Beyond Happiness

-- By GregOrr - 27 Feb 2009

In looking for satisfaction, I’m drawn to a principle identified in discussion of Robinson… do things that flow from and give scope to one’s self. But Robert Musil, whose The Man Without Qualities I love, suggests:

“On this frontier between what goes on inside us and what goes on outside, some kind of communication is missing, and they adapt to each other only with tremendous losses. One might almost say that the life we lead in reality is the dark side of our good desires, and our evil desires are the dark side of the life we lead in reality.”

Divergent objectives, rigidity of roles, and the clumsiness of language prevent the desired harmonization.

Lawyers have a particular ambition to bring the world in line with their aims – to make change in society using words – but they face amplified constraints due to entrenched interests, constricting procedures, and an overwhelming amount of language. Many have had their lives and desires perverted. With the world now wobbly and searching for ideas, however, we seem to have a clearer opportunity to remake institutions to reflect who we are and what we want.

Harmonizing

I can imagine several benefits to harmonizing what goes on inside and outside me.

(1) Health: It would make me healthier, more energetic, and a better influence on others. Bile results when I dislike or disagree with what I’m doing, and I feel frustrated and insecure if not understood or valued. (2) Equity: I would have a proper place in the world. (3) Evolution: If I don’t assert myself, then I’m not playing my role in an evolving world. Discordant elements help break out of local maxima to find bigger prizes. (4) Grace: When what’s inside and outside resonate, one might experience a state of grace, or even blips of transcendent bliss.

Complete harmonization might only be found in solitude, but a lawyer who finds a significant degree of it can achieve scope and impact in the world.

Examples

We haven’t been introduced to many lawyers, but I can give some contrast of harmonizing success versus perversions of lives and desires.

C. Oliver Robinson

Robinson has found a niche that suits him. He’s energetic, advocates ably for the weak, influences the community, and has mystic visions of metamorphoses between lawyers and prisoners.

Michael Clayton Characters

Arthur Edens is the legendary litigator who suddenly comes to the point where he cannot tolerate the gulf between what’s inside him and what’s outside. Celebrating a billable hours milestone, he finds himself with two Lithuanian prostitutes, unable to stop thinking about what he’s become: “Is this me? Am I this freak organism who’s been sent here to sleep and eat and defend this one horrific chain of carcinogenic molecules … is that my Grail? Two Lithuanian mouths on my __?”

Michael Clayton has a niche, though an unfavorable connotation is put on the word because his role as a fixer doesn’t satisfy his sense of self. He likes being great at something, but eventually wants a way out. He gambles, and at 45 is broke. “I’ve been riding shotgun for 12 years and I’ve got no equity.” He later claims not to be the enemy, but he doesn’t know what to say when asked, “Then who are you?”

Karen Crowder has a tenuous grasp on her counterfeit position. She compulsively rehearses party lines, sweats profusely, and, with a twitch, orders two murders. She’s desperate to fit herself to the role because she’s worked so hard to succeed and this is all she has.

This world works for Barry Grissom, though. “He’s an asshole, but he knows it.” He seems perfectly at peace with that and has a certain grace.

John Mack, CEO Morgan Stanley

John Mack similarly expressed little compunction when asked by Charlie Rose, “What’s the best thing you’ve learned about yourself in the crisis?” He answered, “Charlie, that’s a great question. I’ve learned that I love the action. I’ve learned that the people who work for me are very important to me. And I’ve learned that at the end of the day, no matter what’s at stake, you have to do what your heart tells you to do.” He seems like a guy who’s where he belongs really.

Example Summary

What I take from these examples is that the more your job flows from and gives scope to your self, the better off you’ll be. External judgments of morality don’t factor.

Back and Forth

Arthur and Michael together blow the whistle on the bad guys, belatedly but effectively asserting their selves into their lives. It would be nice, though, if our careers started off on the right foot by thinking about positive statements of goals.

Primary among barriers, though, is that it’s difficult to agree on what is to be done. In The Man Without Qualities, a group assembled from Austrian society is charged with choosing an idea that represented their culture and could serve as a worldwide aspiration. They discuss ideas endlessly without nearing consensus. The title character, Ulrich, keeps two folders, one marked “Forward To” and the other “Back To”. As a group, they are unable even to decide whether they prefer tradition or progress.

Ulrich, somewhat facetiously, suggests that Austria appoint a permanent Secretary of Precision and Soul to guide them. I think, to some degree, that’s what we’re hoping for in Barack Obama. But, somewhat uninspiringly, he and his team have so far focused on “Back To.”

When asked by Charlie Rose, “In the future, how will the system be different?” John Mack hesitated before offering, “Bear Stearns is no longer in business. Lehman Brothers is no longer in business. Merrill Lynch is part of Bank of America. The two remaining investment banks are bank holding companies. So that’s a huge change. Number one. Number two, I think we’re going to be bigger.”

What “Forward To” could look like seems to be the burning question.