What Lawyers Can Learn From Designers
The Client’s Journey: Clients come to us to solve their problems and to do this well, we need to understand not just the question that brings them in the door, but the full picture of how they found themselves in their situation and what their goals are. In other words, we are better lawyers when we start where designers start — with empathy.
Fact Finding: Would you ever walk into a deposition and ask only one question? I doubt it. Those T-funnels we learned in law school closely mirror the design thinking process. Designers start broad, narrow down in one area and then widen it out at the “bottom” to test assumptions and understand where the gaps remain — more like an X than a T and perhaps more effective.
Retaining Talent: This is a hot topic these days as firms try to position themselves as supportive of minorities. Firms spend money to recruit diverse candidates, they invest in affinity groups and special mentors and sponsors. I’ve seen all of this in my 20 years of practice, but the needle of diversity at the higher levels of firms has hardly moved. If firms took the time to gain empathy for potential hires, to really understand what matters most to them — and moved through the design thinking process, I think we would see real, sustainable change.
Bias to Action: This one may be tough for lawyers because we are naturally risk averse and most of us prefer to have all the facts and law carefully researched before we act. Designers, on the other hand, are excited to try stuff, even before its fully fledged. So maybe you don’t want to “try stuff” without doing some homework in most legal situations, sometimes taking bold, unexpected actions can benefit our clients. The action may be asking for “outside the box” terms in a deal or settling a case for something other than money.
Learning Opportunities: Lawyers hate to fail. Some take it personally; others get angry at office furniture or disproportionately criticize themselves. What if we looked at mistakes the way designers do? Designers do not fail — they learn and do better with better information for next time. Sure, it doesn’t feel good to make a mistake, but a mistake is totally pointless if we can’t learn from it.
Design thinking is one of the key pillars for my work with clients. I believe that we can apply the designer’s mindset for our careers and the rest of our lives. When we do, we remain open to the possibilities. If you’re wondering what’s possible for you, consider putting on your designer’s hat and joining my group coaching program, the Board of Direct-hers.
Originally published at https://thetransitionnavigator.com.
