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I saw this cartoon and I just had to share it!;)  There’s a lot of truth in humor.  There’s a quote that says “perception is reality.”  As illustrated by the above cartoon, the perception of lawyers amongst business professionals is, well…terrible.  We lawyers have the reputation of planning for the third coming of Christ…  Such reservation does not translate well in boardrooms where all decisions live and die by margins.  So what can we do to fix this perception.  Well, have some proverbial balls.  Be a deal maker, not a deal breaker.  Sure, explain the risks and if the client persists in illegal activity, walk.  But if you’re talking about semantics, life is too short.

Links

The book “What Would Google Do?” By Jeff Jarvis (check out his buzzmachine.com blog)

http://www.abovethelaw.com/

Article about the ABA advisory opinion.

Outline of the video blog

“The law and its execution are aided by its obfuscation.” Jarvis, What Would Google Do? So true! Since the law is so complex, lawyers are [somewhat] insulated from the crowdsourcing/community control phenomenon. However, there are fewer opportunities in the legal marketplace today than there was last year. Part of the contraction in the legal industry is due to the economic crisis. Since money is tight, the market rewards efficiency which places a lot of pressure on bloated law firms. Will they return to their stature of enormity and power? I don’t think so.

What is a Googley lawyer?

Spartan attitude towards overhead. Leverages every technological advantage to drive costs down and passes savings over to clients. Outsources all simple legal tasks.

Authentic and unique. In the Google age, the trick is being found. There are hundreds of thousands of lawyers, but there’s only one you. Instead of showing a facade of perfection, be human, be unique and people will be drawn to the authenticity (which is rare). Check out Gary Vaynerchuk and you’ll figure it out in a few minutes.

Vast network. The Googley lawyer doesn’t deal much in atoms. They stay remote and for connections with partners in a virtual environment and pass the savings to clients.

The masses benefit but they don’t take control

The ABA won’t allow it (yet). None of these suggestions involve turning the reins over to the masses….But these changes do represent a huge transition from how services used to be delivered (with the associated fat/costs). Access will be more feasible for the masses.

In this funny article featured on the Lawyerist blog, the author offers a few simple suggestions to keep lawyers in touch with reality.

Authenticity matters now more than ever. “Keep it real” is no longer a slogan among friends, they’re words to live by. People are no longer impressed by a facade of power. Instead, they’re craving for leaders to speak in authentic voices. I’m reminded of Jeff Jarvis’s rant about his terrible experience with Dell (Dell Hell). Jarvis is an industry leader in journalism and recently released his new book, What Would Google Do? In his rant against Dell, he dropped an f-bomb. Would a national media company print such material. Definitely not…But those same media companies are now going out of business because they’re unable to find an audience that identifies with them. You can no longer speak in a universally accepted language. Dare to market on the edge. I’m not suggesting you be vulgar, but I am suggesting that you stop talking “like a lawyer.”