Eyes Don’t Cloud the Windows to Your Soul

Published May 13, 2014

Your eyes are the windows to your soul, so it is said. Thus, covering them up with Google Glass might not be the best idea.

Google Glass, one of the newest technological innovations, is a combination of a pair of glasses and an Internet-connected computer. Although it has many benefits, it also has raised privacy issues, and many people feel uncomfortable around those who wear the gadgets – and the last thing that you want to do is to make those around you uncomfortable.

To be a successful businessperson, you must treat everyone – clients, colleagues, and contacts – with civility and respect.

In any successful business, the customer is number one. For lawyers, this means treating every client like your only client. Clients are primarily concerned about not only the commitment of their attorney to their matter but also their relationship with their attorney. If Google Glass has the potential to make clients feel uncomfortable and thus question their relationship with you, then you shouldn’t consider wearing them on the job.

Furthermore, you should treat colleagues as clients and integrate your practice with others in the firm. An outstanding and underused source of new business is your own colleagues and the variety of relationships that they have with the outside world. The more people who have a stake in your success, the greater it will be. Therefore, if Google Glass has the potential to alienate colleagues, again, don’t wear them on the job.

The Model Rules of Professional Conduct mandate that lawyers stay on top of technology that impacts the practice of law, but Google Glass is not, at this point, technology that is critical to the practice of law.

Whether or not you own your own practice, you should always think like an owner. With this mindset, everything that occurs in the firm’s day-to-day operation is your responsibility. Your actions should be based on keeping clients and colleagues happy, a sure recipe for personal success.

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