Ready to overcome fear in the courtroom?

Plaintiff lawyers know all too well those gut-churning, heart-pounding moments before hearings or trials. Even in the (supposedly) non-adversarial Social Security disability hearings I used to do, there’s no shortage of fear and nerves.

I was fortunate to attend a recent seminar in which attorney and author, Rick Friedman, shared his 30-year battle with fear and how he eventually learned to overcome it.

In a discussion that touched on childhood traumas and Bessel van der Kolk’s The Body Keeps The Score, Friedman ultimately challenged us to ask: “What can actually be hurt by a judge or jury deciding against me?” For him, the answer, more often than not, is just our ego.

According to Friedman, too many lawyers exhaust themselves protecting a perfect self-image even though all great lawyers have looked foolish at times. Instead of fearing our humanity, he argues we should accept it.

Once we’ve acknowledged that we’re only human and that fear is natural, we can begin to address the real sources of our fear. (Like Friedman, I highly recommend doing this with a good therapist.) From there, we can stop focusing on ourselves and instead focus on a mission larger than we are. And by connecting with a greater purpose, we can put fear behind us.

If you’re interested in learning more – and you definitely should be – these ideas are developed at length in his book, The Way of the Trial Lawyer: Beyond Technique.

Thank you Rick Friedman for speaking so candidly about your struggles and thank you Alexis Garmey-Chardon for inviting me to attend this inspiring talk.