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Posts Tagged ‘professionalism’
A Tale of Two Calls
It was the best of times, it was the worst… Oops. It’s calls, not cities. Unlike Dickens’ Tale, this one is true. Recently, I conducted two coaching calls that couldn’t be more different—best and worst. The first call was from a manager who was of the opinion that the partners’ expectations of him were beyond […]
September 18, 2017
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Follow Through or Come Through?
Every procedure, process and system is designed to produce a result. It has been tested and can be relied on to accomplish a desired end. The thinking is that if you follow the sequence or procedure, you will get the intended result. But what if you, having completed the procedure or process, still don’t get […]
Swim To The Deep End
In a recent coaching call with a manager, I was reminded of how easy it is to conform your thinking to your environment. For her, she described her specialty practice and that her clients are in a regional reach. Her enthusiasm was infectious and I was drawn to her storyline. But as we talked, my […]
Coached To Accelerate
As part of my firm-wide program to raise up high performers, I schedule coaching calls with individuals that the firm wants to invest in. I recently completed a bank of calls for a firm and, reflecting on them, I noticed that the conversations seemed to fall into three distinct categories. Some professionals were actively pursuing […]
Balance Both Sides
In order to be a high-functioning professional in your firm, you must demonstrate both technical and professional capabilities. Those are two sides of the same coin. Early in your career, technical mastery is predominant. But as you progress in your career, your professional capabilities are more necessary. Your technical competence is so much easier to […]
Lessons About Satisfaction
I just returned from Las Vegas where I facilitated a firm leaders conference. It is an annual event where a group of partners from around the U.S. meet to discuss leadership in their firms and confer with each other for advice and guidance. It was an exceptional conference and one that inspired and equipped them […]
Commit To Think Strategically
Last week’s message [hyperlink] about the importance of learning to think and act strategically led to numerous responses that were insightful. While I responded to each one individually, one responder raised a great question I’d like you to see. He asked if there were people who just didn’t have the ability to think strategically. Referencing […]
Are You Tactical or Strategic?
The more I coach new partners and aspiring partners, the more I see an inability to think and act strategically. It’s a skill that can and should be learned, so probably the deficit is due to the fact that most of their education, training and work experience has been in execution, not thinking about what […]
Freedom In Motivating Yourself
I just read a HBR article that opened with describing the challenges that managers have in motivating their staff. Then the author went on to explain how to create a motivating environment. It’s a good article but I think it’s important to clarify something. Shaping the environment that motivates is your manager’s job. Motivating yourself […]
Are You Promotion-Ready?
This is the season where many firms conduct mid-year or annual reviews for their staff. In the process, you should be getting great feedback about how the firm sees you, what it expects from you and how well you are meeting those expectations. You also have the opportunity to discuss what you need from the […]