Law Students

Reflections From A Headhunter and Hiring Partner: Why You Must Know a Little Football

By Frank Kimball

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One of the best sessions at the Ms JD Third Annual Conference on Women in the Law last November was ?Bring on the Rain,? moderated by Deborah Knupp, the inspiring and managing partner of Akina. Other panelists included the remarkable Kelly Hoey, the President of 85 Broads (if you?re not a member, you should be). A law student asked ?Why do women lawyers have to learn about football?? She described meeting senior male lawyers and how the conversation inevitably turned toward the gridiron. A panelist asked for my views as the only male of the species in the audience. Consider the following my extended remarks.

The answer is a qualified yes. Not because football defines America. Not because it?s emblematic about what?s right with the world. Far from it. It is one of many things you need to know a bit about in order to be fluent in the language of business. Many of your clients, potential clients, and members of your actual and aspirational network will be sports fans. Some will know more about a sport than anything else in life. Most will be more casual - keeping up with the Bears or the Patriots is just a part of their day to day life. Cultivating, expanding, and creating relationships is about finding common ground. But it?s also more about reaching out to find out what is of interest to the other person in the conversation. That demonstrates respect, interest, and the desire to know more about them.

As a young lawyer building her network you?ll need to learn and understand a lot more. You?ll have to speak the language of business (even if you don?t have an MBA) - and be able to do a discounted cash flow analysis and understand a client?s business from their point of view. You will talk to clients about their children even where there are none in your household. You will learn about their industry - so you can talk to them about their work. You will learn about their city - because most people are endlessly proud about where they live.

Being a bit more worldly can also make you more interesting.

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Full post as published by Ms. JD on July 09, 2010 (boomark / email).