Brand
Business
Leadership
“This book tells you all you need to know about how to get on.” The Times
“Relatively few books have been written with assistant solicitors in mind, about how to succeed at the business of being a lawyer… fewer still have devised a programme for so doing that runs alongside a book. This book does both.”Law Society (The Law Management Section)
5 star rating HR Magazine
Over the last few weeks, I have given various presentations to young lawyers about their career development. During the Q & A sessions, they have repetitively asked the same basic question: “How do I distinguish myself and get ahead?” So in my last presentation, I pre-empted the query by asking the audience what they thought was most important for success as a lawyer. Here’s their list:
Quality work
Delivering beyond expectation
Expertise and/or being the best in your field
Academic and intellectual credentials
Building relationships with clients
Status and reputation of the lawyer’s firm
Individual reputation in the market as an expert—e.g. writing articles, speaking at conferences, etc.
Persistence and hard work
Investing in client development and marketing activities
Now while all of these things are essential for building your reputation and maintaining client relationships, the bad news is that even this list is no longer sufficient for really distinguishing yourself or building a personal brand. Lawyers need to think beyond the traditional differentiators, and focus on the value that they deliver to their clients beyond their delivery of legal work" something no one in my audience raised at all.
Posted on 04/11/2009