What is success? Get ready to state your goals

By Jessica Markham
BridgeTower Media Newswires
 
I recently returned from the American Bar Association mid-year conference, where I attended a presentation titled “Lead Like a Rock Star” by keynote speaker and executive coach Kristi Staab.

Staab’s talk was given at lunchtime to a room full of chatty, networking, semi-vacationing lawyers. After an introduction, she got down to business, asking the assembled attorneys, “What is success?”

The chatter died down as Staab circled the room, making eye contact with the audience. Hers was not a rhetorical question. This lady wanted an answer. Utensils stopped clinking. Staab paced, wearing an inquisitive look.

The sound in the room? Crickets.

Staab suggested we determine three successes for 2019 that we want to celebrate on Dec. 31, 2019. She asked us to share ours. I already had several in mind, so I didn’t have to think. I jumped up and shared my goals: publishing/promoting my book, hiring new staff and upgrading our infrastructure/computer systems. People gave me an obligatory clap at Staab’s request.

Then she asked the crowd again: What is success?

Crickets.

Just so you know I’m not exaggerating, Staab at this point actually said: “Bueller? Bueller?” (Which was amazing, but I digress.)

I was a little surprised that the lawyers in the room hadn’t set goals for the year. Goal-setting is something I do every year and something I encourage my staff to do at their yearly reviews. Eventually another lawyer did share. But the other 100+ just sat and stared.

Staab suggested that being intentional about goal-setting not only helps you accomplish your goals but also makes you feel good about what you’ve been able to achieve. She pointed out that celebrating the little, deliberate steps, the everyday successes, helps morale.

She also talked about her experiences in corporate America, where she said she never celebrated her many accomplishments because she felt they were expected of her. However, when she hit a roadblock or made a mistake she was very hard on herself. I think most of us lawyers are guilty of doing both these things! I know I am (but I’m working on it)!

It’s March. You have the rest of the year to celebrate meeting your Dec. 31, 2019, goals! What will yours be? Will you meet your goals by New Year’s Eve? Or will you be one of the 99 percent who simply sit and stare?

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Jessica Markham is the owner of Markham Law Firm, a family law firm in Bethesda.