Multi-tasking is a Myth

The human brain is not actually capable of doing two things at exactly the same time. Of course if you get proficient at something, you can get very good at switching quickly between two activities (to create the illusion that you are multi-tasking). A good piano player does this all the time (quickly switching his or her attention back and forth between the left and right hands.)

And a Blackberry does make it possible to be at your kid's soccer game and wait for an important e-mail message. But don't think for a minute that you can actually work on your Blackberry while watching the soccer game. Either you are not really watching the soccer game, not really getting anything done on your Blackberry or doing both poorly. If you play your cards right, maybe you'll watch the game with focus until the message arrives; but then you'll be in work mode.

Two recent articles highlight how there is no substitute for actually paying attention. One article focuses on the way computing can interrupt the healthy bonding that takes place between mothers and their babies. The other discusses how one doctor observed practitioners making a poor connection with their patients when they sat in front of a computer terminal while talking to them (scroll down to Electronic records no panacea.)

So stop checking your Blackberry when you are at a lunch meeting! You will only diminish the connection between you and your lunch date. If you are expecting an important message that will need a timely response, at least warn your companion and apologize in advance. Anything short of that is rude behavior (for those of us who still care about manners.)

How NOT to Recruit Laterals

Law firms are not always known for having the most advanced management practices. As a recruiter, I've seen many firms miss the chance of hiring great talent simply because they did not pay enough attention to the candidate. A recruiter in Texas has some good anecdotes about this. I also wrote about this subject not long ago.

Keeping it All in Perspective

We have so much to be thankful for in this country. Having a bad day at work? Think about the people of Myanmar.

Depression and the Legal Profession

Robert Ambrogi writes about the issue of depression in the legal profession. Does practicing law cause more people to be depressed than other professions or are individuals who choose to practice law more susceptible to depression?

I don't personally have the answer but I can offer these thoughts: lawyers spend their days thinking about what can go wrong (in a corporate transaction, in a courtroom, etc.) If you devote a lot of mental energy to thinking about negative things (what if the buyer goes bankrupt before the closing? what if there is toxic waste on the property? what if the opposing counsel cross examines the witness about his romantic relationship with the defendant? what if, what if, what if....) This kind of thinking is critical to the competent practice of law. But it needs to be offset with some big picture thinking (how will this deal advance the client's business interests? how will a plaintiff's verdict enable the individual to get back on his feet in the work force?)

Lawyers are sometimes accused by business people of being deal killers. Maybe killing too many deals leads to depression because you have failed to see the potential upsides for the client.

So do some depression prevention. Start thinking positively about your client's career, life or business objectives. You may still end up warning your client about risks that should be avoided. But if you temper that with reality (is the risk actually remote?), then you may find your own day brightening a little and in the end, you'll have happier clients.

If You Feed Them, They Will Come

I was reminded yesterday that food is the universal marketing tool. If you want to gather a crowd, good food is the key. Are you thinking of planning an event for clients or prospective clients? Make sure the publicity clearly states that food and drinks will be served.

For the past two years, I have sublet space from a boutique law firm, Gesmer Updegrove. In a short time, I have come to appreciate that this firm really knows how to throw a good party. They also understand how to leverage a marketing event.

Take yesterday's Open House. The firm sent out invitations that were followed up by several e-mail reminders. They created a web page and gave out door prizes every hour (i-pods in this case.) Every attorney at the firm was given a list of which clients were planning to attend. There were name tags, of course, a slide show displaying the logos of their clients (the firm represents a lot of technology companies) and most importantly, a crowded lobby and conference room (note to self--make sure to choose a room you can fill if you want good energy at an event.) It was a low keyed affair but it seemed like people were having a good time (and the hors doeuvres were yummy!) All in all, pretty good bang for the marketing buck!

The Rich Get Richer

Biglaw profits continue to outpace the rest of the legal profession. That's my take on the just released AmLaw100.

Survey on Job Interviewing Etiquette

Vault has some interesting findings. Sounds like everyone should send thank you notes by e-mail.

Legal and Accounting Malpractice--Growth Areas?

According to the NLJ, lawyers and accountants are increasingly being sued by bankruptcy trustees for malpractice (in connection with misrepresenting a bankrupt company's true financial position.) In Boston, we are still waiting for a wave of bankruptcy and litigation to replace the heavy deal flow that was fueling law firm profits for the past several years. It hasn't happened yet, though bankruptcy practice is on the rise in New York. Could this signal a new wave of litigation?

Risky Business for In-House Counsel?

I've written in the past about the pro's and con's of leaving private practice for a corporate job. Overall, GC's seem to have a high level of career satisfaction. Here is more evidence of that. But GC jobs can be less secure than law firm jobs because partners have a more diversified portfolio of clients.

Corporate mergers are a risk for GC's but there are others. For example, the backdating scandal highlights additional risks for lawyers who decide that life might be better on the inside.

Dress for Success

A partner at Womble Carlyle believes that lawyers should dress like lawyers. Personally, I rarely find myself wearing a tie or sport coat. It has been over 10 years since I worked in a job where I was expected to put on a suit every day and frankly, I don't find them that comfortable; but I think this partner is on to something.

Maybe what matters is that you have a suit in your office so that you can dress "appropriately" when you are with clients. We all expect our doctors and dentists to wear lab coats or scrubs. Don't clients who are paying several hundred dollars an hour expect to see their clients dressed in the appropriate uniform?

Which Way is Your Elevator Moving?

Assuming you are reasonably intelligent, success in law school is largely determined by effort. If you do the work, the grades will follow. In the real world, effort matters too; but once you are in practice, there are many other variables that affect your overall success. In the real world, showing up and doing a good job are no guarantees that you will advance.

In a law firm, your ability to originate work can have a big impact on your standing. You may be doing great legal work and providing great customer service. You may be putting in a tremendous effort to be a great lawyer; but that may not be enough in order to advance to partnership.

Furthermore, even if you are putting in a lot of effort to generate work, in the short run, your business development activities may not yield fruit. Put another way, if you have 10 business prospects, in all likelihood, 9 of them will fizzle. How you recover from that failure will affect your longterm success at generating work.

It is easy to get discouraged when a hot business lead goes nowhere; or worse, when one of your competitors wins the business and you know you would do a better job. When this happens, it is easy to step onto the "down elevator". Your confidence is challenged and you unconsciously communicate this to your remaining prospects. In sharp contrast, when you "win business", you step triumphantly onto the "up elevator". You feel confident about being retained to handle a piece of complex litigation or an interesting business transaction. You project this confidence and this in turn raises your rate of success.

So what is the career advice? Only be successful? Of course not. But network like crazy on the heels of a success. Stay on the "up elevator" as long as you can.

In the face of "failure", find a way to get off the down elevator. Here are some suggestions on how to reverse your momentum:

1. Do a great job on a client matter that you have on your plate. While this won't necessarily give you more work, if the client is happy and praises your work, this will help remind you that you are a good lawyer.
2. Look to your personal life for successes. Vigorously pursue accomplishment in sports, music, volunteer work or child rearing.
3. Circle back to the prospective client who awarded the work elsewhere and let him or her know that you would still be very interested in being a resource.
4. Do something fun for yourself (go to the gym, see a movie, get a massage, go out to dinner with a friend.)

I could go on; but you get the idea.

Measuring Success

Success is much more than the money in your bank account. While it’s nice to be well compensated for your work, there are many other important variables in measuring your success as a professional. Is the work you do challenging? Do you find it engaging and do you get good results? Do you like your clients? Are you respected by your colleagues and lawyers in the legal community at large? Are your personal and professional lives in balance?

As a recruiter, I actually score pretty high with respect to these intangibles. But because some of the other recruiters in my organization generate larger fees than me, I often have to remind myself that I am also a success.

The other night, for example, I was talking to a lawyer at a party. I described what I do and then added that I’ll never be the most “successful” legal recruiter. (I further explained that there are headhunters who generate three to four times as much as me in any given year.) To this he responded “Well I guess that depends on how you measure success.” And he was right! While I could make more money as a recruiter if I spent more time on the phone with “hot” prospects, I choose to spend a portion of my time writing articles, speaking on career issues, blogging and even counseling lawyers who I cannot place. Earlier this Winter, the ABA Journal named this blog to its Blawg100 (the top 100 blogs by lawyers, for lawyers.) To me, that was a huge measure of success (though it didn’t generate any fees.)

So how “successful are you”? Aside from the compensation you earn, how much respect do you earn from other associates? From partners? From clients? Are you a "good" lawyer?

A Bizarre Take on the Spitzer Story

Several days ago, I suggested some career lessons we can learn from Eliot Spitzer so I couldn't resist linking to this latest post by career "guru" Penelepe Trunk (I put the "guru" in quotations because she evokes both strong praise and equally strong criticism from her readers.) Penelope suggests that there are some good career lessons we can all learn from Spitzer's call girl. Her choice of subject matter is truly bizarre; but I think she makes some good points that are relevant to lawyers (1. invest in yourself 2. know what you are selling and 3. if you do more than one thing--which is true for most lawyers--look for the synergies, e.g. practice bankruptcy and finance, M&A and general corporate, etc. )

Returning to Law Firm Practice--Another View

In my post yesterday, I linked to my colleague Gloria Cannon's article about in-house careers. In the article, she made the case that it is difficult to go from a law department back to a firm (unless you can bring a significant amount of work from your corporate employer.)

I neglected to mention my own view which is that going back to private practice may not be quite as difficult as Gloria suggests (though it is certainly difficult--particularly if you want to return to a large firm.) Here is someone who supports this alternative view.