Ask Yourself, Will You Be Successful in 2012?

Published January 17, 2012

Measuring Your Professional Success

The start of a new year is a good time to assess how one measures professional success. The answer, of course, depends on your definition of “success.” No matter what your definition, it must be measurable, so you know if you have achieved it. Percentage revenue increase or number of prospects contacted or number of hours devoted to marketing efforts are measures of “success” that have greater meaning than “more revenue” or “better marketing,” which set a subjective standard that is difficult to discuss, let alone measure.

How to Measure Your Success

There is, of course, danger in fixating too much on numbers. For many years, I thought “success” was how much money one earned each year. But as a practicing lawyer handling divorces, I saw clients who earned more than I, were perceived as “successful,” yet had a net worth less than mine. Then, as a coach and consultant to lawyers and law firms, I saw that lawyers in large firms, especially equity partners, were also often not the successes I envisioned them being, even with the power of a large organization to help achieve their goals. Eventually I recognized and accepted that success in my life and career had to meet my own definitions.

Setting Up a Framework

So, how to set the standards for that definition? The following suggestions sketch a framework for concrete achievement that anyone can modify according to individual circumstances. How many of them fit your definition of success?

  • Do you have goals for the coming year, and can you measure against those goals to determine whether you achieve them?
  • What worked well for you last year and what can you learn from last year that can be applied to this year?
  • How can you systematize your practice to make it more efficient? Are there ways that you can create a methodology that can be implemented time after time, without deviation, to give you a consistently successful result without having to re-invent the wheel?
  • What can you do to enhance and expand your skills and those of the people who work with you? Have you identified the new skills which can lead to increased efficiency, and thus will assure greater profits and business longevity?
  • Who will make sure that you are accountable? Will it be your partners, staff, spouse … or a coach? The right coach brings certain advantages: experience as a lawyer in practice management issues that you face or will face, the independence to hold you accountable, time to focus on your issues, and a willingness to be candid with you. A coach can help ensure you are willing to do what is required to reach the level of success you envision and are prepared to accept this success – if you commit yourself to the process to achieve it.

Categorized in:

Audience type: Associates, Large Law Firms, Small Law Firms, Sole Practitioners