gap for others…it has amplified my career. To me, when you have a career that feels good, you will have achieved success.” On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we shared deep conversation (and shed a few tears) with Lynne Espy-Williams, lawyer and Chief Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Officer at Cozen O’Connor in Philadelphia. This is a conversation that touches on early influences and the impact of good examples early in life; on the village it takes to rise to your best self; on the power of sponsorship and mentorship. We discuss the importance of deep, authentic, and psychologically safe relationships in life and in work and that gratitude is a fundamental through-thread to feeling value and bringing value. The importance of all of this on sustaining a purposeful and inclusive culture – and that this is “all of our job.” You can also find Lynne on LinkedIn or at Cozen O'Connor. You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com   

“When we focus a little but more and hone in on mindfulness in the workplace  . . . John Kabbat Zinn one of the western fathers of mindfulness he defines mindfulness as: an awareness that arises through paying attention on purpose in the present moment non-judgmentally.”On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we had a chance to sit down with Amaris Vicari lawyer and founder of The Beneficial Element, where she works with organizations and individuals to empower them to apply mindfulness and emotional intelligence to thrive.  If you have been wondering how you might employ mindfulness to improve your performance and life this is the conversation for you. We covered topics like:  Why mindfulness is more than meditation.The power of mindful listening.Integrated mini-mindfulness practices you could deploy today with no extra time. We also talked about the amazing research-supported benefits of mindfulness to our performance, our physical health and even the way our brains are wired and how having a regular mindfulness practice is an empowering way to be proactive in a reactive world.  You can also find Amaris LinkedIn, or at her website www.beneficialelement.com               You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn.You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com 

“It’s time for the legal industry to start actually honoring evidence and science as it relates to well-being. ... [O}ur entire profession is premised on the notion that evidence and facts dictate everything therefrom. Yet when it comes to how we live as lawyers and legal professionals, we are the single most anti-evidentiary profession in existence…"On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we had the honor of speaking with Jarrett Green, Esq., M.A. - a former Skadden Arps litigator who left the practice of law so he could live his passion of helping lawyers, legal professionals, corporate employees, and other high-stress individuals experience less stress, more happiness, greater focus, improved productivity, optimized cognition, and enhanced overall success.  He has a Masters in Psychology with emphases on Neuroscience, Positive Psychology, and Cognitive-Behavior Psychology and is the co-founder of USC Gould School of Law’s nationally-recognized "Mindfulness, Stress Management, & Peak Performance Program." Jarrett consults and leads programs with nearly half of the AmLaw 100, and many Fortune 500 companies. In this incredibly enriching discussion with Jarrett we challenged conditioned notions of success and default positions of thinking while offering you actionable tips like:The single most obvious piece of evidence about what makes better legal professionals. The power of 6 minutes.The magic of “amazing errors.”We also talked about the biggest barrier to change in our industry and the small commitments we make that have the power to change everything. You will walk away from this thinking differently about the impact of practicing well-being.  You can find Jarrett at Jarrett-Green.com and on LinkedIn. You can connect with Nita on LinkedIn. You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com  Referenced in this episode: Atomic Habits by James Clear, Think Again by Adam Grant, Principles by Ray Dalio. 

“Personal brand is really key to your well-being because it's all about getting to know who you are, what you like to do. What makes you happy? What you want to spend your time doing? . . .  We don't want to be on autopilot, just going through the motions. We don't want to be disengaged from our work, from our colleagues from our clients, from our loved ones. . . . We want to be whole true, authentic selves and so I think really understanding what your personal brand is really requires you to sit down and look objectively, maybe dispassionately and passionately at different times about who you are and what you bring to the table and what you want to be doing.” On this episode of Practice Well(Being) we had a chance to sit down with Sameena Safdar Kluck a personal branding, social media and legal technology strategist. Prior founding Amplify Your Voice LLC in 2021, Sameena spent time as a practicing lawyer and working in large and small legal technology companies in sales and then legal marketing and branding.  We covered a lot of rich ground in our conversation including: How living and working authentically impacts not just your wellbeing but also the people around you.Key questions to consider when developing and refining your personal brand. The powerful intersection of authenticity and inclusion. We also discussed the ways that authenticity and personal brand are an important influence on and tool to be used as we navigate the Great Resignation/Global Re-Prioritization/the Great Upgrade (we all have thoughts about what it should be called!) and how being able to live and work authentically can be a huge energy saver. You can also find Sameena LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and FacebookYou can connect with Nita on LinkedIn.You can connect with Becky on LinkedIn, Instagram or at her website – www.untanglehappiness.com 

“We are not taught the ways that mental well-being or happiness really impact our overall, not just well-being, but performance and success. Oftentimes happiness feels fluffy but I would argue that . . . living happy might be one of the highest value investments we can make in ourselves, in our families, in our communities and in the world.” In this episode of Practice Well(Being) our co-cost Rebecca Morrison shares her wisdom including:How you can leverage happiness as a competitive advantage.'A fail-proof method to get unstuck.Living Happy isn’t about bypassing the tough stuff but rather being able to successfully navigate every emotion that the human condition might bring our way. She also explains how happiness fits in to the bigger picture of well-being, why happiness (or positive emotion) is her favorite place to start when trying to improve your well-being and why you shouldn’t get hung up on believing that your circumstances are primarily responsible for happiness. You can connect with Nita and Becky on LinkedIn. You can also learn more about Becky’s work on her website at www.untanglehappiness.com.  

“If you are here on this earth, you are important . . . and it means you have something meaningful to contribute. Now what you need to do is to figure out what thing is you want to contribute. So if you are in a state of well-being . . . and when you are in alignment and connection with what that is, you can truly develop your potential, you can truly be more productive in the way that you work, you can take the friction out of the hustle, you can work more creatively and you can build more positive relationships, and you can cope with everyday stresses of life . . . that enables you to make that meaningful contribution.”   In this episode of Practice Well(Being) our co-host Nita Cumello shares her wisdom including: One question you could ask – as a leader – that will allow you to understand how to use well-being to sustain individual performance for those on your team. The power of the pause.Intentionally creating alignment with your purpose using daily commitments. She also explains why ultimately, it’s all about pairing well-being with purpose to facilitate our success as individuals, as organizations, and as a whole community. You can connect with Nita and Becky on LinkedIn. You can also learn more about Becky’s work on her website at www.untanglehappiness.com.  

Nita Cumello and Rebecca Morrison are teaming up to bring you meaningful conversations including powerful concepts and practical tips about well-being in the legal industry.  Nita is a Global Business Director and Director of Well-Being Global, Large Law at Thomson Reuters and Becky is a lawyer and law firm administrator turned Happiness and Leadership Coach who works with individuals and organizations to help them use well-being to fuel success and satisfaction. Practice Well(Being) dedicated to bringing you impactful information about well-being – physical, spiritual and mental. We’ll share our wisdom, we’ll share research, and we’ll talk to experts who are walking the talk. Our goal is to bring you the tools to be better and to allow your brilliance to shine.  Additional episodes dropping soon! You can connect with Nita and Becky on LinkedIn. You can also learn more about Becky’s work on her website at www.untanglehappiness.com.