Law, Enlightenment, and Other States of Mind

This collection of Kevin’s blog posts for the Colorado Bar Association is “for anyone, lawyer or not, who wants to create or at least embrace change in their workplaces and personal lives. And not just change, but transformation.” Written with humor, empathy, insight, and perspective not just from the law, but also psychology, neuroscience, entrepreneurship, and shared life experience. From the Foreword by Ronald M. Sandgrund, Esq.: Drawing on his professional and personal sojourn through that minefield called life, and with inestimable wit and wisdom, Kevin offers advice, humor and insight to Colorado lawyers and anyone else who is willing to take just a few moments out of their day to stop and listen and think. This book amuses, amazes and edifies just as the original blog posts did when I read them in real time over the past few years. I knew then I was hearing a fun and lively voice calling into the dark wilderness that can too often surround and suffocate otherwise creative spirits. Kevin’s book journeys us through Inspiration, Change, Accountability and Personal Apocalypses but, ultimately leads us to Transformation. He speaks with a big heart and from a great breadth of experience. Every lawyer – every one of us – can learn from Kevin’s acute observations about the need to be “entrepreneurial,” not just in our business affairs and professional pursuits, but with our families and our own wellness. From the Foreword by Prof. Debra S. Austin, J.D. Ph.D.: Kevin Rhodes is an audacious man. In this book, he dares us to be audacious right along with him. Kevin asks us to become self-reflective. He challenges us to question the status quo and he urges us to reinvent ourselves. He explains how we can get stuck and he offers a path forward. In short, Kevin empowers growth. Kevin reminds us that the pursuit of growth and change is an imprecise, and often scary endeavor. But each of his short essays prods and coaches on the benefits of taking brave steps to effect growth and change. From Susan Hoyt, Legal Editor/Social Media Colorado Bar Association CLE: Every Thursday, the Colorado Bar Association CLE Legal Connection blog features one of Kevin Rhodes’ inspirational posts. And every Wednesday, I get a little jump of excitement when Kevin emails his post to me for the next day – I get a sneak peek. I look forward to reading Kevin’s posts. They are a welcome reprieve from the usual case law or rule change articles. I feel connected to Kevin because of these little glimpses into his personality – the warm, accepting, mentally healthy individual that comes through in his articles. Besides being fun to read, Kevin’s posts serve an important role in this era where lawyer depression has reached nearly epidemic proportions. Kevin imparts a bit of humanity – a bit of total wellbeing – into his writing. From the Preface, “Lawyers are People, Too,” by Kevin Rhodes: True, the blog serves up topics in packages of particular interest to lawyers, but once the package is opened, the posts go looking for anyone, lawyer or not, who wants to create or at least embrace change in their lives and workplaces. And not just change, but transformation -- the biggest, boldest kind of change. The shared human experiences of noticing, wanting, aspiring, committing, suffering, accomplishing (or not), celebrating (or not)… those are the experiences I’m after. I’m also after experiences that are none of those things, when disasters crash into our lives and we have no choice but to deal. I want to know how we grow and change and transform our way through all those kinds of experiences. And I want to know how getting through them affects our professional and personal lives every day.