I worked this week and last with Associates at an International White Shoe Firm (as we call it in the US) to help frame conversations they can have with potential clients. The week before, I worked with a Partner at another.
The goal: to be as much themselves as possible.
The principle is actually simple -- remember what works for you outside of work and then transfer to a work situation the reasons for which you communicate and the style/comfort level with it.
The doing of it is much harder. The facility to transfer behavior across contexts requires practice after having acquired the habit of thinking (and behaving) as though living in the world and surviving at work are two entirely different processes.
My solution, as I've explained before: Sustainable Curiosity.
Interestingly, this practice for smart adults yields very effective adults. Unlike a lot of people I know, I really like lawyers as a group exactly because the ones I know catch on quickly. I had a great time, and from the Facebook comments, it seems they did, too.
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