Karel Janssens is a partner at & De Bandt in Brussels, Belgium, which is one of the ILN’s newest member firms. In this episode, Lindsay and Karel discuss his passion for IP & IT law, its opportunities and challenges, and the case that has stuck with him.
You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.
Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Karel Janssens, & De Bandt
Martino Canal is a labor partner at Ferrari Pedeferri Boni Studio Legale Associato in Milan, Italy, which is also a member of the International Lawyers Network. In this episode, Lindsay and Martino cover the importance of adaptability and communication, the balance between innovation and privacy, and the value of humanity mixed with professionalism. And don’t miss finding out Martino’s secret identity!
We all know the adorable adage about lawyers that they don’t want to be first, but they want to be first to be second.
Having worked in legal for almost 18 years, I’ve seen this proven to be true over and over again. And as a result, it means that we can learn a lot from what our competitors are doing. It doesn’t mean that we copy them, by any means, but it does mean that when we ask ourselves some challenging questions in the context of our own firm or business activities, we can improve our own goals and focus.
I’ve found there are four key questions that we can ask about our competitors that help us identify what we could be strengthening in our own firms and businesses, and when we review these regularly, we can stay ahead of the marketplace. As a note, when you’re reviewing your competitors, you want to limit this to 3-5 of them, since these are in-depth tactics.
Continue Reading Four Key Questions to Ask About Your Competitors
Can Natan is a founding partner of Özcan & Natan Attorney Partnership in Istanbul, Turkey, which is also a member of the International Lawyers Network. In this episode, Lindsay and Can discuss the challenges of the last year, what most people misunderstand about the practice of law, and what has been most valuable about the firm’s membership in the ILN.
You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.
Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Özcan & Natan Attorney Partnership
It’s the dregs of August. It’s hot and humid. You may be in the office or you may not be. But if you are, this may be the time of year when you start to feel…stuck.
August is like the 4 pm of the day, the Sunday of the week, and while there are beautiful descriptions of how to languish in a porch rocker, listening to the crickets and cicadas while sipping a cool drink as you watch the condensation slowly make its way down the glass…I am not an August person.
Also, some of us may be stuck in the frozen tundra of an air-conditioned office and not sitting languorously anywhere and so the need to feel “unstuck” is a very real one – alas, for me, my home office is the hottest room in my house, so that’s not me either. I’m more like an office hobbit, hunched in front of my laptop, dreaming of crisp fall days and pumpkin-spiced lattes (only a week away!).
But, I digress.
Continue Reading Two Ways to Become Unstuck
Summer is often a time that we naturally slow down – the weather is warmer, we feel lazier, more people are out on vacation and we may be out ourselves.
You may be expecting me to suggest a litany of ways you can supercharge the time you have in the office or on your vacation to make the most of it, but I’m not going to do either of those things. First, I’m going to tell you – if you’re taking time away from the office this summer, take it. Delegate your workload as best as you can except for TRUE EMERGENCIES (and be honest with yourself about what those are) and don’t check your emails. Try turning your work email off your phone for the period that you’ll be out of the office. It sounds anxiety-producing, but I promise you that once you do it, it’s really quite freeing. If it feels like you’re neglecting your work, the truth is that we’re all better humans AND better at our jobs when we take a genuine break from our work and come back to it refreshed. Your clients want that for you too.
Continue Reading Five Tips to Turn Hot Summer Days into Hot Fall Ideas
Raise your hand if you hate the word “authenticity.”
It’s right up there with some of the other most hated buzzwords and phrases – “at the end of the day,” “thinking outside of the box,” “synergy,” “value add,” “circle back,” “bandwidth.”
Are you cringing yet?
But even though the word “authenticity” might make your skin crawl, it’s actually a pretty important concept – it’s a buzzword for a reason. And actually, I don’t hate it, but I know a lot of people who do!
One of the most often shared tips for networking is that being authentic is key – whether you’re networking in person or virtually.
Continue Reading Authenticity: It’s a Buzzword, but Also the Key to Successful Networking
Yadira Flores is a partner in Fogler Rubinoff‘s Business Law department and is a member of the firm’s Indigenous Business Law practice group. Myriah Graves is the firm’s Director of Professional Development and formerly a litigator with the firm, who began as an articling student there. In this episode, Lindsay speaks with Yadira and Myriah about the impact of the pandemic on women, both generally and in the legal profession, how the return to work and continuing of hybrid working may continue to disproportionately affect women and their opportunities for advancement, and the ways in which young lawyers have also been impacted. This was a fun and fascinating conversation.
Now. Before you freak out and imagine that I’m suggesting that you become either a bard or a liar, just bear with me for a little bit to understand what I mean by “storytelling.” (Hopefully, you’ve also read last week’s post as well.)
Daily, we interact with lots of people – this happens in person, at our offices, in the coffee shop, at our kids’ sporting events, or in art classes. It happens online, through our group chats, text messages with friends, Facebook shares, LinkedIn comments, etc. We interact so much and so frequently, that we’ve reached a real saturation point with these interactions, and even with our professional messages, we can see a lack of care that a lot of us are giving to the details over the tools and the shiny new thing. Instead, we’re just blindly producing more and more and more and more, adding more noise (as Adrian Lurssen would say).
Continue Reading Lawyers: Develop Business with Storytelling
Michael Tinkler is an experienced commercial and real estate lawyer at Burton Partners, the ILN’s member for New Zealand. In this episode, Lindsay and Michael discuss the hot property market in New Zealand, the challenges of finding good talent, and the things that unite us.
You can listen to the podcast here, or we’ve provided a transcript of the highlights below.
Continue Reading Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Michael Tinkler | Burton Partners