using your why to build a great law practice
TRANSCRIPT
Using Your WHY to Build a Great Law Practice
Presenter:
Christopher G. Kenny, J.D., President
STAR Group, LLC
A Complimentary Rocket Matter WebinarMarch 25, 2015
“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out WHY.”
– Mark Twain
What We’ll Cover
• What’s a WHY and Why Does It Matter?• Building a WHY-based Organization• WHY-based Marketing
My BackgroundB.A., Economics, Georgetown University
J.D, Georgetown University Law CenterSecurities Law Practice
Winston & Strawn
The great career leapAlbuquerque, NM(USA)
My WHYTo Create Clarity – for myself and others
My HowI ask questions and identify connections from a variety of sources so that people are able to see themselves, their organizations and the solutions available to them in a way that helps them make
great decisions.
My WhatI’m a business coach and strategic planning
consultant.
What I Believe
• When people gain clarity, they make great decisions.
• People have a deep desire to matter and feel fulfilled.
• Because we spend so much of our adult lives working, feeling fulfilled in our work is critical.
• Alignment, personally and professionally, is the key . . . .
WHY
How
What
PASSION
When What you do is in line with WHY you do what you do
and How you want to express it – you will have Passion!
Passion is the fuel that gives you the energy to pursue your dreams.
Alignment
The Four Questions
1. What do I need in order to feel fulfilled?
2. How can my organization help me feel that way?
3. What would such an organization look like?
4. How do we get it to look like that?
In order to answer Question 1, you first have to . . .
Every leader must ask (and answer) the following questions:
Start With WHY
The Golden Circle
“People don’t buy what you do, they buy WHY you do it.”- Simon Sinek
What is a WHY?
It’s like a Natural Law...
Why you do what
you do.
What you believe.
How you are hard-wired.
What people can
count on you for.
What you are
compulsive
about.
The reason you get
up in the morning.
How you think.
What makes you special.
Your
WHY is:
Your WHY is:
Neocortex
Limbic
Brain
Neocortex:Rational and Analytical thought and Language.
Limbic Brain:Feelings like loyalty and trust.Decision making.No language.
Knowing your WHY, or not
Know WHYNo WHY
1. To Contribute to a Greater Cause, Make a Difference, Add Value
2. To Create Relationships Based on Trust
3. To Make Sense out of things especially ifcomplex or complicated
4. To Find a Better Way and share it
5. To Do Things the Right
Way
6. To Think Differently and
Challenge the Status Quo
7. To Seek Mastery and
Understanding
8. To Clarify or Create Clarity
9. To Simplify
The 9 WHYs(Remember: this is Limbic Brain stuff)
How to Build a WHY-based
Organization.
Discover Your WHY- Personal WHY- Organization’s WHY (Cause)
Know Yourself
EngagementAnd
Alignment
Know YourMarket
Inspired Practice
Live Your WHY:
• Right team• Right culture• Right marketing• Right clients• Profitable• Fulfillment
Know YourPractice
Express YourWHY -
Authenticity
Create a Culture ofEngagement &
Alignment
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”- Peter Drucker
Hiring:
People (employees and customers) buy your WHY –
not your what!
Expensive!A bad hire costs you between 3 to
10 times that person’s annual salary.(Society for Human Resource Management)
Firing:9 out of 10
because of Attitude(Forbes)
What might it save you in $$ and headaches if the people you hired believed in your cause before they
walked in the door?
What might your organization accomplish if you hired not solely on
skills, but because you understood how the candidate thinks and what drives
them?
Hiring Best Practices:
JobScorecard
WHYDiscovery
ReferenceCalls
Retaining Your “A” Players:Adopt “Leader-Leader”
Leader-Follower
• Take control• Give orders• Be unambiguous• Hold briefings• Have meetings• Be terse, succinct• Be questioning• Want to be missed• Protect information• Create efficiencies
Leader-Leader
• Give control• Avoid giving orders• Leave room for questioning• Certify• Have conversations• Be informal, provide context• Be curious• Want NOT to be missed• Share information• Eliminate unhelpful processes
Retaining Your “A” Players:Be a Multiplier, Not a Diminisher
“A multiplier is someone who uses his or her intelligence to amplify and bring out the smarts and capability of those around them.”
- Liz Wiseman
Diminisher
• “People won’t figure it out without me.”
• Empire builder• Tyrant• Know-it-All• Decision-maker• Micromanager• Result: 50% ROI/person
Multiplier
• “People are smart and will figure it out.”
• Talent magnet• Liberator• Challenger• Debate-maker• Investor (w/accountability)• Result: 100-200% ROI
Attracting and RetainingIdeal Clients
The goal is not to do business
with those people who simply need
what you offer – the goal is to do
business with those people
who believe what you believe.
They become Raving Fans.
(someday, this could be your firm’s logo)
iPad 3
"We believe technology is at its best when it’s invisible - when you are only conscious of what you are doing -
not the device you are doing it on."
Coldwell Banker
Discover Your WHY- Personal WHY- Organization’s WHY (Cause)
Know Yourself
EngagementAnd
Alignment
Know YourMarket
Inspired Practice
Live Your WHY:
• Right team• Right culture• Right marketing• Right clients• Profitable• Fulfillment
Know YourPractice
Express YourWHY -
Authenticity
EngagementAlignment
HiringLeadershipMessaging
And it all starts with . . .
Our Offer to Youwww.stargroupconsulting.com
Thank You!
Christopher G. Kenny, J.D., PresidentSTAR Group, LLC(505) [email protected]
Additional resources (including a copy of this presentation) may be downloaded at:www.stargroupconsulting.com/business-tools/additional-resources