Rx for Happiness

Pink Magazine
July/August 2008
By Michele Cohen Marill

For some people, life with a backdrop of inner happiness might sound unattainable, or maybe even contrary to the conflicts and challenges that drive their careers.  Lawyers, for example, are notoriously unhappy.  By definition, their work is adversarial.  They work long hours.  In a survey of job satisfaction and general happiness, they rank below other professions despite their higher income and job prestige.

Beth Fenton, 34, of Philadelphia, knows how to be a tough litigator, but she still struggled with an underlying dissatisfaction. "At times, I thought, why am I doing this?  I'm not cut out to be a lawyer," she says.  Working with psychotherapist turned coach Ellen Ostrow, Fenton examined her "core strengths."  Her No. 1 strength is one not frequently associated with law: The capacity to love and be loved.

She found a law firm that appreciated her softer side, she had a baby — and she made partner while on maternity leave. "I think you do a better job if you're a satisfied person," she says.