legal sanity

Authentic. Transparent. Human.

These three words come up again and again in conversations about creating and sustaining business relationships in the current marketplace. For lawyers, this really isn’t about a new way of relating to our clients, prospects and colleagues. It’s about getting back to our roots as service providers and connecting with the people behind the legal matters we take on. The practice of law has always been about helping people solve problems, overcome challenges and meet goals. But, somewhere along the way, the legal profession (with the help of law schools) lost sight of its human nature.

Over the years, I’ve posted on the importance of bringing ourselves back to our work so we can authentically relate to our clients and others:

• Finding ourselves in our work  
• Self-awareness in the practice of law
• What lawyers can learn about the power of authenticity
• Making the connection
• Mutuality in business relationships

In his new book, Fuel the Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law & Life, Colorado attorney Kevin Houchin shares practical wisdom on cultivating an authentic life in the law. Legal Sanity Co-producer Lori Herz asked Kevin for his thoughts on (re)designing the lawyer-client relationship for a better client experience.

LH: You set out five guiding values in your book: Accept; Show Up; Pay Attention; Many irons In The Fire; and Stewardship. They’re all relevant to cultivating a meaningful life in, and outside of, the law. But, I’d like to focus on the first one – Accept. In the chapter on this guidepost, you write something that I find particularly compelling:

“There are many things about the legal profession you must simply accept because you cannot change them. But there are also many things you can change because you control your outlook, your goals, and your choices. To maintain balance in your practice and your life, you must first identify what you are willing to accept and what you are willing to accept the responsibility for changing.”

How do you think this pertains to the way lawyers can connect with clients and others in everyday practice?

KH: The possibilities here are as endless as the combinations of lawyers, clients and matters.The first level of this value aims to help us think about the types of cases we take on and what that means to society. For instance, I don't accept criminal or divorce cases. Accordingly, since I don't accept personal responsibility for changing those situations for those clients, I have accepted to let those situations exist as they are - hoping other attorneys will accept the responsibility to take the necessary steps to help society.  

At the next level, we can choose how we will interact with our clients, but it's important that we don't judge either our clients or ourselves too harshly. Each client is different, some are very business-like and don't want a lot of small talk, especially if they think the "clock is running.” Others simply want someone to listen to their full story and empathize, even if we could jump in with the answer after only a few minutes. I talk a little bit about this in the section discussing my theory that to receive respect from our clients and peers, we must first surrender our instinct to judge.

LH: Yes, in that section you encourage us to identify what we must surrender in order to receive the changes we want in our law practice. As an example of this surrender-to-receive dynamic, you write:

“When you surrender judgment, you automatically open up to the possibility that the other person is worthy of respect. In turn, that makes it easier for the other person to open up to the possibility that you are worthy of respect.”

I really like this couplet. I call this “mutuality” in business relationships – a genuine kind of give and take. Is this what you’re getting at?

KH: "Mutuality." I like that word. I hadn't thought of it exactly that way, but it works. To some extent, we have to put ourselves emotionally in the trenches with our client's immediate challenge. When they know that we are with them emotionally, as well as physically and intellectually, something changes. The trust deepens. As I discussed before, I don't take on criminal cases because I don't know if I could let myself be that open to the client in those situations. That's just me. The important thing is to know yourself well enough that you do your best to only take on cases where you are able to form this kind of emotional bond with your client. It helps you be a better lawyer, and on a practical note, it will shorten the time it takes to get paid for your work because the client knows you're not just helping them for the money.

LH: To surrender our judgment in the lawyer-client relationship, we need to really listen to our clients and not talk over and around them with a deaf ear. This syncs with another of your guiding values – Pay Attention. You write:

“We sometimes deal with clients during very difficult times in their lives, so paying attention to how they are saying something may allow you to alleviate some discomfort, heal some harm, remove some shame, and get to the bottom of the problem.”

Can you share a personal experience with this?

KH: The simplest thing happens fairly often in my office because I'm a true solo and do not have a receptionist. The phone will ring in the middle of a meeting and my client might look at me with some surprise that I don't move to answer it. This gives me a chance to let them know that I'm paying attention to them in the moment. Take it a step farther and you're squarely in the active-listening techniques. In those active listening situations, you find the chance to make the emotional connection.  Showing that you have personally made the same mistake the client made in a situation, letting them know they aren't stupid, or that others have done the same thing pretty often removes their shame and fear and helps you start solving the problem. The next step of paying attention is watching for ways to help your clients when they're not in the room - referrals or becoming a fan of their product on Facebook are good examples. Following them on Twitter is another. Basically, becoming their friend instead of just their attorney will go a long way toward helping you be a better lawyer. It will also bring you more business and help you reach your own personal goals for success.

LH: Kevin, thanks for sharing your thoughts on client service and helping us cultivate legal sanity. We wish you all the best with your new book.

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I’m a big fan of lawyer mentoring and have given and received this guidance throughout my career. Although lawyers typically look to other lawyers to mentor them, I’ve learned a lot about business and service from people outside the legal profession.

With a nod to the value of cross-discipline mentoring, I’m starting a new feature today called the legal sanity mentor. Each month, experts and influencers across a range of fields will share their views on and around the topic of designing and delivering client-centric services.

As I’ve posted before, we’re living in an era of consumer control. Clients are no longer content to be passive recipients of legal services. They are active and educated co-creators who want us to understand and respond to them as human beings in need. The lawyers who will thrive in this new marketplace are those who place a premium on a positive client experience.

Lori Herz is legal sanity’s longtime co-producer and content director. She recently talked to Dan Formosa, an award-winning design expert and one of the founding members of Smart Design, about his firm’s approach to user-centricity.

LH: Where in your product design process does the consumer experience become relevant?

DF: It’s always relevant. We started Smart Design on the idea that design should be more about people than things. It’s important to consider the social science and psychology behind the design.

LH: How do you make the jump from that idea to reality?

DF: In our industry, people often focus on how the average person would use a product, often homogenizing people into “personas." It’s like designing things for imaginary friends. It’s very idealized. Instead, at Smart Design, we consider a wide range of people. Lately we’ve been taking the design process through a reality check that we call “6 Real People.”

LH: How do you engage the six?

DF: Actually, it’s not always six. It’s at least that many, but can be more. The point is to engage real people in a real dialogue about the products we’re working on. We photograph and videotape them talking about and using the products. We pay attention to their perceptions and reactions and really get to know them. When we talk about the products as a design team, we refer to these reality checkers and say things like, “Susan could do that, but George couldn’t.”

LH: So, since the beginning, you’ve built your design business around the user experience. I think that you broke some ground on an approach that’s now gaining momentum in the marketplace.

DF: Yes. The brand itself is no longer the lure for consumers. People make buying decisions based on other people’s experiences with a product or service (think Amazon or CNET reviews). In the design world, this creates amazing opportunities for innovating and making improvements on existing products. These same opportunities exist in other fields, like the law.

Many thanks to Dan for sharing these insights as a legal sanity mentor.

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I grew up and live just outside New York City.

In the days and weeks after 9/11, I felt so sad. It was not just the personal loss I experienced. It was a more pervasive feeling that the world as I knew it no longer existed. My foundation of safety and security – the foundation I was working so hard to build and sustain for my young family – had been rocked.

At the same time, I couldn’t help but notice the sense of community and camaraderie that was rising. We’ve all heard and read moving stories of strangers helping each other and people’s amazing generosity of time, energy and spirit. As it was facing the reality of the day and trying to move on and heal, a culture of connection grew in New York City.

In the last post I wrote here pre-hiatus, I reengaged the topic of creating a connection culture in the law. With the downturn in our economy and within the legal profession, the need for this kind of culture is greater than ever. And so is the opportunity for creating it. As firms take a good hard look at the state of their business, they can and should consider the state of their business culture. If it’s in disarray, steps can be taken to understand what’s wrong and make positive changes.

I just read Peter D. Zeughauser’s take on Four Essential Elements of a Strong Law Firm Culture. Launching from the premise that “successful growth can only be accomplished from a position of strength, broadly defined to include a culture that breeds partners who are in it for each other, not just themselves,” he identifies the essential four as:

• Hard work
• Rewards for rainmakers
• Knowing who you are (and who you aren’t)
• Transparency, with discretion

While Zeughauser provides valuable insight into the partner side of the connection culture, firms also have to consider how to bring their associates into the cultural mix. According to consultant Susan Letterman White, one way to do this is to encourage and create avenues for peer-to-peer coaching.

According to White, peer-to-peer coaching differs from more traditional lawyer coaching (full disclosure: one of my professional hats is business coach for lawyers) and lawyer mentoring in that:

Peer-to-peer coaching is [ ] between two people who are at the same or similar levels within the law firm. The intention of the relationship is to mutually and similarly benefit the peers, unlike traditional coaching or mentoring, where the primary benefit is intended for the less experienced person. By working together to make sense of particular problems, gaps in knowledge or needed skill development, each person learns about his or her strengths and weaknesses and those of the other. Together the pair learns how to change weaknesses into strengths and use opportunities for development. This benefits the individuals and the law firm.

I’ve always been a big proponent of mutuality in business relationships. The mutuality that peer-to-peer coaching fosters will only solidify the sense of community and common purpose that are key connecting points for firm lawyers.

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