Continuing with our Mindfulness Moment in my first-year legal writing course, today we spoke about good deeds for others.

Research shows that humans are designed for altruism, and when we do good for others, we improve our own happiness. And that’s good news for lawyers because we are so often called upon to contribute our time and money to non-profit service. From the first day of law school, young lawyers are reminded that we must do good, as we do well.

Students shared examples of good deeds they had recently committed and whether those good deeds were selfless or with an ulterior motive to gain something. This Friends clip was the perfect media add on:

We also discussed boundaries. Unfortunately, some folks will take advantage of good deeds from others. And lawyers are the worst about saying no. Doing good does not mean doing good to the point of self-detriment.