An Interview with Daniel Payne, L'09
Q: What strategies have you used to meet and connect with other practicing lawyers?
A: My #1 strategy was to start on Day 1. There’s a temptation to just focus on the work, develop a good reputation at your firm, pitch in on non-billable projects (which are all important things to do) and put off networking until you are older. But it is important to start networking immediately. It works like compound interest - the more time you give networking to work during your career, the better the network effects will be for you.
My #2 strategy is to be shameless. You have to start with people you know and expand out from there. I had no shame in pressing my existing network for introductions: family, high school friends, college friends, law school friends, neighbors, acquaintances from a random vacation three years ago. It doesn’t matter if you only talked to someone in law school or college once. Now that you’re in the real world, it is perfectly appropriate to say “Hey, I remember you from school. Let’s get together and catch up.” One of my best early networking practices was to reach out to someone and invite them to lunch. And I would tell them I’d be happy to pay, but they’d have to bring three friends along that they thought I should meet. Everyone loved it!
Q: Reaching out to lawyers you don’t know can feel awkward. Do you have any tips or advice to get over the awkwardness?
A: Keep in mind three things:
- Most people understand the benefits of networking and are just as excited to meet someone new as you hopefully are.
- People love to talk about themselves, so start off by asking them what they have been up to lately and the conversation will proceed effortlessly.
- We’ve all got something in common. Ask about where they’re from, where they went to school, what they’re up to, what they’re into, and when you find something you have in common, explore it.
Q: What role have mentors played in your career?
A: Law school is great for teaching you substantive legal principles and how to think like a lawyer. Classes like Law Skills give you practice skills for performing legal work. But there is no way to learn the ins and outs of being a practicing lawyer and developing a book of business without having mentors. I grew much more quickly as a lawyer because I was willing to make the senior partners at my firm my mentors. I asked them questions about how to make partner, what do partners care about getting from associates, how can I get more job security, how do I get my own clients, how much should I work on nights and weekends, who at the firm has influence and how did they get it, how should I dress for client meetings, who should I talk to at the client and how do I communicate effectively with them, etc. etc. etc.
Anyone you trust to give you honest answers is a mentor. All you have to do is make the time to ask them questions. Your mentors want you to succeed, but you can’t depend on them to figure out what you need to know. If you ask the questions, they’ll provide the answers.