“The transition from practicing lawyer to judicial officer involves

a journey into loneliness.” [i]

            An inherent characteristic of judging is that it is a profession which occurs in high degree of isolation.  Single judge courts physically isolate many judges from their peers and in multiple judge courts, where workloads limit the extent of social interaction, a high degree of psychological isolation exists. Judicial education can provide an opportunity for interaction among judges which can ease this sense of isolation.  It is extremely important to share this perspective with new judges and to ensure that as careers progress judges do not drift away from networking and collegiality that education and judicial associations provide. 

            Ironically, in today’s busy world we have loneliness, but rarely solitude. I believe a wellness lifestyle requires a healthy balance between staying connected to community and seeking solitude. Henry Nouwen wrote extensively on the subject of solitude and community. Nouwen insisted that solitude is indispensable to a balanced life. He called solitude “the furnace of transformation…where the old self dies and the new self is reborn.”  But for many who are in positions of leadership, solitude seems on the surface to be less productive. Judges, like leaders in many domains experiencing increasing demands on their time, have been conditioned to think that success is dependent on working, achieving and doing.  However, without solitude and moments of quiet reflection it is easy to get into the perpetual trap of busyness that leads to fatigue, burnout and less productivity.  The solution to busyness is not isolation but the regular practice of seeking solitude through morning or evening rituals such as setting aside time to  reflect,  journal, or meditate, or engaging in other wellness activities such as running, listening to music,  or engaging in a hobby. Finally, many leaders I have talked with are consciously turning off the computer to prevent the temptation to constantly stay connected!

Chuck A. Ericksen, Ed.D.