“Lawyers are known for their ability to get things done. We can be bulldozers, even when it stresses us out and takes a toll on those around us. We are strong-willed and proud of it. For most of us, “will” is an invisible, constant companion. If we want something done, we can MAKE it happen. We’re the royal family of “Can-Do” and “No One Does Busy Better.” We will work the long hours; we will do what it takes.

Even so, others sometimes do not respond as we would like for them to.

I have a lawyer friend who does amazing work. Having retired from her successful law practice, she designed a transformational program, hired marketing experts to provide the very best advice, and markets herself everywhere she goes. Yet, she doesn’t have the level of business she wants.

Do you remember the insurance salesman, Ned Ryerson, in the movie “Groundhog Day”? Ned accosts people on the street and tries to sell them insurance. It is easy to imagine that even people who need insurance run the other way when they see Ned coming. Ned and my friend are trying to make something happen, using their will in a self-serving way that doesn’t honor the flow of what seems inevitable.”