We are continuing our discussion of finders, minders, and grinders within law firms. Because these roles exist in one form or another within most modern law firms, the best advice I could give to any lawyer in private practice is to get out and develop your own client base. I realize that does not happen overnight, but the sooner you start doing this, the better. In my experience, developing a client base is by far the most important step any lawyer in private practice can take in order to advance his or her career. It is particularly true if you are a young lawyer, although it is applicable to lawyers at all levels of experience.
Let’s look at a quick example of how this might look in your day-to-day life, especially if you are a young lawyer. If it is late one evening, and you have decided to work for one more hour before going home, then you should spend that hour on business development rather than billing that hour, absent a deadline or other urgent situation. Some would disagree. And in the short term, it is in the law firm’s best interest for you to bill another hour. However, for your career advancement, the best way for you to spend that hour is by trying to bring in business, or by learning how.
Some lawyers do not like this advice either. I have had numerous attorneys tell me things such as “I did not go to law school to be a salesperson.” While I understand the sentiment, I can tell you that is a very shortsighted view of today’s legal industry. In the past, a lawyer could probably hold that perspective and still have a successful legal career. But in today’s legal market, although it may not be impossible, it will be much more difficult to achieve significant career success in private practice if you eschew business development. The rainmakers are the ones at the top of the law firm hierarchy.
