Just Because ... It's the Fourth of July

I couldn't find a video of X performing 4th of July, so here are the Muppets. Have a safe holiday!

A job with a start date is better than one without

No shock here, but I like law firm internship/fellowship/apprenticeship programs.

Clients like these programs.

Recent law school grads without a job like these programs.

And while we as a society find it perfectly acceptable for a young doctor to graduate a top-ranked medical school, $100,000 plus in debt, and go directly into an internship program at a minimal salary, to learn the trade, for some reason it is unacceptable for lawyers?

I never really expected universal acceptance of law firm internship programs, and believe that it will take years for them to take off industry wide, but I hope that one day they will become the norm.

With that in mind, I have to admit that I was quite “shocked” to read the following comments in this ABA Journal article from Carter Phillips, managing partner of Sidley Austin’s Washington, D.C. office:

"If you're a top-flight law student and you talk to one firm offering $80,000 or $100,000 to take extra classes and then you talk to another firm offering $160,000 to do work you can bill to a client, I don't see that as much of a choice," he said.

Really. $160,000 jobs. Which firms are still offering these?? And what job offers, let alone multiple job offers? From what I’m reading, most “biglaw” firms, including Sidley, are offering deferrals and reduced salaries, in addition to the weekly layoffs.

As far as I can tell, a job secured in October 2009 is much better than one promised in … well … January 2011.

According to a May 8, 2009, Above the Law post (with copy of firm e-mail):

New associates heading to Sidley Austin, on the other hand, got "optional deferral" news. The firm e-mailed incoming associates yesterday announcing the "Pro Bono Assistance Program:" a January 2011 start date with a $75,000 stipend attached.

I’m going to pull out my little crystal ball here and make a prediction:

These young men and women who complete these law firm internship programs will be highly successful attorneys. They will continue to practice law in greater numbers over time, while their peers become dissatisfied with their careers and leave the law.

These young attorneys will be better business developers, and will be counted amongst their firms’ rainmakers. They will be better suited to the work that they perform, and will be more satisfied.

Why?? Because they will be better prepared, trained, mentored and educated in the practice, and business, of law.

Facebook Fan Page

I started a Facebook fan page for The Legal Watercooler. Why? Not sure yet. But, I started a blog, not knowing why. I joined LinkedIn, not knowing what to expect. I joined Twitter, really not having a clue what to expect.

Part of what I need to do, as a legal marketer, is understand how social media and social networking can be adapted and best used by the legal industry. Call me a mad scientist, or just plain cautious, but I seem to experiment on myself first before bringing to my firm.

What can a Facebook fan page bring me? Right now, I'm not too sure. I know that they are highly indexed by Google, so I'm starting there.

Ask me the question again in a few months and I am certain I'll have a better answer for you.

The only other thing I know is that I need 100 fans before I can get a vanity URL, so, do me a favor, and become a fan of The Legal Watercooler! I'll "fan" you back!

Best advice I ever got -- If it is worth having, it is worth working for

I subscribe to Fortune Magazine for two issues: “The Fortune 500 “and the “Best advice I ever got” issue, which came over the weekend. As we start what is going to be a slow week for many of us as we look forward to the upcoming holiday weekend (or are already on vacation), why not take time to reflect on the advice we have received over the years?

Here are a few from Fortune Magazine that I found fitting for those of us in the legal industry. Click on the link for the back story.

• Tiger Woods: Keep it Simple

• Jim Sinegal, Co-Founder & CEO, Costco: Show, don’t tell

• Mort Zuckerman, Chairman, Boston Properties; chairman, editor-in-chief, U.S. News and World Report: Do what you love

• Mohamed El-Erian, CEO and co-chief investment officer, Pimco: Push beyond your comfort zone


• Tory Burch, Co-founder and creative director, Tory Burch: Trust your instincts


• Mika Brzezinski, Co-host of MSNBC's Morning Joe with Joe Scarborough: Use failure to motivate yourself

• Sukhinder Singh Cassidy, CEO-in-residence, Accel Partners: Make an impression


• Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO, Google: Hire a coach


• Julian Robertson, Founder, Tiger Management: Don't talk shop


• Niklas Savander, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Services & Software, Nokia: Be nice to people

For me, the best piece of advice I received was the worst piece of advice: Do a good job and they’ll notice you. I wrote about it here.

The next best piece of advice I received, and the foundation for most everything in my life, was not in words, but in the actions of my father: If it is worth having, it is worth working for.

My immigrant grandfather built a garment manufacturing business right out of Outliers. I remember spending a couple summers working in our clothing factory “bagging and tagging” alongside everyone else. My father insisted I begin work when the factory bell rang. I took my breaks when the bell rang. And, I left work when the bell rang ... just like everyone else. I remember the shock on the faces of the factory workers that my father expected the same out of me as he did out of them. The factory owners’ granddaughter was no better, and no worse, than they were.

What I realized years later is that my dad was setting the foundation for what was to come. Put in the hard work, and you will see results – Treat everyone with kindness and respect –
If it is worth having, it is worth working for.

On the outside I looked like every other spoiled Westside brat. I drove a hot convertible. I wore designer clothes. I ate lunch out every day.

Yes, my dad bought me a car, but I was expected to get a job to pay for the gas, insurance and upkeep. I worked to pay for the "upgrades" in my wardrobe from Levis to Guess! And while I received a monthly stipend from my parents during college, I was expected to work my way through to pay for everything else (including tuition and books), just like my immigrant grandfather.

And, while I resented this growing up, I appreciate it so much today.

Over the years, I have always come to rely on myself. I never have a problem rolling up my sleeves to get the job done. I admit that I can take this to an extreme, but I don’t think there’s anyone out there who wouldn’t say that “the job ALWAYS gets done” if I’m on the team.

Over the years, I have had to learn to step back and hand some “control” over to others … but, for the most part, I am “here” due to the best advice my dad taught me.

What about you?? What’s your best advice you ever got??

I Tweet, what about you?

I came across this post, I Tweet, therefore I am, by Jeffrey Gitomer on Twitter that I found interesting. Take the time to read the whole post, but Jeffrey has great advice on what we should be including in our Tweets:

Here are a few of my ideas for future tweets: (Feel free to use them, or alter the strategy to suit your situation.)

• Post a daily sales tip.
• Give information as to my travels and where people can register for my public events and see my live seminars.
• Post information regarding new ideas.
• Post personal recommendations of every sort – from restaurants to books, from people to places, from shops to hotels. Maybe even airlines. Maybe.
• Ask for information and help when I travel to a new city.
• Create local gatherings.

I would add:

• share links to what you are reading
• post personal (but not “TMI”) information on YOU
• never hesitate to ask for help

What is Twitter to me? It’s a chance to deliver short personal messages to business connections and friends to let them know what you’re thinking and what you’re doing.

Like today, I tweeted: Sunday. A day to reflect on what was, what is, and what will be. Gitomer.

What are you thinking about today? What are you writing about today? What are you blogging about today? What are you tweeting about today?

LACBA & LegalTech Starting in Los Angeles

As I prepare for the Los Angeles County Bar Association Small Firm and Solo Practitioner Conference, beginning today, I’ve come across some great information and statistics for my presentation, Social Networking for Lawyers: A Roadmap to Success, which I’ll share with the readers of The Legal Watercooler on Thursday.

The panel, which includes Adrianos Facchetti, Gordon Firemark, H. Scott Leviant, and Victoria Pynchon, will be discussing their experiences, successes and missteps as they embarked on their social networking and social media marketing plans.

You can follow the conference on Twitter via #lacba and #solo09.

The Law Firm Associate Apprentice Bandwagon

Another law firms, Howrey, announced this week that they too will begin an apprentice program for their 1st and 2nd year associates.

Starting this fall, Howrey will begin selling recruits on a new program at the firm in which associates will spend their first two years serving as "apprentices" before taking on significant client work.

As part of the two-year program, associates will spend the majority of their time at the litigation-heavy firm attending training seminars where they will learn the practical skills of lawyering, said managing partner Robert Ruyak in an interview.

During their first year at the firm, associates will take classes on legal writing and research and will work on pro bono projects to give them hands-on experience without charging clients. In the second year of the program, associates will be embedded at client sites for several months at a reduced billing rate of between $150 and $200 an hour. They will also continue to take classes on litigation skills such as trial tactics, cross examination, and mediation and arbitration.

Howrey started working on the program about two years ago when the firm decided it was going to move away from lockstep compensation for its associates. (In January, the firm did away with its lockstep model for associates, instead paying them based on measured levels of competency.)

I, for one, am happy to see this trend towards an apprenticeship/internship for recent law school graduates continue.

Pollyanna warning: In anything bad, good can rise. Firms can either embrace the opportunity to change, or not. Today’s economic reality, the mass lay offs, and law firm dissolutions provide the kindling for good change to occur. What law firms do with these opportunities is yet to be seen.