The prospect of failure is never far away:
- You are sued for wrong advice;
- You lose a client for poor service; or
- You fail to meet your target.
You live under the yoke of disaster and caution is your middle name.
One slip and its curtains.
But the fear of failure leads ultimately to little if any trial and error and you end up driving things with a careful eye in the rear view mirror.
What am I driving at? Simply this: if you knew you could try anything without failing, then how would your thinking and RESULTS change.
- New business development;
- Packaged products;
- Delivery of services;
- Collaborative approach to the delivery of services; and
- Outcomes linked to fees.
Much has been written about the lack of innovation in the legal profession but I believe it is not the mere of act of innovation that escapes lawyers but rather the fear of failure that obscures genuine innovation. Remove the barrier and where would you be?
Positive reinforcement is key. That is more than just rewarding the final (successful) outcome but acknowledging and praising every small victory. It might just be picking up the phone to a new client.
If you don’t think failure is an issue ask your team to explain why they find it so hard to (a) telephone new clients or (b) go visit clients.
Fear – fear of looking stupid or having to deal with the (not so awkward question) “How can I help you?”
Fear will always be present but don’t let it destroy your confidence.
To quote Tom Hopkins:
“I never see failure as failure but only as the opportunity to practice my techniques and perfect my performance.”
In other words go to war on your demons.
~ JS ~