Admittedly, most of us (lawyers) are under a great deal of stress !
We continually deal with interruptions. Our days rarely go as scheduled.
Our clients benefit from our efforts, but rarely express their appreciation.
Our adversaries want to go for our jugular.
...and, if we are Litigators, need I say more?
Experts say that continual, extreme, unrelenting pressure (stress) not only leads to fatigue, but also to more serious physical and mental ailments.
One of the many antidotes to such circumstances is a "good book."
Most of us read our share of law-related periodicals, bar journals and even legal newspapers. But, how many of us lean back in our (desk) chair for a few minutes to read a good (fiction or non-fiction, but certainly a non-law-related) book in the course of a stressful day?
Taking a few brief minutes to read a good book - - having NOTHING whatsoever to do with our legal profession, came make a world of difference in our day. It is like a "vacation" for our mind - - a "great escape" from our daily grind.
Statistics show that...
- less than 20% of adults with a grade-school education read literature;
- 54% of the American population never reads a book over 400 pages after they complete their formal education;
- 73% of the all books in libraries are never checked out;
- the average American annually spends 10 times more on what they put ON their heads than what they put INTO their heads;
- if you read just one book per month for 12 straight months, you will be in the top 25 percentile of all intellectuals in the world;
- if you read 5 books on one subject, you are one of the world's foremost leading authorities on that subject;
- and, if you read just 15 minutes a day - every day, for 1 year, you can complete 20 books.
As Benjamin Franklin said, "The doors of wisdom are never shut."
So, in addition to saving your sanity by reading a good book a few minutes a day - on those "difficult days," you will also become a lot smarter in the subject of your choice.
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