Why you need Reflective Practice
Supporting wellbeing, performance and better decision-making
Wellbeing isn't simply an HR issue, or something you can pay lip service too with the odd pizza delivery, quiz and a mental health committee. It directly affects performance, retention, relationships and the quality of work delivered to clients.
It is no news that the legal profession is demanding. Heavy workloads, tight deadlines, difficult clients and emotionally challenging cases can all take their toll.
Reflective practice is a powerful tool that provides real, deep, meaningful support to lawyers, facilitates changes to workplace culture, and promotes creative problem solving.
What is reflective practice?
Reflective practice is a facilitated group discussion of issues that lawyers are finding challenging in their day to day working life, how they approached them, the emotional and cognitive impact of the challenge, and explores alternative approaches and what skills might help going forwards. It gives lawyers structured time to step back from their work and consider what is happening — professionally, emotionally and practically.
It might involve exploring a difficult client relationship, a challenging case, a mistake that is proving difficult to let go of, a conflict with a colleague or simply the cumulative pressure of a demanding role.
Rather than asking "What went wrong?", reflective practice asks:
What happened?
What impact did it have on me?
Why did I respond in that way?
What can I learn from it?
Is there another perspective?
What might I do differently next time?
The aim isn't to criticise or judge. It is to understand, learn and move forward.
Why does it matter in law?
LawCare's Life in the Law 2025 research found significant levels of poor mental wellbeing among legal professionals, with work having a substantial impact on many respondents' mental health. Almost 79% also reported regularly working beyond their contracted hours.
This highlights the need for firms to think beyond reactive wellbeing support and consider how they can help people manage the demands of legal work on an ongoing basis.
Reflective practice can form part of that preventative approach.
Five benefits for law firms
1. Helps identify stress before it becomes burnout
Lawyers are champions of just getting on with it. The culture (which thankfully is changing) can see admitting that you need support as a weakness. Reflection creates space to notice stress, recognise patterns and consider what needs to change before pressure becomes overwhelming.
2. Supports better decision-making
Stress, assumptions and emotional responses can all influence professional judgement. Reflective practice creates a pause to consider what might be influencing our thinking and whether there are alternative perspectives.
3. Turns experience into learning
Experience doesn't automatically lead to learning. When we are stressed there can be a tendency to just keep doing the same thing and fall into the same bear traps time after time. Reflection helps lawyers identify what a difficult situation can teach them — improving self-awareness, communication and future practice.
4. Strengthens teams
A facilitated reflective space allows lawyers to discuss the realities of their work and discover that others experience similar challenges. This can encourage openness, connection and psychological safety. Reflective practice works best when all levels of the team come together to share experiences and reflections.
5. Supports retention and workplace culture
When people feel supported to manage the realities of their work, they are more likely to feel valued and able to sustain their careers.
Reflective practice demonstrates that wellbeing isn't simply something a firm talks about — it is something embedded into the way people work.
What does it look like?
Reflective practice doesn't need to be complicated, or expensive.
It is a confidential, facilitated session, usually for an hour each month, for up to 8 people It can be held online or in person.
Participants bring real situations from their working lives. The facilitator helps them explore what happened, understand their responses, consider different perspectives and identify useful learning.
It isn't therapy, and it isn't another training course.
It is simply protected time to stop, think, develop and learn.
I am uniquely placed to facilitate these sessions, as both a practicing lawyer and a therapist. I have a deep knowledge and understanding of the challenges of the legal world, and the psychological training to support and enable staff to develop and learn through the sessions.
What does the firm get in return?
Reflective practice won't solve excessive workloads or poor workplace culture on its own. However, as part of a wider wellbeing strategy, it can support:
Reduced risk of burnout
Better self-awareness and emotional regulation
Improved communication and relationships
More considered decision-making
Greater psychological safety
Stronger professional development
Improved staff wellbeing and retention
Ultimately, investing in reflective practice is an investment in the people who deliver your firm's work.
Reflective practice for your law firm
At Esse Therapy, I combine my experience as a solicitor with my experience as a therapist to facilitate reflective practice sessions specifically for legal professionals.
Sessions are designed to provide a confidential, psychologically informed space to explore the challenges of legal practice, develop insight and identify practical ways forward.
If you would like to explore reflective practice for your team, get in touch.
