5 Skills Every Lawyer Needs

We aren't talking about organization or making sure you are up to snuff on CLEs. We are talking about the softer side of things. Sure, you need to be tough in interpreting and applying the law. Clients want their attorneys to be fierce when it comes to handling their legal matters. But that's where the tough stuff ends. 

These 5 skills address the interpersonal skills attorneys need. Not only with clients, but in all of their relationships, including co-workers. 

Active Listening

We all do it. We listen to conversations thinking in our heads how we will respond. Or even worse, we stop listening and start talking... while the other person is still talking. Yeah, that's not a great approach. 

Active listening is really focusing on listening. Not listening to form your response, but actually listening for understanding. Ask clarifying questions. If you are in a meeting, take notes. Really listen to understand. Not only will this go far with potential and actual clients, but in all your relationships. 

How to do it? It's all about practice. When you have your next conversation, notice how long you are listening before you are either distracted by a device or your brain starts thinking of the response. For the next conversation, see if you can wait longer. And then keep extending your time. 

Emotional Intelligence

I saw you roll your eyes. But seriously, this is important. Emotional intelligence boils down to these 5 key elements:

• Empathy: Recognize and understand the emotions of others
• Motivation: Desire or willingness to do something
• Social skills: Communicating and interacting with others, including verbal and non-verbal communications
• Self-awareness: Knowledge of your own character, feelings, motives, and desires
• Self-regulation: Monitor and manage your emotions, energy, and thoughts

People with high emotional intelligence are generally more successful, particularly professionally. Wondering about your emotional intelligence? Take this quiz.

Naturally, this is particularly important with clients. Your ability to be aware of your client's state, empathize with them, regulate your state, and use your social skills to communicate effectively  helps them feel confident that they hired the right attorney. Motivation is critical for case success, of course. Looking beyond working with clients, clearly these skills are important for everyone in your life.

Growth Mindset

Boy do we see where this is lacking in our particular line of work. A growth mindset is when you are open to learning new things. That you are open to change. When it comes to adopting new technology, we see a lot of folks who, well, may resist that growth mindset. But you get the example.

So when things come up that you haven't had to deal with yet, what is your natural response? If you are open to learning and maybe even excited about something new, you have a growth mindset. If you feel like cowering or if you ever have said 'if it isn't broken, don't fix it', you are lacking a growth mindset.

It's not always easy to adopt a growth mindset. But like active listening, it's about baby steps. Start with something small. Be open to a small change. And then from there, take the next step to a bigger change. If you have the time, consider trying something entirely new, just for fun. It doesn't need to be in your professional life. It's about being open to learning. So pick something you are excited about and learn to move through the process of change.

Openness to Feedback

This is critical to make sure you are giving clients the best experience. Getting feedback from clients, whether anonymous or not, can be tough. No one likes to feel criticized. But, being open to feedback is key to improvement. Just as other elements above, it's key to take it in steps.

When you are reviewing feedback, be sure you are able to view it objectively. The trick here is using your emotional intelligence (see what we did there?) to be able to hear the feedback without automatically responding. Listen for understanding (active listening sound familiar?) and then consider the statement. We can all explain away things that happened. But consider taking the feedback to heart. Look for trends. If you hear a particular piece of feedback once, consider it. If you hear it multiple times, it's likely something you should consider actively addressing.

Work Ethic

We don't mean work harder all the time. Work ethic means 'a belief in work as a moral good : a set of values centered on the importance of doing work and reflected especially in a desire or determination to work hard'. That doesn't say or mean working endless hours. It means to work hard. 

Balance that hard work with time off. No one can work hard continuously without hitting a wall and then productivity declines. That's when working hard turns into working endless hours. And you need to work all those hours to get everything done. So, take a break. Relax. Refresh. And then come back to work when you are ready to work hard.

These are the 5 skills every lawyer needs. Sure, there are others. But these skills make interpersonal interactions easier. And that lets you focus more on the law and give clients, and others in your life, the best possible experience.