The Power of Sorry as We Move into the New Year

Richard Conniff, a nature writer for a number of publications including the New York times, writes that offering a sincere apology may have benefits that are deeply rooted in our biology.

"...a willingness to make a conciliatory gesture is often key to holding quarrelsome primate communities together. And the ability to do it gracefully is often a mark of strength, not weakness. We acknowledge that we have violated the standards of acceptable social behavior. We express regret for the harm we have caused. And thus the apology gains us readmission to the human community. It can even be a way to become stronger ..."

So here are my final thoughts for 2006 as we move to the New Year: find someone you have wronged and make a sincere apology to them. The person can be a paralegal, secretary or firm administrator, a lawyer on the other side of a deal, opposing counsel in a litigation matter, a current or former client or a friend or family member. Your act of conciliation is likely to help you become a more effective lawyer (and it is the right thing to do!) Happy New Year!

Frequent Change Ignites Passion--But What About the Practice of Law?

Blogger and Boston Globe columnist, Penelope Trunk, writes about the importance of making periodic job changes. She cites a statistic that 75% of all workers are job hunting at any given time.

I posted a comment on her blog suggesting that the analysis might be different for professionals. Certainly, there can be good reasons for lawyers to make a lateral move, particularly early in their careers (to get better work, to get better mentoring, to be closer to family, to become a bigger fish in a smaller pond, etc.) But I'm not sure the conclusions are the same for professionals.

Maybe the meta message is that it is important to keep growing in your career. For a professional like a lawyer, that might mean expanding into another practice area, working harder to market one's services, learning some new computer skills to work more efficiently, getting more active in a law firm or bar association committee, etc. Moving every two years to a new law firm is not something that most of us in the search business would recommend unless there were very good reasons for each move. Any comments or thoughts out there?

Lawyers Appreciate...

Bloggers Stephanie West Allen and Julie Fleming Brown have been asking fellow legal bloggers to join them in a great year end blogging project (see below.) Here is my contribution:

Lawyers appreciate the rule of law and the separation of powers that have been enshrined in our Constitution for over 200 years.

Since September 11th, our country has become much more aware of the threat of terrorism. In an effort to address these existential threats, some politicians have advocated policies which curb our civil liberties in the name of defending our nation. I am proud to say that it is the legal community that has come forward and argued for the importance of keeping an independent judiciary. It is lawyers who appreciate the rule of law and the genius of our system of separation of powers. It is attorneys who have come forward to educate the public that torture, warrant less eavesdropping and unchecked executive powers are all inconsistent with our democracy.



See (http://lifeatthebar.wordpress.com/2006/12/22/lawyers-appreciate-a-10-day-countdown/) and on Idealawg (http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/7254282). In brief, Stephanie West Allen (http://westallen.typepad.com/idealawg/) and Julie Fleming Brown have been discussing the negativity that's so prevalent in discussions about the law and decided to launch a project that celebrates the positive contributions that lawyers make to society.

A Work/Life Balance Calculator

Want to figure out how many hours you need to be at your office in order to meet your billable hours target? JD Bliss blog has created a calculator to help you factor in all of your non-billable time (vacations, legal holidays, commuting time, meals, administrative and other non-billable tasks, etc.) and arrive at a more accurate picture of how many hours a week you need to work.

E-mail Etiquette: Ignore at Your Peril

Career Journal recommends a degree of formality when communicating with recruiters (it's kind of like dressing up for an interview at a firm that dresses in business casual.) Last week, my colleague in New York, Carey Bertolet, spoke more generally on the subject of electronic communication and in her words, "brilliance is fleeting; stupidity lasts forever!"

In other words it is a big mistake to treat e-mail as an informal mode of communication. Doing so means that you risk putting in writing something you will later regret (either because it is misinterpreted or because your opinion on a subject later changed--litigators are increasingly mining e-mail messages to find inconsistencies and impeach credibility.)

Here is a link to an article I wrote on career opportunities and pitfalls associated with the use of e-mail.

12 Step Program for Blackberry Addicts

I wrote the other day about the great article in the WSJ entitled Blackberry Orphans. I neglected to also include a link to a great "12 Step Program" to fight the addition (thanks to Julie Fleming Brown . )

Aceing the Interview

Good interviewing requires good preparation (here are some tips for legal interviews along with typical questions that lawyers ask; here as well.) Self-confidence can also help your interviewing performance. But what can you do to increase your confidence and calm those nerves before an interview? Learning everything you can about the employer and the interviewers can certainly help. But there are behavioral strategies that can change the way you are feeling when you arrive at the interview.

Career Journal suggests that "positive self talk" can contribute to self-confidence in a job interview ("I'm the best person for this job.") Doing deep breathing/relaxation exercises can also help. There is also ample psychological research which demonstrates the value of visualizing a positive outcome before entering the room.

The Psychological Benefits of Gratitude

I just returned from several days of training at BCG headquarters. I am already applying much of what I learned and feel fortunate to work for a company that values investing in its employees. As the New Year approaches, I am also reminded that I have a lot of other reasons to be grateful. My early New Year's resolution is to spend more time feeling gratitude.

Ellen Ostrow published a nice piece on the subject around Thanksgiving. In her newsletter, she commented on the the positive benefits of feeling gratitude. People who express gratitude are generally happier. Ellen also cites psychological research which demonstrates that "people who who experience relatively more positive (joy, interest, pride) than negative (anger, fear, envy) emotions are more successful and accomplished across most areas of their lives."

The implications for lawyers are profound. Many lawyers spend a lot of their day identifying things that can go wrong. This means that lawyers need to work extra hard to counteract the negative emotions that are a part of ordinary legal practice. I do not believe that the two are inconsistent (i.e. happiness and practicing law); but pervasive negativity is an occupational hazard for attorneys and we all need to recognize this in order to deal more effectively with the problem.

Five Keys to a Successful Career

I'm in California this week attending BCG's annual BCG College. We are hearing some great presentations on how we can all become better recruiters. I am really enjoying spending time with my colleagues from around the country who I only get to see a few times a year.

Our CEO, Harrison Barnes, kicked off the three day event with remarks on a variety of topics. He spoke about what we need to do as a company to ensure that we continue to do an outstanding job in achieving one of our core values, "Finding Jobs for Attorneys". He also shared an interesting model for career satisfaction.

According to the model, there are five things we all need to have career satisfaction. Here is the reader's digest version of this model:

1. Certainty--we need to have some degree of certainty that our jobs are secure
2. Uncertainty--we need to be challenged with new problems rather than simply repeating the same work that we have mastered
3. Significance--we need to feel that there is importance to the work we do
4. Connection--we need to feel connected to the people we work with or clients we work for
5. Growth--we need to be learning all the time

More on "Doing What You Love"

RainToday.Com has an article today on how in a service business, passion boost profits. In a nutshell, the author asserts that having employees who are passionate about their work is critical for a service business. Without it, customers are not going to get good service and they will choose another provider.

I read this as further evidence of the importance of "doing what you love". In a prior post, I recommended David Maister's podcast on career planning. In this podcast, Maister talks eloquently about why doing what you love is critical to your career success (personally, I believe that it is sufficient to "enjoy" what you do--i.e. you can build a very successful career without being passionate.)

Simply put, if you enjoy providing great legal services to your clients, your enthusiasm will translate into great client service. This in turn will have a direct impact on your future business generation success.

If you do not enjoy what you are doing (either because you are in the "wrong" work environment or because you are in the wrong profession,) client service will suffer and ultimately, you will be less successful in generating business. Ultimately, you will have less career success.

Hire a Coach in the New Year?

As the New Year approaches and we begin to think about our goals for 2007, some of us may want to think about hiring a professional to help us reach those goals. Julie Flemming Brown (Life at the Bar) links to a good article in the Texas Bar Journal. Several years ago, I wrote a similar article (back when I was actively working as a coach.)

A Truly Cynical Analysis of Why Up or Out Policies Persist

Here is a truly cynical analysis of why firms maintain up or out policies. A professor at Case Western makes the argument that "up or out" is the best way to protect the firm's only real assets (i.e. the client relationships.) The argument goes that if you keep around bright people but don't make them partners, that they will walk away with the clients.

This is faulted logic on so many levels. For starters, many law firms have already adopted (and continue to adopt) multi-tier partnership systems (i.e. the professor seems to be overlooking the reality at many law firms today.) In addition, as the professor himself notes, lawyers cannot be bound by non-compete agreements. In other words, there is nothing stopping a senior associate who leaves from soliciting business from a client (whether or not the attorney has stuck around for a while after getting passed over for partner.)

The analysis also overlooks the negative impact on the client relationship when senior partners must continue to introduce new associates to service key clients (while removing senior associates who have built up trust with the client.)

A much healthier way to preserve client relationships is to institutionalize clients and make the client feel that everyone in the firm is available to help the client with his or her needs. When partners hoard client relationships and control client access, clients are poorly served and junior attorneys miss valuable opportunities to learn more about a client's business. This leads to bad morale. I could go on and on (but I won't.)

The Allure of In-house

If you regularly speak to lawyers at large firms, you know that many plan to go in-house and become general counsel some day. The general perception is that going in-house offers better hours, more job security, a chance to earn a big pay out, an escape from time keeping and an opportunity to become part of "the team". It is doubtful that this perception will change any time soon.

But increasingly, we are seeing articles in the legal press that are debunking some of these myths. Today in Law.Com, for example, there a piece which highlights the growing risks associated with becoming general counsel. In a post Sarbanes-Oxley world, GC's are increasingly finding themselves targets of investigations.

Recently, I also published a two part article highlighting some of the pluses and minuses of going in-house.

I don't expect to see a fundamental shift in associate attitudes. It takes a long time to change perceptions. In a few years, however, I predict that fewer lawyers will be chasing in-house careers with the same zeal.

Kids Fight Back on Blackberry Use

The Wall Street Journal today offers some cautionary notes about blackberry addiction (subscription required.) In an article aptly entitled "Blackberry Orphans", the Journal explores the growing resentment that children have about parents who are constantly checking their blackberries.

Clearly, the blackberry is a great tool for enabling busy parents to "have it all" (i.e. work in high pressured legal jobs but still attend kids soccer games.) The key, as the article points out, is to know when to turn it off. Kids know when you are not paying attention and they will resent it.

I am reminded of an experience I had while snorkeling off the coast of Maui.

I also confess that I have been know to sneak off to check my own e-mail once or twice while my kids are brushing their teeth (last night, for example.) It's not always easy (I always thought that the "Just Say No to Drugs" campaign that Nancy Reagan championed oversimplified the complexity of fighting an addiction.) But as with any kind of change, the first step is to recognize the problem.

Making Change in 2007?

For those who are gainfully employed, December is a good time to take stock. How well are things working at your current firm? I created a Career Audit for Associates last year to help in making this assessment. I also created a similar tool for partners which I can e-mail to anyone who is interested.

If your are pondering more fundamental questions like "To Be or Not to Be a Lawyer", there continue to be some great resources free for the taking on various websites. JD Bliss continues to offer some great content. I also recently discovered "The Complete Lawyer" which has devoted its most recent issue to the subject of change (I learned about this publication from blogger Idealawg.com .) Also, BCG's CEO, Harrison Barnes, raises some interesting thoughts for lawyers who wonder whether they might be happier in a business setting.

Even if you conclude that you should continue doing what you are doing, going through a process like this can inspire you to fine tune what you've got so it can work even better.

Keeping Up the Job Search in December

A phone call from a distraught recent law school graduate reminded me that December is a difficult month for anyone in a job search. But, as I reminded her, it is important to keep up your search activities during the holiday season. What you do in December can lay the groundwork for success in January and February. Career Journal offers some thoughts on the subject.

Does anyone have some suggestions on things you can do in December to keep a job search moving forward? Comments appreciated (on behalf of all those out there who are feeling the holiday job search blues.)

Great Podcast on Career Planning

David Maister has put together a terrific 15 minute podcast on planning your career. I don't know how finds the time to produce so much valuable information. I don't know any other consultant who makes so much information available for free. He continues to amaze me!

In this podcast, David quotes Calvin Coolidge on success:

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”
— US President Calvin Coolidge

Because persistence is the key to success, Maister suggests that we can only achieve success if we pursue our true interests. He makes a compelling argument that we are only persistent with the things we love. In this brief presentation, he even manages to offer some very valuable suggestions on how to identify your "true self".

ROI for Work Life Balance Programs

JD Bliss links to an article in Computerworld on work life balance and suggests that lawyers should bring this article to the attention of senior management at their firms.

Computerworld does do an excellent job of laying out the traditional business case for allowing flexible staffing (the high cost of replacing employees who leave, the positive impact on morale at firms that offer flexibility, the institutional knowledge that stays with the firm, the increased productivity of happier employees.) But the article focuses mainly on the IT profession. I would imagine that senior partners at many major firms would find ways to distinguish the practice of law.

The business case for allowing flexible work arrangements in the law is similar to the IT profession. But the attorney/client relationship is often a more personal relationship and anyone arguing that flexible staffing makes business sense in a law firm must also address the issue of client service (i.e. how to ensure that clients who are paying top dollar are getting the high level of customer service and the high quality of legal representation that they expect.)

Certainly law firms can save on recruiting and training if they find creative ways to reduce turnover. However, they also need to be more creative about finding ways to staff deals and litigation matters in a way that ensures the client always has access to a professional that he or she trusts.