Humorist At Law; The American Dream Up Close

I'm back in the saddle after my week long company sales meeting in Cleveland. Thankfully, I was upgraded to the front cabin on my flight home to Phoenix, which is flight attendant speak for first class, as to not upset the common folk in coach.

I was looking forward to a quiet flight. The agenda included a warm meal, movie, nap and no less than three enlarged prostate induced trips to the bathroom.

What I wasn't expecting was meeting the passenger seated next to me, Sean Carter, and the inspiring story he shared with me.

Carter is a former corporate law attorney that left the tedious arena of litigation to pursue his interest in stand-up comedy. His company, Lawpsided Seminars ( http://www.lawhumorist.com/ ), offers a unique and mildly irreverent take on his profession through public speaking performances at law group meetings across the country.

Finally, lawyers are climbing aboard the lawyer joke bandwagon that the rest of us have been coasting on for years.

We often hear debate and discussion about the meaning of The American Dream. To me, Sean Carter is living embodiment of that dream.

Sean Carter attended Harvard Law School (my safety school choice, by the way) and was earning a healthy living as a practicing lawyer. Then, according to Carter, one day he had what you might call a spiritual awakening, or higher level of realization.

Carter was miserable in his job. Not miserable in performance, mind you, but rather miserable in a sense that he was simply going through the motions each day.

Familiar feeling, folks?

Sean Carter took action. He took an intellectually honest, personal inventory of what he needed to fully enjoy his career life and then implemented an action plan to get there.

Carter parlayed his passion for comedy and public speaking and is now making a living at it. To me, The American Dream means taking a risk by finding a niche and moving forward undeterred, with passion and full vigor. Sean Carter, with a wife and four children included, took that risk and is living this dream.

The irony for me is that I met Sean on the heels of me spending four days with the entire sales force of the company I work with, in which the core objective was team building and corporate synergy. After one week, my greatest inspiration came from hearing the story of Sean Carter on my flight home.

I wonder if Carter bills his clients laughter in six minute increments.