Washington Lawyer - January/February 2019 - 31

lawyers to develop a strong portfolio and a responsive strategy for achieving
a secure retirement. Often, the best way to find a reliable financial partner is
through referrals from colleagues, he notes.

but always with the knowledge that saving today will provide more freedom to
spend tomorrow.

"Attorneys are like the rest of us," says Brown. "Most of the time someone's lifestyle will expand to meet their current income. When they retire, they want to
keep living that life, so they'll need the resources to support that lifestyle deep
into retirement. It's all about planning for that period."

"In the first couple of years, people can spend more in retirement than they
might have when they were working," says Brown. "They want to travel and do
things because they're in good health. They have a lot of ambitions and ideas.
After a while, discretionary spending may be replaced by spending on health
and long-term care."

In addition to money management and analyzing financial strategies, an
advisor can help assess financial risks such as law school loan debt, disability
issues, and life insurance needs. A regular concern for young lawyers is figuring
out whether to pay off student debt immediately or over time.

What attorneys reinforce in conversations about wellness and equilibrium is
the critical importance of mindfulness. By fully inhabiting their daily lives -
physically, mentally, and financially - attorneys have a better chance of maintaining balance and stability.

Brown recommends starting financial planning as early as possible. It might
be a good idea to select a financial advisor who is in the same age range as the
lawyer. That will allow advisors to better reflect the concerns the attorney-client
faces in that moment, and provide an opportunity for the partnership to grow
and succeed, hopefully, over time.

"Our work lives can't always be about billable hours and profits per partner,"
says Nelson. "They have to be about satisfaction in the work that gets done, and
the resources available to get it done. They have to be about the work-life
balance and being happy in what we do."
Sarah Kellogg is a regular contributor to Washington Lawyer.

Staas & Halsey's Henry, who is semi-retired and divides his time between
California and D.C., finds his own kind of balance in his life these days. "I worked
very hard and sacrificed everything for work," says Henry. "It was super stressful
but pretty successful, and I sort of retired early."
Finally, Brown says, it is helpful to think in terms of what is the ideal retirement
for the individual attorney and his or her family, and then to plan accordingly,

Feels good

For more wellness tips and inspirational stories, visit dcbar.org.

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Washington Lawyer - January/February 2019

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