On Tuesday, I wrote about the work the Beatles did to become THE BEATLES and I asked what are you doing to become THE RAINMAKER. Knowing you might benefit from reading about what other lawyers are doing, here is a good example.
Last year I had the opportunity to coach Lizzette Zubey, an IP associate with Lewis and Roca in Phoenix. At the time, Lizzette was the President of Los Abogados, Arizona’s Hispanic Bar Association. Lizzette first got involved with the organization as a law student, after receiving its Honorable Valdemar Cordova Scholarship. She was drawn to the group because of its efforts on civil rights for Hispanics. During her first year in practice, she ran for a seat on its Board of Directors. In her fifth year she was named its President.
In our first coaching session, Lizzette and I talked about narrowing her market and striving to become a “go to” IP lawyer for Hispanic owned businesses. She loved the idea and worked during our entire coaching year on raising her visibility. Here are a few examples:
- She was interviewed on IP issues on Inside Arizona Business, a television program in Tucson.
- She organized a luncheon where the two Democratic candidates running for Maricopa County Attorney’s Office spoke, which was covered by local Spanish and English news media.
- She was selected by the Business Journal as a member of the 2008 Hispanic Leaders Under 40.
- She is Regional President of the Hispanic National Bar Association and her firm hosted events during the HNBA Board Meeting in Phoenix
- She was featured in the January/February 2009 issue of Iguana, a children’s Spanish language magazine with international circulation. The title of the article was: “Young Lawyer Persevered Before Difficulties.”
Like the Beatles, Lizzette is working hard to become more visible and she knows it doesn’t happen overnight. She is patient and persistent. I know her efforts are slowly raising her profile in the Hispanic business community. What can you do the rest of this year to begin the process of becoming THE RAINMAKER.