Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Law Firm Partnership & Benefits ReportKickerFeaturesTopicsLaw Firm ManagementSectionsNewsLJN Newsletters

Is Good Enough Good Enough?

By Debra Forman
March 28, 2012

Too frequently, you hold yourself or others back from greater accomplishments because you perform below perceived or accepted expectations. You may have the best intentions in mind and think that all is fine. However, others may have a totally different read on the situation. Not doing something how others expect it to be done or not getting the result others anticipate or assume will be had can give rise to resentment, loss of trust, and ruined relationships. The result? Instead of advancing two or more steps forward in your client relationships and personal development, you ineffectively take two unproductive and potentially damaging steps backward.

Successful communication can be likened to a flowing and seamless dance sequence; choreographed steps and unified direction defines the movement. As lawyers, you want to clearly execute your messages and ensure that they are strategically delivered, thus enabling your listeners to hear and act upon their words. When a communication falls below expected results, your listener is left feeling unsatisfied and either wanting more information, or desiring a completely differing result. In dancing, it would be equivalent to you resorting to the same “one-two-three-one-two-three” sequence, regardless of the tempo, music being played or dance skills of your partner. If you continue to stick to these basic steps, your dance partner will get very irritated by your “it'fs good enough” position and will be uncertain as to how to proceed or anticipate your direction. Frustration will quickly lead to disinterest and boredom. Your dance partner will walk off the dance floor alone and will search for a new partner. Similarly in the legal workplace, having the wrong moves will thwart your effectiveness as a successful practitioner, client manager and business generator.

This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only

  • Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
  • Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
  • Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts

For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473

Read These Next
Law Firms are Reducing Redundant Real Estate by Bringing Support Services Back to the Office Image

A trend analysis of the benefits and challenges of bringing back administrative, word processing and billing services to law offices.

Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.

Bit Parts Image

Summary Judgment Denied Defendant in Declaratory Action by Producer of To Kill a Mockingbird Broadway Play Seeking Amateur Theatrical Rights

Risks of “Baseball Arbitration” in Resolving Real Estate Disputes Image

“Baseball arbitration” refers to the process used in Major League Baseball in which if an eligible player's representative and the club ownership cannot reach a compensation agreement through negotiation, each party enters a final submission and during a formal hearing each side — player and management — presents its case and then the designated panel of arbitrators chooses one of the salary bids with no other result being allowed. This method has become increasingly popular even beyond the sport of baseball.

Disconnect Between In-House and Outside Counsel Image

'Disconnect Between In-House and Outside Counsel is a continuation of the discussion of client expectations and the disconnect that often occurs. And although the outside attorneys should be pursuing how inside-counsel actually think, inside counsel should make an effort to impart this information without waiting to be asked.