In-House Counsel

Escaping The Rut: Success, Comfort, And Thinking Outside Of The Box

Changing with the times is essential.

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In the practice of law, it can be easy to feel held back by antiquated methods and thought processes. I talked to three forward-thinking experts in modern law who gave me great tips for today’s lawyers looking to escape their comfort zones, think out of the box, and achieve success in their practice.

Rethinking Success

Norman Bacal is a former lawyer with over 25 years in the film and television industry who sat on the board of directors of Lionsgate for almost a decade. In addition, he is an author of fiction as well as self-help books for young professionals. He sees the rewiring of the brain’s view of success as paramount to not only surviving but thriving as a modern lawyer. In a society that often settles for “good enough” because of the fear of failure, he believes it is too familiar for us to see success stories as unattainable for ourselves. Norman believes this is categorically untrue and that anyone can succeed with the right mindset. You can listen to the entire conversation with Norman, where he speaks about defining your path to success, capturing it, and mastering the elements and blocks in your head that are keeping you from achieving the success you’ve dreamed about.

 

Finding Comfort In The Design Process

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Anna Posthumus Meyjes — founder of Aclara Legal Design and a lawyer with 10 years of experience in international litigation — talks about the importance of developing a comfort level with first drafts and designs. She states that it is OK if they are messy and even a bit ugly, as she puts it. She stresses creativity, innovation, and a user-centered approach to law. She believes that there is power in the first drafts of designs and in developing a client’s trust, as these will allow you to ensure that the final product will be beautiful. This process results in a design that clarifies visualizations and communicates legal information both effectively and convincingly. Listen to the conversation with Anna in which she discusses clear, concise, and creative privacy statements and other legal documents, investigating why it is OK when a first draft or design is less than perfect.

 

Thinking Outside Of The Box

If you want to grab clients’ and consumers’ attention in a social media-dominated world, then you must come up with new and exciting ways to win them over. That is precisely the message of Stanley Liu in the conversation about putting the cool in compliance. Stanley is TI Fluid Systems’ legal director for the APAC region, and he mainly deals with legal and risk aspects on the selling and manufacturing fronts. He served as the head of legal and compliance for the APAC of Hilti, a construction material manufacturer. As the founder of White Hat Guys, a legal and compliance communication best-practice sharing platform, he believes that you must practice innovation in communication as a modern lawyer. This means more than just using LinkedIn to reach audiences. His unique co-creation with legal design is where impactful ideas and sticky messages will be born, and their promotion will have the desired results. Thinking outside the box is critical.

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When you feel the need to escape the rut of the traditional methods of message communication, or if you are losing your vision of the success you seek, think back to the advice of these three giants in the field of law. They are testaments to the importance of changing with the times and the massive success that can be achieved by doing so.

Olga MackOlga V. Mack is the CEO of Parley Pro, a next-generation contract management company that has pioneered online negotiation technology. Olga embraces legal innovation and had dedicated her career to improving and shaping the future of law. She is convinced that the legal profession will emerge even stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive than before by embracing technology. Olga is also an award-winning general counsel, operations professional, startup advisor, public speaker, adjunct professor, and entrepreneur. She founded the Women Serve on Boards movement that advocates for women to participate on corporate boards of Fortune 500 companies. She authored Get on Board: Earning Your Ticket to a Corporate Board Seat and Fundamentals of Smart Contract Security. You can follow Olga on Twitter @olgavmack.

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