Posts tagged - ethics

Be Informed

Posted on: July 13, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Everywhere I look these days people are arguing. At least it feels that way. About politics. About the environment. About issues big and small.

 

I have written before about how important it is to be an active listener. When I listen I hear a lot of people simply parroting what others say without any independent thought. Or worse, they are speaking about something they clearly have no idea about.

I see this professionally too. I have been in Court and watched opposing counsel simply quote the brief some younger attorney at their firm has written, but simply repeat what is in the brief instead of adding anything additional, which is what Courts are looking for at oral argument.

Being informed sounds easy, but it takes work. Learning about any topic in your work or personal life takes time. But doing so is investing in yourself. When you do you will speak from a place of authority or a position of knowledge.

Does this mean you will always come out better in an argument, or I will always win in court if I go the extra distance? Of course not, but it will bolster your reputation that you know what you speak about, as opposed to simply having an opinion or position you cannot actually support or defend.

And I am not encouraging arguing, but, instead, being able to defend a position or speak knowledgeably. If you do get in an argument or discussion, the goal should be to remain respectful while coming off as informed of that about which you speak.

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Stand For Something and Respect Opinions

Posted on: June 07, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Have a viewpoint. Stand for something. If you don’t, you stand for nothing at all.

We don’t have to agree with others all of the time. But when you don’t, be respectful. Agree to disagree. You learn more from dialogue with someone you don’t agree with than with someone you agree with.

Plus, none of us are right all of the time. If someone says something that makes you potentially rethink a position or opinion, take the time to think about it or research the matter. Always try to speak from a position of knowledge, i.e. if you don’t know about a particular topic, don’t speak like you do. Those who do will know you are full of hot air and it will harm your reputation.

So don’t have a slinky for a spine. And know to keep quiet on topics you don’t know about. It will allow the backbone you should have not to be snapped, along with your reputation.

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Educate Yourself to Achieve Excellence (and repeat)

Posted on: May 24, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Last week I spoke to the need for continuous self-improvement. Part of that is continually learning throughout your lifetime.

I have mentioned before that my firm has The JW Way, which encapsulates the firm’s unique culture (http://www.jaburgwilk.com/mission-statement). JW  Way fundamental 17 is “Be relentless about continuous improvement.” This fundamental speaks to being a “lifetime learner” and notes that “Excellence is a journey, not a destination.”

You need to think about excellence as a continuing journey. The truth is if you strive for and achieve excellence, there still is more work to do. Continually achieving excellence involves an investment in yourself and in education.

Part of this is searching out the truth of whatever you are learning. That is your duty because if you can’t speak the truth you are simply spreading the equivalent of fake news. Despite what seems to be the trend, facts do matter. “Fake it till you make it” may work early on in some settings, but for most of us it will result in failure in the long run.

Most of us become experts in our given fields or professions over time because we do put in the proverbial ten-thousand hours and stay up on new innovations, information, etc., i.e. we continually educate ourselves. If you do not do this and try to ride the same wave of what you have done before you have higher chance of failure in the future. Or at least a higher chance of not achieving excellence and being mediocre while others in your field achieve excellence and pass you by.

If you are okay with that, with being mediocre, maybe you should be doing something else that intrigues and interests you enough that you will continuously educate yourself and continuously seek to achieve excellence.

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Always strive to improve yourself

Posted on: May 17, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

You can do better. You can be better. Always. If you don’t think so you are only fooling yourself. You must invest in yourself.

If you put your money in a can and bury it in your backyard, it will earn nothing. If you invest these funds instead, they will have the chance to grow. The corollary is if you do not take the time to improve yourself, to learn, you will become stagnant and, in this fast-paced world, probably be passed by others. If you instead work to improve you will grow.

This also should involve improving in your given business or in your personal life. It can be class related to what you do or guitar lessons or for me, keep up with current legal opinions.

I know you are busy. I know you don’t think you have time. But the truth is you don’t have time not to invest in yourself. If nothing changes, well, you get thee idea.

So think about what you can do by investing in yourself. It not only can make you a better professional or person, it will help improve the world around you, your world.

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Do You Follow Up?

Posted on: May 02, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , ,

One way to know if you follow up is to ask yourself if things you want to get done do. This includes tasks you or others, whether inside or outside your company, are working on. I know many of you are thinking you shouldn’t have to follow up for things to be completed. That is a misplaced thought.

How many times have you realized at or just before the end of the business day a task or project slipped your mind that had to be done that day? If you are honest with yourself, you know you have been there.

Despite the best laid plans, I have been there. And what works for me to try and avoid such a situation may or may not work for you. I use To Do lists, as well as calendaring to try and make sure no task or project, no matter how small, slips through the cracks. You may make lists too. Or maybe you have some type of different system to do this.

In dealing with others, these types of systems can be used to remind you to call that vendor about the product or service to be delivered to your company. Or to call, message, or actually walk down the hall, to check in with your employee or team member on that project you gave them or are working on together.

If you don’t do this and something is not on time, you should take part of the blame This is true even though you shouldn’t have to follow up on others completing their tasks. But they are busy like you and lack of follow up can result in late deliveries or completion of work you are waiting on. And it ultimately reflects on you, poorly, and reputation takes years to build and minutes to destroy.

So follow up and don’t let this happen to you!!

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Credibility and Trustworthiness

Posted on: April 13, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Be honest; don’t lie. And say what you mean. This seems simple, but too many people have trouble with what are to me qualities that we shouldn’t have to strive for. I mean talk about a low bar: be honest and forthright. And be this way all the time to everyone you deal with. You want people to believe in you.

The alternative is being two faced and dishonest. Can anyone honestly say that is the reputation they want? I hope not, because reputation is everything. People remember.

If you do right by saying what you mean and being honest, people will know they can trust you. Trust and respect are the foundation for all meaningful relationships, whether professional or personal.

This is not something you want to take for granted. When the time comes for you to jump off a proverbial cliff, there will be more people there to catch you, i.e. help you get to where you want to go, if you are credible and trustworthy.

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Networking v. Connecting

Posted on: March 29, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Networking is about knowing more people. Connecting is about knowing people more. The distinction is obvious. You know a lot of people professionally and personally, but you are connected to only a fraction of those you know.

When you are at a business, social or charitable event, you likely will run into many people you know. But with many, you will know them “socially” or “professionally”, which is a way of saying you know them, who they are, but are not deeply connected with them and have no investment in their successes or failures.

I think a good example is a small town of say 1,000 people. In a small town, you are likely to know everyone else who lives there. At the same time, you will not be connected with 999 other people. Maybe you are connected with 40-70. This is because connection requires a deeper connection than simply meeting someone. It involves time, mutual respect and participation in the relationship by both people to become more than mere acquaintances.

Another good example is LinkedIn. I have 2,184 connections on LinkedIn. But it would be more truthful to say I am networked with 2,184 people because it is not possible for me to be connected to that many people. If I went through that list, maybe I am actually connected to 50 or 75 or 100 of those people, maybe more, but nowhere near 2,184. It’s just not possible.

True connections make up your community. People in communities care about their connections’ success and have a relationship built on mutual respect and trust, which have to be earned before someone in your network becomes an actual connection.

Once you have a connection, you are interested in transfer of knowledge and information and each other’s successes (and failures). When you reach this level you add another layer to the community you are building. So network with many to find the few solid people you want strengthen the foundation of your community and help you build the type of community you want to be a part of.

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Do things for others and expect nothing in return

Posted on: March 22, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

One thing I have learned is to do things for others, yet expect nothing. That’s right, you need to rely on karma. Do good deeds and you will be on the receiving end in the future.

Connect people. Refer people. Forward that article you know your colleague, friend or family member will be interested in. Send a card or a letter – you know, the way we used to keep in contact before email and texting – and handwriting it may be good for bonus points too, i.e. know your audience. Or send a gift just because or just because you saw something you knew the recipient would appreciate.

And when other do these things for you let them know you appreciate it. It both closes the circle and starts the circle anew again.

Try it and see what happens.

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Say thank you like you actually mean it!

Posted on: February 22, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

We live in a fast-paced transactional world. With the speed everything moves people sometimes resort to a text, email or similarly transactional electronic thank you. But if you resort to relaying a thank you by email, text or social media flavor of the month it is destined for the electronic scrapheap and likely will not be remembered. Be different and either write thank you notes or call.

It takes more time, and, yes, you may have to buy stamps if you write, but it leaves a lasting impression. I remember when I receive a letter or card thanking me for something much more so than a quick email, text or LinkedIn message.

The same goes for making a call. It doesn’t have to be a long call, just long enough to say “thank you.” You would remember that kind of call, wouldn’t you? The answer is of course.

You want people to remember you. The few minutes to write or call do this. Thank you letters, cards and calls never will go out of style. So are you willing to invest a little time in yourself?

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We all are salespeople

Posted on: February 15, 2017, in: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I wanted to go to law school, but knew for sure after an interview with Pitney Bowes. The interviewer asked me to sell him widgets. I never tried to close the deal, so you can imagine the result of the interview. In addition to thinking law was interesting, I thought I was going into a profession that didn’t require selling. I was wrong.

In law you can sell or not. But if you don’t, others will control your destiny, not you. It is the same in many professions and businesses. It is the difference between leaders and others.

I learned to sell through sheer force of will and the help of many great mentors. All these years in I continue to listen to others to try continuously learn how to do it better.

So set goals and takes steps if being better at selling will improve your career. If I can figure out, so can you.

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