Play Doubles Tennis

     How well do we adapt to different and complementary roles in various aspects of our lives? Are we able to be flexible, cooperative, supporting, or yielding as the case may be? Perhaps these are some areas we can all work on.

Mike & Dave - Safe sober Prom Night Event

     Mike Lewis has been an avid tennis player for as long as I’ve known him. In fact, he and his wife Kathy have been among the top players in the Southeast since before I joined Mike in 1985. Their specialty is doubles tennis, and mixed doubles in particular. They play really well together as a team.

     During the recent conversation with Mike he used the term "doubles tennis." Crack! The term and the concept were metaphorically ingrained in my mind. He might not have realized the significance at the time, but I think he hit a winner!

     So, another goal for our firm in 2008 is to continue playing better "doubles tennis." For example, we have a buddy system at L & D so we are there to cover for each other. We also need to continue to work to recognize the ideas and accomplishments of others.

     Our law firm is full of fast paced, self confident, results oriented, effective people that get things done. Most of the folks on our team are already pretty good at playing "doubles tennis." We have discussed some of this previously when the subject was Teamwork.

     To continue to play better doubles tennis we will need to actively work on not always taking the lead, recognizing areas to be more complementary in action, perhaps yielding at times, and help the other person to better get the ball over the net when in the best interest of the team.

     "Doubles tennis" probably ends up being more fun, makes other people better, encourages team work, and maybe even helps us become better people along the way. Most importantly, it makes us better at serving our clients who are injured, disabled, or out of work.

     Thanks for joining us. We look forward share our "doubles tennis" experience with you!

Ask More Questions

     Do you ever feel exuberant? Are you ready to jump right in and give answers? Perhaps it would serve us well to ask more questions. We are reminded of this at Lewis& Daggett every time we make a presentation at a school - the students love to ask questions!

Students naturally ask questions    

     First thing this morning, right after I got out of bed, my wife told me I was "exuberant!" Exuberant! I had not even gotten started yet… I hadn't had a workout, I hadn't begun working, I hadn't even gotten going and I was already exuberant. Perhaps this exuberance is related to Slow Down! and Take a Chill Pill.

     At Lewis & Daggett our exuberance has us always ready to go, and we help people with answers very quickly. Folks at a law firm are probably more inclined to give answers than the average person. We are always moving very fast, ready to go, and are "exuberant" in our willingness to answer questions.

     So, our next resolution is to ask more questions. Do you ask more questions or do you give more answers? The truth is, we all sometimes act like we know more than we really do. Of course, none of us knows everything, and one way we learn is by asking questions. In fact, children learn how to ask questions at a very early age.

     Our own children can get us trapped in the "why?" game very quickly. They always want to know more. Perhaps we can learn from children that we learn more when we ask more questions.

     Asking questions instead of giving answers (or even direction) is probably a more effective form of leadership. Asking questions gets others involved and participating in achieving a result. Perhaps the results are even more meaningful.

     The art of asking more questions will probably take some practice and some patience, so we will need you to help us along the way. The good part is we will probably become more interesting, more effective, and learn more along the way.

     Can you help us ask more questions?

Renewal of Purpose

     In last week’s article we indicated that we would be writing about L&D goals or resolutions in future postings. Does the firm have some that can be made public? Of course we do - we can start with reviewing our firm philosophies and renewing our efforts in pursuing them.

Birthday Lunch - Tomisha Gladman, Susana Muniz, and Stephen Hamilton

     One thought we have about goals or resolutions in 2008 is tied in with that whole concept of newness, or starting fresh. After the stress of holidays some people experience the post holiday blues, a real let down from the busyness of November to December. Instead, we can look at the opportunities we have to start again on whatever we are working toward. We have a clean slate, a fresh page, to paint on how we picture our law firm, or our lives.

     Our L & D strategic plan attempts to summerize our purpose. We use this plan as a way to bring us back to the items that are important as we go about our daily tasks. We also believe this makes us unique amongst law firms in our goals and our focus. So, let’s quickly review them.

     First, we need to make a profit to stay in business. This isn’t a greedy goal; rather, it is a reminder that we need to be financially responsible to our employees and to stay in business. We are proud that in the history of our firm we have never had layoffs or cutbacks. This is important to you because our employees have confidence in the continuity of our firm.

     Next and probably most importantly is client service. Client service is a hallmark of our firm. We focus on it and review it every week. We do surveys, and sometimes these surveys present learning opportunities. This is something we pledge to always work on and always keep foremost in our pursuits.

     A close corollary to client service is our internal service and development. This means that we help each other, and help each to become better people along the way. We believe this makes us better at what we do, and better at serving our clients.

     Lastly, we strive to take advantage of processes and technologies. Our adversaries are bigger, better funded, and more powerful. So, to equal the playing field so that we can stand toe to toe with them in representing our clients we have to be smarter and more efficient. We not only do this as a team, but also by taking advantage of tools that can make us better and faster.    

     To help make resolutions have more meaning as we go throughout the year we invite you click through and leave comments on our Blog. We are also offering a Lewis & Daggett Resolution Journal. It is not fancy, but it may help you keep track of goals and resolutions. We’ll send it to you for free....all you have to do is click here, on the front page of our website, call or send an e-mail.

     Whew! That is quite a review. If we can accomplish this renewal, our resolutions, and purpose, will certainly be successful! Thank you for joining us!

Resolutions

     Do you ever make resolutions for the New Year? Every year for the past 20 years or so I have done my annual "Resolution Ride" on my mountain bike. I leave home very early New Year’s morning so that I can sit on the little hill on the west bank of Salem Lake and watch the sun rise. I have been out in cold, snow, rain, and everything in between. The last couple of years have been cloudy and/or rainy, but this year was spectacular!

Daybreak 2008!

     We also work on goals, resolutions, here at Lewis & Daggett. Interestingly, I had never looked up the definitions of "resolution" previously, but one of the members of our management team presented them to us this past week. Resolution is a decision to do, a commitment. Commitment is a sincere and steadfast fixity of purpose; binding yourself emotionally to a course of action; or, to make a pledge or dedication. Wow, these are powerful words!

     So, let’s spend some time reviewing resolutions. Resolutions can take many forms. They seem to divide into two big categories of pragmatic and aspirational. Pragmatic are specific such as a goal to lose ten pounds. Aspirational goals are not as empirical rather more like becoming more patient, a better dad, or strengthening relationships.

     Resolutions typically fall into categories like weight loss and health, personal betterment, professional development, volunteer more, educational advancement, and spiritual growth. Many people make more than one resolution every year. Interestingly, folks rarely actually keep their resolutions.

     So, how do we make resolutions stick? Find a partner to make a similar resolution so you can help keep each other on track. Experts say it takes about 30 days to break a bad habit and form a new one, so stay at it. Post your resolution in a place where you will see it often such as your bathroom mirror, dashboard, or computer screen. Most of all, be your own cheerleader.

     Over the coming weeks we’ll be discussing some of our law firm goals, or resolutions, that we’ll be working on for 2008. We invite you to join us with some resolutions and to feel free to share them with us. I will also be sharing some of my own here.    

      Together, we can make 2008 a great year. Please join us in taking positive steps forward.