Members of the legal profession are often motivated by a desire to help others and to alleviate their distress. So basic is this ethic that many lawyers work tirelessly, worry a great deal, and feel the weight of not just one client’s burdens, but many. And as much good as this does for our clients, our society, and our pocketbooks, it is the rare person who does not feel the toll this can take on their health and well-being.

Dostoyevsky wrote that “compassion is the chief law of human existence.” Usually we regard compassion as an human quality that flows outward — to other people. Yet compassion can flow inward as well — toward oneself. There is a growing body of research that focuses on the cultivation of self-compassion and its connection to mental health and wellbeing. I met with Dr. Christopher Germer while he was in Miami to lead, along with Kristin Neff, a two-day workshop on Mindful Self-Compassion. Chris, a clinical psychologist, author, and co-developer of the highly acclaimed eight-week “Mindful Self-Compassion” program, was kind enough to sit with me for a short interview so that I might share his insights with you. A synopsis of our conversation appears below.

What is Self-Compassion?