I enjoy the company of intelligent, powerful people, especially the attorneys of color I meet through my work at Threshold Advisors. I’ve worked with many through our training sessions and presentations at conferences and retreats. Each time, my fellow coaches and I encounter spirited professionals who are anxious to learn and excel at their firms or in individual practices. This spirit is infectious. At a recent business development training session for women at an industry association conference, the room was buzzing with the sharing of information, ideas and resources. The group enjoyed it so much; they didn’t want the conversation to end. As an experiment, my partner and I decided to offer a group coaching series over the next few months to facilitate the group in continuing the strategy, planning, and execution, at a cost decided by each participant. About sixty women lawyers decided to take advantage of the opportunity, and provided their contact information so they could be informed when the group would start.
We designed the format, emailed the individuals on the list with start dates, and what do you think happened? We got all those women down the path to rainmaking success, right? Wrong. Somehow these sixty women returned to their offices and only one acknowledged the commitment that she had made to continue with the coaching and training. With cost not a factor, still only one out of sixty followed though with her intention. What happened?
This has not been the only time we have encountered lack of follow-through. We’ve offered to connect women and lawyers of color to resources or relationships they requested. They all have excitedly accepted the offer, yet many never follow up to fulfill it. Why?
We can only look at the choices made by women and attorneys of color to find an answer. We see many diligent attorneys choosing to focus on taking care of the work, their clients, their practice group leaders, their senior partners and their firm committees. Further, away from the office attorneys are often taking care of those that are important to them as well. Some women and diverse lawyers occasionally make time for a little exercise, retail therapy or spending time with friends, but it is also not unusual to observe those who neglect their mental and physical health in favor of focusing almost solely on the billable hour.
I really dislike questioning the choices of women and attorneys of color. I consider myself a supporter and champion of their success. And, I’m compelled to urge these two communities to take a hard look in the mirror and think about the choices they are making. Don’t fall victim to the “I don’t have enough time…” mentality. The billable hour is not the only factor in achieving success as an attorney.
Here’s an alert for you… all the successful rainmakers that I’ve interviewed, regardless of gender or ethnicity, find time for their relationship development and personal growth beyond the billable hour. They are all keenly aware of their billables AND they find time for career-enhancing activities too. Let this be your precedent. Maybe you’d like to make more professional connections, or start eating healthier and making time for exercise. Even small units of time, as little as five minutes, can make a big difference in reaching your business and personal development goals. Follow these four steps to make time for small changes that have a big impact on your satisfaction in your life and career.
Step 1: Define What You Really Want
Notice what type of balance (and imbalance) your choices are providing you. Are you integrating everything in life that is important to you? Or are you spending too much time working to the exclusion of everything else? Take ten minutes and jot down what your ideal integrated success includes.
Step 2: Enlist Some Help
Take ten minutes to list available resources to help you achieve your goals. Do you have an assistant? What about a marketing person at your firm? What about an accountability partner? How about a personal friend you can bounce ideas off of? It’s too easy to fall into the trap of doing everything yourself.
Step 3: Make a Commitment to Change—Five Minutes at a Time
In that short time, you can walk around your building to get some exercise or schedule an appointment with your assistant to learn how he can support you differently or research (or ask your assistant to) healthy lunch options that deliver to the office. You can make a list of former clients you’d like to reach out to or leave a voice message and tell someone, “Hello, I’d like to get together with coffee, When are you free?” Make a list of these “five minute activities” that will help you reach your goals and keep it by your desk. Choose from your list when foresee you’ll have five minutes available.
Step 4: Asses Your Progress
Once you make a commitment to change, assess your activities each week. Celebrate any five minutes you spent that week working on you—and feel excited about it. Acknowledge your progress, plan how to overcome obstacles (in five minutes of course) and continue to focus on your desired result.
Your goals may be big, but can often be achieved in short bursts completed over a sustained period of time. You need to make the commitment to take action and be honest with yourself about your choices. If you choose to ignore improving your physical health or personal development, be honest about the choice and accept the repercussions that follow. Don’t simply allow the missed opportunities to land in the “I don’t have time” bucket. If you can’t find five minutes in your day to move toward your goal, your goal isn’t important enough to you. Then it’s time to evaluate what is important to you! Lean in and take a look. Remember, we are all responsible for our choices.