BusinessLawGuy's Blog

Get out and do things with other people. We live in a large world and the pleasure from experiencing new people, places, and things provides energy, ideas, and motivation This also includes going away and hopefully disconnecting. When you do this you remember how important experience is and it can change or empower your thinking.

If you’re the workaholic it’s even more important for you to do this. And yes, I mean you should stop checking email from the time you wake up until you go to sleep. Focus on the people you’re with and new experiences. This is when you come up with amazing ideas for the future that won’t come to you when you’re in your ordinary routine.

It is no secret that hard work is required for success. And there are times you must work harder than others and longer hours. Getting ahead does not come easy. But, as important as giving your all for your career or business, you have to have down time too. And I don’t mean sleep.

You may be lucky enough to take a big trip. This gets you out of your office and frees you from routine and day-to-day thought patterns. It can allow you to think about your personal and business priorities. Sometimes you need to be experiencing something new outside of your everyday life to have the time and space to think in this manner.

Anyone can do this and it doesn’t mean we all need to do something crazy or go somewhere far, far away. It can be going to a new restaurant. It can be being a tourist in your home town – hint for those in the Phoenix area: go to the Musical Instrument Museum or take your children to the Science Center (you will like it too). It can be going to a city in your home state or a nearby state you haven’t visited before for a short or long weekend. I find most places have enough things to do for a three to four day weekend type trip. The point is to branch out and think outside of your usual box.

Don’t put off having new experiences for the future or retirement because that day may never come. Find new experiences that fit within your budget and the time you can make, whether on a Saturday or for a week long vacation. Doing so will help you to have shared experiences and a chance to think outside your box.

In the competitive landscape of business, we often become consumed by working harder and longer than others as some type of badge of success. In the legal profession this comes in the form of billable hours, client demands, and the relentless pursuit of career advancement. Yet, a recent event has caused me to think about an uncomfortable truth about my profession and business in general: our time is fundamentally limited, and no amount of legal or business expertise can negotiate an extension on life’s most binding contract.

The unexpected passing of a 35-year-old attorney who was a friend of mine brought this home to me in the past week. A nice smart attorney with a young family and a promising career, he embodied the dedication and analytical skills the legal profession demands. I recently watched part of the first day of the NCCA Men’s Basketball Tournament with him and others and a few weeks later he is gone, leaving behind grieving family and friends, as well as unfinished business both professional and personal. This stark reminder of mortality brought to mind the risk-reward analysis we all seem to apply to our lives and careers. This includes the thought it won’t be us even though life clearly comes with no guaranties.

From a strictly business perspective, operating at maximum capacity without adequate downtime represents poor resource management. The human capital that drives legal practice and business generally requires maintenance and rejuvenation for each of us to be able to deliver optimal performance. We all need to implement sustainable life practices. This means allocating appropriate time for connection with family and friends, personal interests, and experiences that generate joy and fulfillment. These all are assets that appreciate differently than professional achievements but yield invaluable returns.

Examine where your hours are being allocated and whether this distribution aligns with your life objectives, not merely your professional goals. Are you investing sufficient time in relationships that matter? Are you experiencing the activities that bring you genuine satisfaction and joy? Have you deferred too many personal aspirations to some hypothetical future date? Depending on your answers to these questions you may want to consider diversifying your time portfolio to try to build wealth in all aspects of your life. Balance is a false goal and unachievable but with effort you can strike a better balance.

The world of business has traditionally celebrated a culture of sacrifice and delayed gratification, but perhaps the wisest counsel is to realize nothing last forever and strike a more immediate balance. Work with diligence and purpose when you work, then disconnect with equal commitment to engage fully with life beyond work. Call the family member or friend you’ve been too busy to connect with. Book the trip you’ve been postponing. Pursue the hobby that brings you joy. Don’t focus only on work and lead a life insufficiently lived. Know that a well-balanced life may be the most sophisticated legal or business strategy of all because it honors both our professional obligations and our fundamental human need for meaning and connection.

Many times when a new client walks into my office they’re avoiding something. Maybe it’s a tough conversation with a business partner, a challenging negotiation with a vendor, or that dreaded discussion about succession planning. Through those interactions I’ve observed a universal truth, which is that the conversations we resist most are typically the ones we need.

Hard conversations create clarity where ambiguity festers. In my practice, I’ve watched businesses fail because founders avoided discussing their diverging visions on important issues until irreconcilable damage had been done. I also have witnessed struggling businesses grow and succeed after partners finally addressed the elephant in the room. These difficult dialogues aren’t pleasant in the moment but they prevent the slow erosion of trust and communication that can quickly escalate into issues or litigation.

The professional benefits extend beyond conflict prevention. When you cultivate the habit and environment of engaging in challenging conversations rather than sidestepping them, you develop a reputation for directness and integrity. Clients, employees, and colleagues know where they stand with you. This transparency builds trust that pays dividends throughout your career. Over the years it has become clear to me that the business owners most respected in their industries are those willing to have straightforward discussions about difficult subjects.

On a personal level, avoiding tough conversations takes a tremendous psychological toll. The mental energy expended worrying about, planning around, and delaying inevitable discussions is exhausting. The time you spend playing what I refer to as the “hypothetical game” not only wastes time but almost never is close to how the real conversation goes. We all know that you feel physically and emotionally lighter after addressing long-avoided issues, even if the outcome isn’t ideal. That is because there is relief in no longer carrying the weight of unspoken words and issues. In fact, it creates freedom in your mind where instead of worry about “that” conversation you have space for creativity, strategic thinking, and genuine connection, which are essential ingredients for both business success and personal fulfillment.

Starting today, identify one conversation you’ve been avoiding and commit to having it within the next week. Prepare thoroughly, approach it with respect and clarity, and focus on solutions rather than accusations. Your initial discomfort will pale in comparison to the long-term benefits. Remember that your willingness to engage in difficult dialogues isn’t just good business practice, it’s an investment in your career and personal well-being. Over the years, I’ve never once had a client tell me they regret having a hard conversation while I’ve had many tell me they regret avoiding one.

Sometimes inspiration comes from interesting places. I heard the above quote last night spoken by a character in a movie. The quote is from Dolly Parton, and it struck me. It clearly encourages self-discovery and intentional living generally, but I looked at it in the context of the professional realm and finding your authentic business or professional self. By this I mean finding your competitive advantage(s). Dolly didn’t directly result in my finding my authentic attorney self, but her words speak to what my professional practice has become over time in profound ways.

When I first entered the legal profession, I expected to emulate the the commercial litigation attorney who was my first professional mentor by working for someone like him and practicing in a specific niche for my entire career. This approach ended up feeling like wearing an ill-fitting suit because it restricted my natural abilities to connect with people and generate different types of legal work.

I was lucky enough to start my journey of figuring out my professional path from different attorneys and firms I worked for during my first decade in practice. Instead of staying only with commercial litigation or choosing a different niche or specialty, I focused on a few areas of the law that I had learned, enjoyed, and which I told myself connected or overlapped. It was what I needed to think to develop the broader practice I have enjoyed in the years that followed.

The breakthrough came when I recognized my strengths in connecting with people and developing business. This was based on being able to clearly communicate, being a creative problem-solver, and building genuine client relationships. By embracing these qualities rather than suppressing them, I developed a distinctive approach that attracts clients who value these specific attributes. It helped that I enjoy speaking with people and learning about them. Everyone has any interesting story if you ask the right questions.

I discovered that authenticity in a legal practice creates a ripple effect of benefits. Clients sense that I’m operating from a place of genuine strength and conviction. This makes them more likely to trust my judgment, follow my counsel, and turn into long-term clients and referral sources. I figured out it is a positive to show clients you care about them and their situation whether they have been wronged or are trying to obtain the best result when they have made a mistake.

This principle extends beyond my individual practice to firm culture and business development strategy. Law firms that clearly define their identity attract compatible clients and talent. Attempting to be all things to all people typically results in mediocrity across the board. The most successful legal practices I’ve encountered have clarity about their unique position in the market and lean into these strengths unapologetically. For my firm that is our defined culture, the JW Way (https://www.jaburgwilk.com/jw-way-fundamentals), and knowing that we generally connect well with entrepreneurial clients and business owners.

The journey to professional authenticity requires honest self-assessment, feedback from trusted colleagues, and sometimes the courage to pivot away from lucrative but misaligned opportunities. This is about deliberate evolution aligned with your core values and natural talents. By taking the time to think about what these are and lean into them you’re figuring out who you are and investing in yourself. For me, knowing precisely who I am and operating with purposeful authenticity is the foundation of my professional success. If you focus on figuring out who you are and purposefully course correct to follow that it will be the first step in many on your path to success.