If you are not a golfer and none of your clients or referral sources are golfers, you probably think you can skip reading this blog because there is nothing of value in it. But, there is a quote from the book that I think you will find valuable. The book is The Match: The Day… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Book Reviews
Subscribe to Book Reviews RSS FeedThe Brand Called You: Building and Broadcasting Your Brand
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Client DevelopmentOne of my favorite business books is “Never Eat Alone” by Keith Ferrazzi. I have listened to the book on my iPod and read a hard copy of the book. Most law firms are focused on building their brand, but only a few lawyers are focused on it. In chapters 23 and 24, Ferrazzi discusses… Continue Reading
The Power of Full Engagement
Posted in Book Reviews, Career DevelopmentLaura is a lawyer who I coached when I was in charge of attorney development in my old law firm. One night she and her husband were eating dinner with Nancy and me and Laura shared with me that at the end of each day after she put her two children in bed, she was… Continue Reading
Energizing Associates
Posted in Book Reviews, Career DevelopmentWhat can a law firm do to energize its associates? First, the law firm must clearly articulate the importance of the work associates do, not in terms of billable hours or profits per partner, but rather in terms of how the work benefits clients. Many associates decided to become lawyers because they wanted to contribute… Continue Reading
The Voice of Our Clients
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Client DevelopmentFor many years I have said as lawyers we focus too much on what we do and not nearly enough on what our clients need. How can we learn what our clients need? Put simply, if we do some research and listen intently, they will tell us. Two of my friends with Patton Boggs here… Continue Reading
The Power of Observation in Client Development
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Client DevelopmentSimple observation can be a powerful client development tool. In his book Making Rain, Andrew Sobel tells a great story about his son’s interview with the head of admissions at a college to which he was applying. Sobel describes that at the end of the one-hour interview, his son said to the admissions director, “I… Continue Reading
Mass Customization
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Client DevelopmentA few years ago Barry J. Gibbons, the former Chairman and CEO of Burger King, spoke at our firm’s partner retreat. He spoke to us on Saturday morning just after a speaker from Fidelity showed us at least 100 PowerPoint slides while explaining our 401K program. Gibbons used no PowerPoint slides, so the focus was… Continue Reading
Your Law Firm’s Attorney Development Program
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Law Firm Leadership“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Chinese Proverb I like to point out that it is a mistake for law firms to focus on Profits per Partner (PPP). Instead, I recommend focusing on the things totally within… Continue Reading
Being the Best in the World is Seriously Underrated
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Client Development“Being the best in the world is seriously underrated.” I love this quote from Seth Godin at the beginning of his book: The Dip. A week ago Monday, in my blog, Become Entrepreneurial, I said that I would talk more this week about that quote. What does it mean to be “the best in the… Continue Reading
Client Development Coaching for Senior Associates and Junior Partners
Posted in Book Reviews, Career Development, Client Development, Law Firm LeadershipWas anyone surprised that Tiger Woods won the PGA tournament over the last weekend? I certainly was not surprised. I know the PGA has many outstanding golfers. Yet, no one on the tour goes into a major tournament better prepared than Tiger Woods. During his interview on Sunday, Tiger Woods talked about his consistency of… Continue Reading