Over the past months, as I’ve been working with increasing numbers of lawyers who have lost their jobs, are in the process of losing their jobs, or who live in daily fear of losing their jobs, I’ve been able to see first-hand both how important and challenging it is to think positive.

Looking for a job can be a full-time job. You need patience to play out the waiting game; perseverance in the face of rejection and bad news; persistence to keep moving forward when motivation may wane; and, perhaps most important, a positive perspective to keep your motivation high.

Staying Positive Is Critical

A brief interview with outplacement guru Marcia Shannon of Shannon & Manch LLP, who has over 27 years of experience counseling individuals in the job search process, drives home how critical it can be to stay positive.

DC: Why is it important to stay positive in a job search?

MS: A positive attitude can have a tremendous impact on every phase of your job search. There’s no doubt in my mind that those with positive attitudes often end up in much better situations than those without.

DC: What are some specific outcomes of maintaining a positive attitude during a job search?

MS: Individuals who take a positive outlook tend to network more, search more job listings, and take a creative approach in expanding their opportunities—something that is very important in this job market. During the networking process, others are drawn towards those with a positive attitude, and tend to want to be more helpful to those who have this attitude.

DC: In what areas, besides networking, is a positive outlook helpful?

MS: A positive attitude can make or break an interview. Competition is keen and employers want to hire those who are not only qualified, but also a welcome addition to the work environment. In other words, people want to hire people they would enjoy working with.

As Shannon concludes, “Overall, we have the choice to approach the job search in a positive or negative way, even given the current state of the economy.”

Practice Five Positive-Thinking Exercises

Here are five tips to help you heed this expert advice and maintain a positive attitude during these troubling times:

• Surround yourself with positive people. Having a network of people who are currently or recently similarly situated to share resources and ideas with can be helpful. The positive effects will be greatly diminished, however, if those people are persistently panicky, stressed and negative. Make sure to include people in your support network who are positive, upbeat, encouraging, resilient and have a “can and will do” attitude. Moods are infectious and those who are paranoid and anxious about the market are likely to bring your mood down. Although I am certainly not suggesting you adopt denial as a coping strategy, I urge you to keep things in perspective. Fear can motivate you to take action, but it needs to be kept in check to be most productive,

• Accentuate the positive. Identifying what you are grateful for can help lift your mood and put things into perspective. I’m infamous with my clients for the line, “What I like about this is…” When clients begin a litany of complaints about a given situation, I’ll let them go on for a minute or two and then ask them what they like about the situation: How can they grow from it? What’s the lesson to be learned? Is there a hidden opportunity? What will they do differently as a result? How will that have a healthy impact on their lives? This simple exercise can help remind you of the many strengths and resources you have as you navigate this difficult situation.

Sometimes it seems impossible to find the good in challenging situations. Volunteering can be a great way to get a new perspective. Volunteer in a soup kitchen or at hospice with those who are terminally ill. Activities like these help you appreciate the advantages you enjoy that others do not—your level of education, prior work experiences, health, the opportunities you’ve been afforded, and all the loved ones in your life.

• Catch yourself when you start getting negative. Another technique I use with my clients is the “light side/dark side.” When their anxious, angry or paranoid thoughts begin to sound destructive, I tell them that they are going to “the dark side” and ask them what they would need to stay towards the light. Once they refocus, they can see the effects of staying on the light side. Our negative thoughts make us feel powerless and de-motivated—we shut down. This inhibits action and keeps us from our goals. When we’re in a negative state, it’s hard to recognize possibilities, opportunities and solutions. Staying positive keeps us energized, creative and moving forward.

• Distract yourself. When you feel yourself going “dark,” nip it in the bud. If you can’t immediately go to the “light,” at least try to stay neutral. Pick up a mindless project that’s long been on your to-do list, like cleaning out your closet, desk or junk drawer. Catch up with a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while (preferably one with a positive attitude). Exercise is a great option because it has so many healthful benefits, not the least of which is that it releases endorphins that create a “feel-good” state of being. Do some pleasure reading or watch a mindless TV show—indulge in your favorite form of escapism. Once your mood has improved, get back into action with renewed energy and focus.

• Catch up on comedy. Laughter is always a good antidote for stress and anxiety. In addition to lightening your mood, laughing gets you breathing which not only helps transport oxygen throughout your body but also helps stop any stress responses, allowing you to begin the process of recovery. Keep your favorite comedies close by your DVD player. Instead of logging on to find the latest updates in the market several times a day (which will only be depressing), create playlists on YouTube or your I-Pod that have your favorite hilarious and laughter-inducing clips.

The saying “Happy workers are productive workers” applies to the work of finding a job as well. The more you can do to keep your spirits up and stay energized and engaged, the more successful you are likely to be. It will be challenging for sure, but keep in mind that you didn’t get to where you are now without facing down a few obstacles. Keep coming back to that as you continue to plug away.

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Although the suggestions in this article are simple, they are not always easy to implement. In fact, many are challenging because they often require a change in mindset—or even more difficult, a change in behavior.

When it comes to effective time management, you need to plan, plan and then plan some more. Not planning your time is like going food shopping without a list—you end up wasting time and money by buying things you do not need and forgetting things that you do.

Work As You Shop

Super-organized shoppers create a strategy that minimizes their time while maximizing their output. Based on previous experience and exact knowledge of what they need, they sort their coupons, know the best times to shop, and can locate the items on their list. By bringing a laser-like focus to their task, they’re in and out of the store in record time. Their approach is similar to that of a heat-seeking missile—they are unstoppable in zoning in on their target.

The same strategizing can be done with respect to our day-to-day lives. How? By becoming an “efficiency expert” in training. The operative word here is “training”—an ongoing process of committing to be more efficient with your time. This can be difficult since it requires a generous helping of the “D” word—discipline.

Begin by taking a long, hard look at what is currently keeping you from being more efficient. Are you incarcerated by your email inbox? Feel too guilty to interrupt your assistant who talks your ear off? Can you never find what you are looking for because you forgot where you last put it? Many of you are used to recording your time—take this one step further by analyzing it.

Master The Three P’s Of Planning

Once you know what gets in your way, you can plan more effectively. To help you, allow me to share the three Ps of planning.

Preparing: In order to plan effectively, you need to identify all of the things that will require your time. Particularly for busy lawyers, this information can come from many varied directions. Your calendar captures your meetings and appointments. Your work assignments will also inform time expenditure. You likely have many other roles and responsibilities that need to be worked into the mix.

• Best Practice: Use a to-do list. I am often surprised when I conduct workshops or coach clients on time management to discover how many people do not use a to-do list. Capturing all of the things you need to do in one place (not unlike a shopping list), ensures that everything gets done. Keep your list in a format that makes sense for you—on a simple piece of paper, your Blackberry, the task function in Outlook, a journal, or even a series of post-it notes.
• Tip: Whatever format you chose, keep your to-do list with you at all times so that it is readily accessible when new information arises. Also, and this may sound obvious, you need to make sure to actually look at it several times throughout the day. Having a beautifully organized to-do list will be of little use if you do not consult it.

Prioritizing: Once you know all of the things you need to do, the next step is to figure out the order in which they need to be done. To determine this, ask yourself:

• Who needs it?
• What will it entail?
• When is it due?
• Where does it fit in with the other things on my plate?
• Why is it important?
• How much do I value this?

You may also categorize what you “want” to do, “need” to do and “must” do and recognize the related trade-offs.

• Best Practice: Each night or morning, identify the one or two most important things you need to do that day or the next. Even better, divide your day into chunks and then identify what is most important within those chunks. If something does not get done in one chunk, carry it into the next and consider the implications on your schedule and to-do list.

• Tip: Get the big, most important things out of the way first. Not everyone loves this suggestion—particularly those who like to check things off their list quickly. Unfortunately, the hours in a day are limited. Completing the big things first ensures that you have enough time to move on to smaller, less important tasks. Starting with the smaller items on your list puts you in danger of not leaving enough time if you get distracted or interrupted.

Plotting: Now that you know what you need to do and the order in which you need to do it, consider how you are going to do each in the most efficient way. Essentially, the plotting phase blends preparation and prioritizing. First, take an item from your to-do list and identify all of the steps involved to complete the task, asking yourself what you will need to accomplish each one. Then prioritize that information and create a process for getting it done.

• Best Practice: Take the first five minutes of any task or project to create a roadmap. Assign times for each piece of your strategy. Watch the clock while you are working to gauge whether you’re staying within your assigned time range. If you’ve done this project or task several times in the past, try to beat your own record by shaving off a few minutes where you can.

• Tip: Assemble what you need before starting a task or project. Having to stop mid-stream to get more information or supplies or to talk to people will compromise your laser focus.

A word of caution about planning—be flexible. Things beyond your control will inevitably get in the way, particularly when you work with other people. However, get back to your plan as quickly as possible.

There are literally hundreds of time management tips. Try mastering one or two of those mentioned above. Become addicted (in a healthy way) to being an efficiency expert and then keep coming back for more. The quality of your time and your life will likely improve exponentially.

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When the market does slow down, however, lawyers often feel more anxious than relieved. Free time gives them opportunity to worry about decreases in salary and bonuses and even worse, being laid off.

There’s no point ruminating about what’s out of your control. Instead, focus on what you can control. Rather than panicking, channel your energy into activities that will showcase you in a positive light and will also double as career insurance should you ultimately end up in a job search.

Many of these ten activities will not only make you feel good, they will also serve as tools to enhance your resume and build your network.

Ten Activities Will Keep You Sharp And Make You Feel Good

1. Write. This is a direct way of getting your name into circulation. Writing articles can help with business development by establishing you as an expert in your field.. It can also distinguish you from other similarly situated candidates both in interviews and on your resume. Speaking of resumes…..

2. Update your resume. Many of us think of this as a painful process. In an ideal world, you would regularly update your resume two or three times a year—adding new projects, responsibilities and accomplishments as they happen in real time. For those of you who haven’t updated your resume in years, I recommend Make the Right Career Move by Rachelle Canter 1., an excellent book with invaluable chapters on resume writing. As you redo your resume, think about where you are in your career and where you want to go.

3. Organize your office. If clients walked by your office, would they be impressed or would they quickly retreat with a look of disgust? For those of you who haven’t sent a file down to records in years, now’s your opportunity. Invest some time to make sure everything in your office has a place where it belongs. Check the health and effectiveness of your filing system. Getting organized will be a huge help when things pick up again. Also, as you go through your files, you may discover topics on which to write, and accomplishments to add to your resume.

4. Focus on training. Rather than dashing to complete CLE credits before state deadlines, get them out of the way now. Better yet, offer to teach a CLE course. This will help establish you as an expert and will give you a chance to practice public speaking. As an added bonus, in many states presenters earn double the CLE credits. With the luxury of time, you can pick topics that actually interest you and are relevant to your career as opposed to settling for whatever is being offered. You can also use the time to work on your development areas. If writing has been an issue for you, get a writing coach. If you’ve been working on your negotiation skills, spend time with a colleague skilled in that area. Ask questions about your development areas and then practice, practice, practice. Keeping busy with non-billable time will look better than just having low billable hours—particularly when expectations around billable hours will be low anyway.

5. Get current. Now’s the time to catch up on all the articles, newsletters or books you’ve been accumulating. Look at your particular industry through the lens of the economy. What strategy can your clients adopt to steer themselves through tough times? What legal or business implications might they be facing and how can you help them? Even better, use your newly- enhanced knowledge of your area to connect with clients: spend time with and stay close to them. Show them you are just as concerned about their businesses as they are.

6. Practice business development. A dip in the economy is the perfect time to brainstorm: write down ideas you have for expanding your current client base or acquiring new clients. Don’t dismiss anything. Start building a strategy for each idea. Keep the good ideas and recycle the old ones while staying open to creative solutions.

7. Get involved. If you work at a firm, offer to interview new applicants for summer and first-year positions. Join firm committees or groups that you’ve always been interested in. Volunteer to mentor a new associate. All of these activities will establish your citizenship in the firm. As a former insider, I can assure you that being in the good graces of the recruiting and professional development staff is always a good idea.

8. Network. Make good on your promise to reach out to all the contacts you’ve been amassing. Look up the person you shared a panel with. Combine networking and business development by catching up with a former client or law school classmate; conversations like this might spark either a business development opportunity or an idea for a written piece. Reach out to someone who has a job you might be interested in. Network to catch up on what’s going on in your clients’ industries. Get involved in your local or state bar association and avail yourself of the tremendous networking resources it can provide.

9. Give back. Get involved in a pro bono case—particularly one that has meaning for you. This will give you an opportunity to keep your skills sharp while waiting for other work; you might even learn a new skill or two to use in an interview or job transition. Don’t restrict yourself to the legal field: volunteer for any organization you’re interested in. All of this can help your interviewing, networking and business development—while doing something good. For some ideas, check out www.probono.net or www.voa.org.

10. Recover! Don’t panic—use the time productively. Go on that vacation you had to cancel last year. Spend more time with loved ones. Read the crime novel that’s been collecting dust on your night table. Schedule long-overdue doctors’ appointments. Check in with your financial adviser. In all likelihood, the market will rebound and when it does, you’ll be in an energized and positive state of mind.

If you adopt my new favorite quote, “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional” (author unknown), you’ll start converting your nervous energy during slow times into productivity. Keep busy, stay on people’s radar screens, and become engaged in other endeavors. Focus on the overall value these activities add to your career and plan for ways you can make them part of your regular routine, even when the economy picks up.

Footnotes

1.) Canter, Rachelle; Make the Right Career Move: 28 Critical Insights and Strategies to Land Your Dream Job; Wiley, John & Sons, Incorporated, 2006.

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This new crop of lawyers is not afraid to say what they think out loud and online. They are less willing than previous generations to put up with inefficiently managed firms, and more willing to directly question the system. Since they hold the very concept of the billable hour in question—as do more and more clients—the entry of these lawyers into the work force may create the conditions for a perfect storm.

Law firms are in a tough spot, though. Because they feel pressure from their own clients to justify ever increasing billable rates—increases that in large part offset higher associate salaries—firms expect associates to be profitable by burning the midnight oil. From a bottom-line, business standpoint, this expectation doesn’t seem all that unreasonable.
Young Attorneys Want To Change The Workplace—Not Settle

New associates, however, feel equally entitled to time to pursue what’s important to them. As described in a recent article in Fortune Magazine, “They’re ambitious, they’re demanding, and they question everything, so if there isn’t a good reason for that long commute or that late night, don’t expect them to do it. When it comes to loyalty, the companies they work for are last on their list—behind their families, their friends, their communities, their co-workers, and, of course, themselves.”1

Unfortunately for law firms, the time may come—here’s a crazy thought—when new associates may actually decide they are no longer willing to make the traditional trade-off of time for money. Because many parents are paying for law school and are more than happy to have their children live at home, this new generation of lawyers enters firms unencumbered by golden handcuffs: they have the security to walk away from the money law firms are throwing at them. This means that firms have to get more creative about attracting and retaining talent.

Can these new developments result in a win-win? Can new associates push the envelope to help a stressed-out industry on the verge of a breakdown find more balance? Can law firms help new associates accelerate their professional growth by teaching them that in order to get the experience they desire they need to inspire more senior attorneys to participate in their careers?

Lawyers Young And Old Have The Tools To Solve The Standoff

Progress can be made if both sides want to move forward, and are willing to engage in a trust-based, forward-focused dialog. Each group will need to advocate for itself, negotiate with one another and compromise. The good news is that lawyers excel at advocacy, negotiation and creative problem-solving—and that the legal profession is filled with some of the brightest minds in the country.

Firms that get ahead of this curve will be strategically positioned to have their pick of the undeniable talent the new generation of lawyers will bring to the table. Unfortunately, this will require firms to invest time and resources, which are already scarce—perpetuating a vicious cycle.

The downturn in the market may provide the perfect opportunity for law firms to start getting ahead. Firms can spend the extra time recovering and instituting best practices that will benefit everyone involved. We’re all more amenable to adopting new behaviors when we’re less stressed and have more time to practice. Here are some ways law firms can proceed.

Option 1: Set and clarify expectations for associates during the interview process, summer program, orientation and annual evaluations. Expectations also need to be reinforced in one-one interactions. If an associate is falling short, this person needs to be held accountable, and an intervention needs to take place in real time. Once the initial contract has been established, first acknowledge the associate’s perspective and then turn the conversation to something she has already agreed to, or is at least aware of. Off-track relationships seldom self-repair in the absence of communication.

Option 2: Train your attorneys to be more efficient with their time, manage their stress, run productive teams, be effective communicators, and become leaders. Because students don’t learn these skills at law school, they need to learn them once they’re employed. Right now, law firms provide neither the time nor incentive for skill-training, but this needs to change. When lawyers are formally trained in the above skills, everyone will become more efficient and productive, more willing to dialogue, and more invested in creating an enjoyable and balanced culture.

Option 3: Meet your new associates at least halfway—they may be on to something. There’s a saying in management that happy workers are productive workers. A powerful business strategy that factors in employee happiness could bring some sanity and humanity into law firms.

Consider letting new lawyers work from home or on reduced schedules that do not take them off of partnership track. Give them the flexibility to get their work done the way they want—as long as it gets done. These changes are daunting but they are not impossible. Here’s a challenge I give to clients when they diligently list all of the reasons a suggestion or idea will not work: try to come up with at least one reason why it could work. Make the counterargument and see where it takes you. You may be surprised to find it’s not as hard as you originally thought.

Watching this scenario play out should prove fascinating. I hope all parties will keep talking, trying to understand each other’s differing perspectives and borrowing best practices. My greatest wish for law firms and the lawyers who walk their halls is that the new generation forges slow and steady victories in the struggle to bring balance back to the industry with minimum collateral damage.

____________

FOOTNOTES

1. “You Raised Them, Now Manage Them” by Nadira A. Hira, Fortune, May 28, 2007.

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