As many of you know, when I talk to young lawyers I stress taking responsibility for your own career and success. That is easily said, but what does it mean? Put simply, you need to understand clearly what you want out of your career and your life. Then, you actually have to develop long and short-term plans and take the actions that will get you there. It means making choices on how you will spend your time.

Stephen Covey’s first habit of the “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” is to be proactive. You get to choose how you respond to things that happen to you. Stephen Covey gives a short summary.