CLE
Elizabeth Pyjov
Elizabeth Pyjov Lead with Compassion
Break Free From People-Pleasing for Lawyers
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Premieres October 14, 1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
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Break Free From People-Pleasing for Lawyers

Heavy workloads, tight deadlines, and high-stakes consequences contribute to exorbitant stress levels and mental health concerns for legal professionals. Self-compassion is not a departure from the discipline and rigor the profession demands — it is what makes that discipline sustainable. This program describes how to ease people-pleasing tendencies, helping lawyers support themselves, one another, their clients, and their collaborators in the hard work needed to fight for justice, uphold the rule of law, build community, and take positive action toward a better future and a thriving legal profession.

Topics covered include:
Attorney Wellness Law Practice
Agenda:
  • Introductory Overview
    • Defining people-pleasing and distinguishing it from genuine kindness, collegiality, and excellent client service
    • Recognizing the personal and professional costs in the legal profession of chronic approval-seeking
    • An overview of the program’s goals and practical applications for lawyers
  • Science of People-Pleasing
    • The psychological and developmental origins of people-pleasing
    • People-pleasing as a learned strategy for securing safety, belonging, approval, or connection
    • The roles of fear, perfectionism, conflict avoidance, and sensitivity to rejection
    • How stress responses — including appeasement or “fawning” — can shape behavior
    • The cycle through which short-term relief reinforces long-term patterns of self-silencing, overcommitment, and resentment
    • The effects of chronic people-pleasing on well-being, relationships, decision-making, and professional identity
  • How the Legal Profession Strengthens People-Pleasing Tendencies
    • The influence of hierarchy, evaluation, and demanding professional environments
    • How perfectionism and fear of mistakes can intensify dependence on external approval
    • The pressures created by client service, billable-hour expectations, and cultures of constant availability
    • Why lawyers may confuse healthy boundaries with selfishness, weakness, or a lack of commitment
    • The particular challenges faced by lawyers who feel pressure to prove that they belong
    • The consequences of people-pleasing for burnout, ethical judgment, leadership, and professional relationships
  • Solutions to People-Pleasing
    • Identifying personal triggers, habitual responses, and situations in which people-pleasing is most likely to arise
    • Learning to pause before automatically agreeing, apologizing, explaining, or taking responsibility
    • Distinguishing authentic generosity from behavior driven by fear or the need for approval
    • Clarifying personal values, needs, responsibilities, and limits
    • Setting and communicating boundaries with colleagues, supervisors, and clients
    • Practicing respectful disagreement and tolerating the discomfort of disappointing others
    • Replacing excessive justification with clear, direct, and professional communication
    • Developing practical strategies for saying no, requesting time, renegotiating commitments, and responding to unreasonable demands
  • Strengthening Compassion and Self-Compassion in the Legal Profession
    • Understanding compassion and self-compassion as professional strengths rather than indulgence or weakness
    • Responding to mistakes, criticism, and perceived disapproval without harsh self-judgment
    • Using self-compassion to reduce shame, recover from setbacks, and make more grounded decisions
    • Balancing care for others with respect for one’s own needs, values, and limitations
    • Cultivating professional environments in which lawyers can be both compassionate and boundaried
    • Moving from fear-based accommodation toward courage, integrity, and sustainable service
  • Q&A (As Time Permits)
Read More ›
Duration of this webinar: 60 minutes
When: Premieres in 34 days | October 14, 2026 10:00 AM PT
Register Now
Speaker
Elizabeth Pyjov
Elizabeth Pyjov Founder
Lead with Compassion

Elizabeth Pyjov, J.D., M.T.S. is a law school and business school professor, renowned meditation teacher, facilitator, scholar, theologian, lawyer, and published poet who holds three Harvard degrees, speaks five languages, has lived in seven countries, and has designed over 100 programs for happiness and fulfillment through her organization Happiness Sangha. Read More ›

Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Credits

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Alabama CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 General

Alaska CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Ethics

California CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Wellness Competence

Delaware CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Enhanced Ethics

Hawaii CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Ethics

Illinois CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Professional Responsibility - Mental Health / Substance Abuse

Maine CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Ethics and Professionalism

Missouri CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.20 Ethics

Nebraska CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Professional Responsibility

Nevada CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Substance Abuse, Addiction, and Mental Health

New Jersey CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.20 Ethics/Professionalism

North Carolina CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Professional Well-Being

Ohio CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Attorney Professional Conduct

Pennsylvania CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Ethics, Professionalism, or Substance Abuse

Rhode Island CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Legal Ethics

Vermont CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual), On-Demand

Credits: 1.00 Attorney Wellness

Virginia CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.00 Well-being

West Virginia CLE

Status: Approved

Format: Live (Virtual)

Credits: 1.20 Legal Ethics, etc.


This presentation is approved for one hour of General CLE credit in Alabama, one hour of Ethics CLE credit in Alaska, one hour of Wellness Competence CLE credit in California, one hour of Enhanced Ethics CLE credit in Delaware, one hour of Ethics CLE credit in Hawaii, one hour of Professional Responsibility - Mental Health / Substance Abuse CLE credit in Illinois, one hour of Ethics and Professionalism CLE credit in Maine, one hour of Ethics CLE credit in Missouri, one hour of Professional Responsibility CLE credit in Nebraska, one hour of Substance Abuse, Addiction, and Mental Health CLE credit in Nevada, one hour of Professional Well-Being CLE credit in North Carolina, one hour of Attorney Professional Conduct CLE credit in Ohio, one hour of Ethics, Professionalism, or Substance Abuse CLE credit in Pennsylvania, one hour of Legal Ethics CLE credit in Rhode Island, one hour of Attorney Wellness CLE credit in Vermont, one hour of Well-being CLE credit in Virginia, and one hour of Legal Ethics, etc. CLE credit in West Virginia. This program has been approved by the Board on Continuing Legal Education of the Supreme Court of New Jersey for 1.20 hours of total CLE credit. Of these, 1.20 qualify as total hours of credit for Ethics/Professionalism.

Justia only reports attendance in jurisdictions in which a particular Justia CLE Webinar is officially accredited. Lawyers may need to self-submit their certificates for CLE credit in jurisdictions not listed above.

Note that CLE credit, including partial credit, cannot be earned outside of the relevant accreditation period. To earn credit for a course, a lawyer must watch the entire course within the relevant accreditation period. Lawyers who have viewed a presentation multiple times may not be able to claim credit in their jurisdiction more than once. Justia reserves the right, at its discretion, to grant an attendee partial or no credit, in accordance with viewing duration and other methods of verifying course completion.

At this time, Justia only offers CLE courses officially accredited in certain states. Lawyers may generate a generic attendance certificate to self-submit credit in their own jurisdiction, but Justia does not guarantee that lawyers will receive their desired CLE credit through the self-submission or reciprocity process.

Looking for CLE credit? Visit CLE Dashboard CLE Accreditation
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