5 Reasons Why Every Lawyer Needs An Executive Coach
Updated: Oct 14, 2020
Most attorneys seem a little confused about coaching and its purpose. Often when I tell a fellow lawyer that I'm also an executive coach for attorneys, they have no idea what I mean. The ones familiar with coaching generally assume I mean that I am a sort of marketing consultant who helps attorneys get new clients. Or, that I'm a career transition consultant who helps lawyers either exit the field altogether or find a new job within the field.
Nope, I say. I'm here to make you the leader that neither law school nor firm life taught you how to be. That's usually when the lawyer I've been chatting with finds someone else to talk to.
Why in the world would a lawyer need an executive coach? Well, for the same reason that executives need executive coaches - to help you navigate the many, varied and complex situations that present themselves to lawyers as their careers progress. Sure, business development and career transitions come into play, but lawyers face most of the same challenges that corporate executives do, just not always in the same context.
Here are 5 reasons why every seasoned attorney should consider executive coaching as a necessary tool throughout their career:
1. An Executive Coach Can Help You Manage People and Teams.
Most lawyers manage people at some point during their careers. Whether you manage an assistant or paralegal, become a practice group leader, or are the executive chairperson of your firm, lawyers often approach management without much training or context. Further, few law firms place an emphasis on compassionate management, so receiving effective training or observing model management techniques is unlikely.
Lawyers often manage teams by "doing what was done to them" or just winging it. Let's be honest: this practice has been going on since time immemorial and could continue forever. But, lawyers don't have to go it alone when it comes to people management. Executive coaching can be an invaluable tool to examine and resolve problems and challenges raised by managing others with a partner who can help you refine your thinking, identify the goals you want to achieve through management of others, and help you achieve those goals.
Effective management of teams and individuals can accelerate growth, improve productivity and increase employee engagement and satisfaction. An executive coach can help lawyers without much training or background in management make decisions that drive productivity and loyalty while avoiding attrition and low morale.
2. An Executive Coach Can Help You Build and Leverage Relationships.
When Jean-Paul Sartre said, "hell is other people," he could have been talking about lawyers' obligation to constantly network, develop business, and build relationships to drive the profitability of the firm. All of these obligations can feel weighty and difficult when coupled with the pressure of firm life, billable hours and family obligations. And for good reason. The constant churn without the results you want can be exhausting.
An executive coach can help you start to think about targeted efforts to meet and mingle with the right people to build the relationships you're really looking for versus attending event after event without feeling that your efforts are yielding any results. Further, a coach can help you navigate the Trust Equation that transforms attorneys who are a dime a dozen into Trusted Advisors who are indispensable to their clients' businesses and lives.
3. An Executive Coach Can Help You Navigate Office Politics and Expectations.
Office politics are difficult in may environments, but in law firms the pressures are particularly high. Even junior associates must work hard to identify those with the most power and influence, the most resources, and the most expertise in order to be successful. When lawyers make a run at partnership, the stakes become even higher.
Having an executive coach to help you analyze and map a course through the personalities and politics of your office can be crucial in assuring your success.
4. An Executive Coach Can Help You Understand and Manage How Others Perceive You.
Lawyers are far less likely to receive 360 degree feedback than those in a corporate environment. Yet, understanding the specifics of how partners, associates, and staff view you can play an important role in your success as your career progresses. Do you know what those who work closest to you really think about you? If you did know, how could you use that information to inform how you show up as a leader moving forward?
An executive coach can perform an objective 360 degree review process on your behalf to get the best possible feedback from those who work closest with you and then help you to understand and process the information you receive through that review process. Then, if you wish, your coach can assist you in leaning into certain perceptions and perhaps working to change others as you move forward in your career.
5. An Executive Coach Can Help You Manage Stress and Imbalance.
Let's face it. Lawyers are stressed, overworked, and often suffer from terrible imbalances in work, life and, sometimes, even in their mental health. Often these feelings are kept private and never spoken about to avoid the perception that the attorney "can't hack it" or isn't reliable.
An executive coach can work with you to define the aspects of your life and career that are most taxing and assist you in coming up with solutions to alleviate your stress and overwork. Further, in some cases a coach can work alongside a mental health professional to assist you in coming up with a plan that allows you to get the help you need while remaining a productive and valued member of the firm.
