Reward and encouragement are powerful change agents. Shame and punishment are not.

I encourage partners to see delegation as the beginning of a collaborative work process.

What we think of as necessary is extroverted behavior: social, gregarious, talkative. These can be helpful for leadership and business development, but so can more introverted tendencies.

We don’t expect 8th grade students to produce college level work. We shouldn’t expect 3rd/4th year lawyers to produce senior associate level work.

Framing feedback as grading is pervasive among the partners with whom I work.  But feedback isn’t—and shouldn’t be viewed as—grading.

Feedback should be short - very short in fact, and focused on just one or two items.

A suggestion I nearly always make to the partners with whom I work is that they ask these questions every time they get an assignment back from an associate.

A fact is not a judgment but how we express it and the conclusions we draw from it can be. The key to giving feedback is to stick to the facts, manage tone and resist drawing conclusions.

To be a great lawyer requires a sophisticated understanding of large amounts of law, the ability to apply that knowledge strategically, manage cases and lead teams. And each of these requires developing a competence in their component skills.

Associates are learning in a high-pressure environment, the learning curve is steep. They feel the pressure. Too often, what’s missing is someone encouraging or supporting their growth.