Trial Magazine
Question of the Month
Is There Anything You Wish You Had Done Differently in your Career?
March 2018“I wish I had specialized earlier in my career. Specializing leads to increased efficiency as you become more familiar with the cases, as well as better division of labor and resources within your office.”
Morgan G. Adams, Truck Wreck Justice, Chattanooga, TN
“I wish I had done a better job of cultivating professional and personal relationships in my former positions. The first firm at which I worked cut me loose when they were reorganizing, and at the second firm, two of my partners—one of whom went to law school with me—left me behind when they separated into their own partnership. In hindsight, I could have expressed more interest in the partners’ clients and work, keeping myself in their orbit rather than being a separate entity within the firm.”
Richard H. Anton, Law Office of Richard H. Anton, Austin, TX
“Taken more vacations.”
Thomas K. Guelzow, Guelzow Law Offices, Eau Claire, WI
“Obtain a list of your local bar association members, and—starting with the most senior—invite one lawyer to lunch every week. Keep it simple. You are not trying to impress anyone, but rather are getting to know them on a personal level. Years later, you’ll look back and realize how you got to know colleagues whom you otherwise might never have met or worked with—and how unexpectedly helpful it was in your life and your practice.”
David W. Ransin, Ransin Injury Law, Springfield, MO
“I would dedicate two to four hours daily—separate from normal working hours—to get expertise in my practice area by networking with experienced attorneys and sharing the knowledge I’ve obtained with others. No lawyer starts out as an expert, but almost every lawyer who is considered an expert in his or her field did so by learning the specialty’s nuances, being mentored by the best, and being bold and passionate about that work.”
Trudy Fenster, Law Office of Trudy Fenster, Christiansted, Virgin Islands
“I wish that I had learned earlier that the path to success does not depend on telling yourself, ‘Do a good job and they will come.’ Rather, it depends on looking outside of the legal industry to discover what other successful small-business owners have done to grow—and asking, ‘How can I import that idea into my own practice?’”
Benjamin Glass, BenGlassLaw, Fairfax, VA
“Early in my career, I wish I had spent less time staying organized and more time thinking critically and developing relationships with my clients.”
Emily G. Thomas, Reiter & Walsh, Bloomfield Hills, MI
