Lawyers are the upholders of law in a constitution. As the various physical forces defend the borders of a nation, lawyers use the word of law to uphold a nation’s ethics from within. From businesses to families to corporations and organizations, all are equal before the law and must abide by its tenets. Its passion, vigor, and wit often invite several young people to find their destiny as lawyers. Famous advocate Hamd Al-Yafei of Qatar has five tips to help these aspiring lawyers build successful careers.
Exude Confidence
Confidence is a game-changer. It’s not just one thing but the coming together and mingling of several factors. From your suits to your shoes to your communication and understanding of local cultures, you must become the epitome of presentation. And it’s a trait that does not come about overnight. It’s a matter of practice, knowledge, and consistency. Your confidence will show in your choices and your decisions. So use your confidence carefully and consistently.
Become Ace Planners
Try not to learn it the hard way that your days are about to get more hectic than you can possibly imagine. In the beginning, you might not be able to afford a secretary, and that’s good because you are yet to equip yourself with the ability to delegate jobs. At this juncture, it will stand you in good stead to create a routine. I would suggest that you go with the flow initially and get into a more strict form of routine-making after a month or two of practicing. Once you get a sense of what to expect from a day and yourself, you can schedule a routine that can help you utilize every minute.
Learn to Prioritize
Prioritizing is essential. It will help you know which job is more important than the other(s) based on deadlines, client, research, and time available. Once you have set a few parameters for judging the rate at which a task must be performed, you are ready to prioritize. This will give you a sense of control over your work and life, like nothing else.
Listen Well
Enhanced listening is a crucial component when it comes to practice. It takes time, especially with most aspiring lawyers being trained to talk their way through a case. That may be so, but you will notice that listening will trump talking by a significant margin in the long run. When you learn to listen carefully, you are most likely to find clues and insights that may remain hidden from the client despite possessing the pre-requisite information. When you listen intently, you also gain your client’s trust more quickly than when you don’t. Your ‘listening skills,’ if I may call it that, can help you get a good understanding of your client, his/her crisis, and often a way out or two!
Ask Relevant Questions
Asking the right question at the right time to the right person can make all the difference between you and your colleagues. As lawyers, we often tend to get carried away by our intellect and a desire to impress clients. Don’t do that. Instead of spewing unnecessary or worse, obvious insights and details, try to find questions that can take the client’s story forward and bring you closer to a solution. You can think of this as a natural offshoot of point number four – listen well.
These insights for lawyers may well be life lessons for everyone. And it’s with the help of these five-traits that Hamad Al-Yafei has managed to balance his family and work life.