Carolina Paralegal News

By Cheryl Leone and Dave favor,
Specials to CPN

Dave is writing a book about living a balanced life in today’s world. I told him he should call it “The Unbalanced Life” since the paralegals and lawyers we work with are often trying to swim upstream balancing family, work and personal needs, most of the time not too successfully. What he has to say is important and we would love to hear from all of you about your thoughts on how you do it all…or do you?

The balanced life, I believe, is the balance between acceptance and fulfilling your purpose. Self-acceptance is being happy with who you are now. It’s an agreement with yourself to appreciate, validate, accept and support who you are at this moment. The other side of the balance board is a desire to fulfill your purpose or, I would say, realize your vision.

What is true in life is true in business as well. The key to this puzzle is having some idea of what you want. What is your purpose for being in this world and what is your purpose for being in business?

It is not really a calculated balance of the elements of life, but a realization there are elements along with an acceptance of what life offers. The areas of life that I refer to are spirituality, health, relationships, work/career, joyfulness and basic needs. For many years, I focused on trying to balance all the areas of my life, only to discover that a joyful life was an acceptance of the unbalance. At first glance, that may sound like a cop-out. But the real cop-out is not having any kind of plan, never finding your purpose or not defining your vision.

Sitting in your basement contemplating your navel means you are stalled in life. That was something my grandfather would say. I now understand what he meant. Without a purpose, there is no reason to start your journey. If you are not moving forward, you have no opportunity to contribute, discover happiness, develop relationships or live.

Can you imagine living without a purpose or a vision for your life? How about working at a place with no vision? Life to me is a journey and the real key to happiness is having a plan and living the dream. My starting point is the plan and my destination is my vision. Along the way will be challenges and course corrections.

Without a plan you are adrift, never knowing what is going on. Without passion and a way to express that passion, there is no joy. With no realization of your skills, you will never apply them to your purpose. All the theories, like self-mastery and self-help books, are just guidelines to help you on your journey.

Most of the time, when I find a frustrated or upset person, I discover that they have been working on someone else’s journey and not their own. One day, all the frustration culminates in a crisis when they discover they are lost. So life becomes this complex puzzle. If your neighbor asks you to mow his yard and you do and yours is left uncut, you worked on your neighbor’s vision, not yours.

You must start with the realization that you are alive. You next discover that life has several elements. Eventually you develop an understanding of those elements and have a vision. Now you develop a plan to realize your vision and start on your journey. A good execution relies on that plan and a solid set of values to guide your way.

I have thought about how to define a plan that allows you to start balancing your life and I have come to realize there is no plan. Rather it is a continuing learning of what your life is about, what is needed to make it happen, and how to make course corrections as you meander through this world. It doesn’t happen overnight, and perhaps the first step is to recognize that if you don’t take care of your needs, you can’t take care of someone else.

When I go into law firms in a mentor-coach mode, I can identify the paralegals and lawyers who are growing and learning about themselves, their careers and their role in the work force and in their lives. They may not be perfect, but each day they have an idea of what type of life will make them content and accepting of themselves and others.

If your life is out of control (or you feel it is) then perhaps this one article may start you thinking about living a life of balance.

Email Dave at dwfavor@catalystgroupinc.com. Tell us how you are living a balanced life and, if not, what you think needs to have a course correction. We love to hear from people.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor,
Specials to CPN

Leone

Favor

In the past we have written a lot about how to do your job better, which got us to thinking about how to feel better about yourself. We have talked to many paralegals out there and the one theme we hear loud and clear is uneasiness about the future. There is a lot of stress out there.

Some of that is being caused by not knowing what you want, some is the current economy and some is just human nature. Some things you can’t change. But there are lots of things you can change if you know what you really want. You can buy self-help books with grandiose names to give you direction such as finding your life purpose, your dream or even what you want on your tombstone.

Most people want to figure out what will make them happy. All these books, authors and materials are designed to tell you that you need a vision for the future. This is where we tend to find our clients. We haven’t found one attorney or paralegal yet who has any defined idea of what they want or what would make them happy. They have no reference point to setting goals or to adjusting their life.

When we visualize the future, we have to consider all areas of our life, including:

Belief and spirituality – This is the concept that there is something greater than ourselves.

Health and fitness – This includes energy, health, exercise, fitness, wellness, beauty and attitude. Everyone wants to be healthy.

Social – Having an active social life keeps you connected and involved with the world. Plus, having fun and sharing laughs helps you recharge intellectually and emotionally.

Companionship – Ultimately, every person is searching for a lasting, meaningful relationship. It can be both nurturing and challenging.

Profession – What we create in our work as a meaningful contribution to society and to our personal fulfillment.

Finance – This includes money and belongings.

Once we have reviewed all areas of our life, then we have to consider what is driving us. Not being clear on your motivations can make it difficult to express your vision. One example of this formidable task might play out like this: Suppose that in our first interview, we learn that you want to be happy. Beyond that, you want to contribute and be appreciated for your efforts. Actually, most studies would show that you want to be right, appreciated and needed. There is no set formula that we can find, but in general, these qualities make most of us happy.

Further discussion reveals other hidden wants in the areas of your life, such as:

You want to earn money to support yourself.

You want to be liked.

You want to be acknowledged.

You want to be healthy.

You have a certain lifestyle in mind.

Now we have a start on seeing your real vision. The initial motivators are to contribute to something and to be happy. We know what you want to do, but we still haven’t pinpointed the details that make you stand out from hundreds of others. Let’s define who you really are and how you serve the culture you are in better than anyone else. Start thinking about where you want to excel:

What are your skills?

What are you passionate about?

Be creative here. What makes you stand out in the crowd? What is your unique business proposition, or what most marketing people call your Unique Selling Proposition? Of course you have a selling proposition. We are selling ourselves all the time. You may be looking for a job position or just a new friend – but whatever it is, you are marketing yourself. All the rules of marketing apply, including packaging. You can get the message correct if you first figure out what you want. This brings to mind an old saying: Be careful what you ask for, because you may get it.

Now we are getting closer to what you really want. Perhaps your vision is to support your family by selling your services as a paralegal and enjoying life. It could be that you just want to be the best paralegal you can be, recognized by the firm you work for as a key contributor. Sounds reasonable, so how would you do that? The first step would be to define goals or expectations. Your list of goals might look like this:

My skills as a paralegal will always be current and match what my career path needs.

My relationships will always support my vision. That can be a little tricky.

I will seek opportunities to demonstrate my skills. Nobody is buying out there if they don’t see what is available.

There are at least four driving forces that create results. We start with the vision that leads us to a career that leads to a paycheck. There are three other drivers that will impact your results. Your passion for the vision will affect your communication about what you want. What you measure and gather feedback on will impact your performance, so the feedback you request is important. Then there are your values that will drive behavior and set the tone for your work culture. If you can establish the four drivers so that they act in concert and are consistent in execution, you will produce consistent positive results.

Now go back and look at the six areas of your life to see if each one can be satisfied by your vision. If each area of your life supports your vision, you win. You may have to tweak the vision, but this should provide a starting point for you.

We believe we are living our dream. We check and double-check ourselves all the time, and if something is out of sync, we go back and look at our vision and how it affects the six areas of our lives. This has allowed us to move forward in our personal and professional lives with enthusiasm, vigor and happiness.

Start today working on your vision! Let us hear from you and as always, we are glad to answer questions you may have. Contact dwfavor@catalystgroupinc.com if you want to ask questions or tell us how you are starting your journey.

Dave Favor and Cheryl Leone are principals in Catalyst Group Inc., a national company based in Raleigh that provides teaching and development of high-performance law firms. Soaring Eagles is a division of the company focused on paralegal development. For more information, visit www.catalystgroupinc.com or www.theexpertspeakers.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles

More and more people from different backgrounds, age groups and cultures are working at law firms. Bringing people together from a wide variety of backgrounds creates opportunities for firms, but also some challenges. Law firms can benefit from the new perspectives and possibilities that diversity brings if they are able to unite people with a common set of values and goals. If not, the result is frustration as people go off in every direction based on their own needs and experiences.

Law firm leaders must have the ability to balance different cultural perspectives with a common vision and a clear set of values. Leaders and team members can no longer ignore a firm’s diversity. In the past, it was easier to just set a goal or a rule and demand that it be followed. This “bull in the china shop” approach is not very effective. In today’s competitive environment, you should take advantage of every aspect of the resources you have to work with.

One of the best ways to get everyone on the same page and take advantage of their skills, culture and experiences is to talk with them. The greater the diversity, the greater the need to interact with everyone to make sure the vision for the firm is understood. Make sure everyone on the team knows, and understands, what the expectations are. This conversation goes both ways. You also need to understand the needs and expectations of your team. If you can match up all these needs and expectations and get them all focused on the same set of goals, you have a winner.

Understanding the new workforce will greatly improve your ability to lead this new group of workers. This is all part of what has become known as a high performance team, where all members of the workforce are partners in the firm’s success. Several factors come into play:

First, the new generation will expect a higher level of integrity. We talk about integrity all the time, but in today’s work culture, this is a key ingredient. The difference today is how this new generation will respond to lack of integrity. They are no longer silent. In today’s environment, if their leader or manager lacks integrity, they will talk. People are much more direct and better informed. If you have a fancy plaque on the wall that displays your vision or mission and do not follow it, it will be talked about. For example, if you claim, “This law firm is focused on client service,” and you do something to violate that statement, it will be noticed.

The notion of a well-understood vision and a clear set of values is tricky. If you don’t have these things defined, your team can’t get focused and efficiency goes down. If you do have them defined, but you violate what is stated, employees and colleagues no longer respect you. The need for honest, strategic planning is critical in this new environment.

Second, the newer generation wants a partnership relationship. Now don’t get worried – they don’t want to be a “partner” in the firm, but they do want a relationship. It also does not mean they want to be equal on the organizational chart. They simply want to be considered as a contributor to the business. They want to feel ownership in their work and a sense of being valued by the business. Work is more than just a job to these people. Respect within the organization goes both ways. They want to be a valuable member of the team. If you can accomplish that, you will get more than 100 percent from your team members.

The expectation of recognition also changes in this new environment. The new generation wants to be recognized as a person as well as a contributor. I heard one leader explain it by saying that these new workers do not leave their soul at the door. They bring everything with them: their beliefs, their experiences, their skills and their culture. They want their leaders to know them as people and the issues they might be dealing with in and out of work. Leaders need to continuously communicate so that all employees feel understood and supported in their efforts to make a difference.

In the past, leaders often gathered people around them who thought the same way they did. The problem with that was, you never got a new creative idea. In today’s competitive environment, you must take every advantage you can get. One of the great advantages in having a diverse team is that you can tackle a problem from many viewpoints. But you have to encourage participation and really listen to what people have to say to make the most of that opportunity.

The primary reason we have found that prevents law firms from implementing new ideas was the absence of an identified leader who was given the responsibility to build the business. In many cases, the business leader was someone more interested in closing cases than building a business.

Today, we need more involvement instead of less involvement, but this doesn’t mean that everyone agrees. It’s much more important that everyone be heard. This takes time and leadership skills.

Dave Favor and Cheryl Leone are principals in Catalyst Group Inc., a national company based in Raleigh, that provides teaching and training in self-mastery, leadership and development of high-performance law firms. Soaring Eagles is a division of the company focused on paralegal development. For more information, visit www.catalystgroupinc.com or www.theexpertspeakers.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone, Special to CPN

Law firms tend to focus on the skills of firm members: lawyers, managers and paralegals.

That attitude is changing, as firms are realizing that skill, although always of extreme importance, will not alone lead to greatness. Leadership is rivaling skill as the most sought-after quality in any organization.

That is why leadership by paralegals is emerging as a huge asset.  Competition among skill-based firm members is lively, and it is important that paralegals learn to reach for the highest level of leadership.

Understanding the way leadership evolves requires the understanding of positions in the law firm and how they relate to each other.

Someone who directs resources and uses other firm members for their skills is at the manager level of leadership. Like an associate in management, a paralegal-manager would have supervisory authority over others.

Managers are the first step of leadership, and we say their job is to control because they watch over and guide employees to make sure tasks are completed.

But the true leaders are those who influence people, and they treat other firm members as assets, not just task-accomplishers. We say those leaders empower others.

An easy way to understand the distinction is that a manager focuses on the mission of the firm, whereas the leader focuses on the vision of the firm.

Advancement is generally from staff member to manager to leader. That progression is summarized in the statement that you cannot advance beyond your level of leadership.  The general rule is that if you know the job, you will be a worker; if you know why you are doing the job, you will be a manager; and if you know where you are going, you will be a leader. While not perfect, that generality serves as a broad definition of the roles.

Law firms, like all businesses, tend to use management skills for short-term solutions, that is, “We need to get the interrogatories done so we can get to mediation.”

By contrast, leadership skills are needed for growth or stabilizing, as in, “We need to become more efficient so revenue is turned faster and we can expand our firm.”  When you think on this level, you are indeed in the stage of leadership empowerment.

Almost always, managers control employees, whereas leaders empower them. I say “almost always” because many potential leaders start out as controllers and are reluctant to move on to the practice of empowerment.

A leader who remains a controller will delegate only a limited amount of authority. But the leader who empowers provides a significant amount of authority to others. If you are a high performance paralegal and part of a high performance firm, you will always require empowerment.

As the law firm grows, the complexity of the organization increases, and so does the need to delegate. Owners, lawyers, administrators and managers should concentrate on the activities they do that bring the most value to the firm. All other activities should be delegated. The amount of authority you choose to include with that delegation will determine if you are controlling or empowering.

At some point the volume of complexity will dictate that you move to the empowerment style. The problem is, many law firm owners, lawyers and paralegals do not want to give up control. It may be a fear factor (“I can be replaced”) or it may be a lack of trust (“I don’t trust anyone but me to do this”). Those people have limited their growth potential.

Delegation and empowerment bring along the potential for growth by giving opportunities to staff members. People like to be part of the solution, and delegation builds trust.

If you do not learn how to delegate both tasks and authority, you will be limited to the amount of work that you alone can produce. When you delegate tasks but not authority, you spend a lot of time checking on the progress of the task, time you could be using to creatively solve other problems. You ultimately become stalled and ineffective.

There are several ways to mitigate the risk with full empowerment. The best approach is a clearly defined system with checks and balances. If the processes, procedures and policies are defined, everyone knows what is expected. If there are good business metrics in place, any potential problem can be identified well before it becomes a concern.

It is amazing how far the paralegal profession has come in a short period. (Those who fought to get us here probably think it took a long time.) But now it is a highly competitive, highly valued position within a law firm.

To grow your career and stand out from the rest, you must move to the role that defines you as a true leader, one who recognizes the need to empower others to be leaders as well. You see the higher purpose of leadership. When that happens, you are deemed critical to the firm’s success.  And when you are critical to the firm’s success you are considered a true asset.

Cheryl Leone is the CEO of Catalyst Group, Inc., a national coaching, mentoring, management and marketing firm in Raleigh, N. C.  Her book, “Soaring Eagles: Developing High Performance Firm Members,” will be published by late summer. She welcomes questions and may be contacted at cjleone@catalystgroupinc.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles

Paralegals who want to be leaders must rely on good relationships, not just rank

Any paralegal who wants to advance in today’s law firm must understand and demonstrate leadership at the highest level possible. But understanding what leadership is, and what being a leader entails, is not always simple.

In broad terms, the job of a leader is to motivate or influence people. He or she focuses on developing and translating a vision into reality.

Sometimes it helps to understand leadership development in four levels. As you evolve as a leader, so will your duties and relationships to the people around you. This four-pronged model starts at the most basic level of leadership and increases in complexity.

At the entry level of leadership, people follow you because they have to. This is called positional leadership. By virtue of your title, you are a leader or are expected to be one.

You can become an entry-level leader because of a promotion or simply by your position in society (like having a college degree, being a published author, etc.). Another way of saying this is that people follow you because you are the boss or team leader.

There is a great deal of overlap between managers and leaders. Managers are focused on project management – the efficient use of resources to meet the requirements of a mission or specific task. Leaders have to accomplish this as well and are frequently measured on how successfully they perform the management job as well as to how well they lead to its completion.

However, if you do not have any leadership qualities except for those conferred by your position, people will not follow beyond your stated bounds of authority. People that find themselves in these situations frequently have trouble because they lack basic leadership skills.

The second level of leadership requires positional leadership, but gets more complex by adding good relationship skills. Level Two leaders promote quality interrelationships between people. If you are at this level, you spend time and energy on meeting individuals’ needs and desires.

People with poor relationship skills will find it difficult to maintain leadership at this level. You can love people without leading them, but you cannot lead people effectively without loving them. Having lasting and trusting relationships with people on your team is a vital part of this level.

What you need to think about at Level Two is that there is a difference between a personal business relationship and a personal relationship. There are boundaries that must be set. You can have a business relationship with a person without dating, going to parties or engaging in other non-business activities. The key is caring about people’s needs within the context of the
business.

Moving to Level Three, you must work on skills that build self-confidence such as networking, positive assertiveness, communications and self-mastery. This is the point where you really start selling yourself and making your mark. Once you get the basics down, it is your style that stands out.

At this point, you will notice how much you enjoy work. If you can match your personal vision to that of your work, you will soar. It is difficult to describe the feeling of pure energy that results from that accomplishment. The trick is to build the foundation, believe in your vision, know your mission and map all of that to your work. Once that happens, everything clicks.

Leaders in the first three levels benefit from self-confidence. Moving into Level Four assumes it.

At Level Four, you are a developer of people. At this level, you:

• Realize that people are valuable assets;

• Place a priority on developing people;

• Surround yourself with a core set of people that complement your skills.

The people who follow you do so because you have built up their trust. They are loyal to you as a leader.

Why? You won their hearts by helping them grow. The fact is, people will first do what they believe in and second, they will follow the rules.

Ninety-eight percent of all errors made by employees are caused by a breakdown in the process, not the people. Workers should focus on skills and procedures, managers on mission and process, and leaders on vision and culture.

The use of strategic plans, vision statements and mission statements has been a proven way to drive a company or business. This has been proven over and over again, yet few managers believe it.

To become a strong and effective leader, you must first begin to understand where you fall within the four levels of leadership. Then, map out a plan to move up to the next level. Law firms today are looking for Level Four leaders in their people.

Editor’s note: Dave Favor and Cheryl Leone are principals in Catalyst Group Inc., a national company based in Raleigh, N.C. that provides teaching and training in self-mastery, leadership and development of high-performance law firms. Soaring Eagles is a division of the company focused on paralegal development. They are experienced speakers and trainers. For more information, visit www.catalystgroupinc.com or www.theexpertspeakers.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor

Special to CPN

As we teach leadership to lawyers and non-lawyers, we find it interesting the many misconceptions people have when it comes to understanding true leadership. It is gratifying when we see leaders develop an understanding of the different types of leadership skills that need to be honed, developed and implemented in a law firm.

The most common misconception is that leaders are born, not made. This is simply not true. Leaders are created through learning and growth and the development of skills that are inside all of us. Sometimes we slowly develop our skills. Just as often, an unanticipated set of circumstances forces us to learn the art of leadership and allows us to realize a vision we have for ourselves and our careers.

Never is there a more opportune time for paralegals to advance in leadership than within today’s work culture. More and more law firms are developing into what we call high-performance
organizations.

A high-performance law firm is designed as a business. It has a strong vision for its success along with a strategic plan. It is run by best business practices that deliver a return on investment for its owners. It has a set of values and short and long-term goals such as client service, practice deliverables, profitability and a high-performance work culture. Traditional rules are kept to a minimum. Instead, guidelines or desirable work traits will guide its members.

The law firm owner looks to build the internal workings of this high-performance organization with people who have a stake in its success. It is no longer just about your skills as a paralegal. Today’s law firm owners are looking for leaders first.

Stakeholders – the firm staff who buy into the vision and invest their time, emotion and energy into driving the firm to reach its goals – will need to develop and grow into the roles that those at the highest levels of leadership demonstrate. Those that don’t will be left behind. Fortunately, many law firm owners realize this fact and are investing their own time, energy and monies in teaching paralegals the art of leadership.

Having a title or skill-based position does not make you a leader. Holding the title of partner, associate, lawyer, firm administrator or paralegal does not confer leadership. In fact, holding authority by title is the least part of leadership. 

The hardest part of teaching leadership is to get others to understand the difference between managers and leaders. While law firms need both roles, there is a common misunderstanding that they are the same.

Managers are focused on the mission and control resources. An example might be a senior paralegal that is part of a team. This person may be responsible for meeting the objectives of the practice area and manage the people within the team to help meet the mission. Having that job, however, does not make he or she a leader.  

A leader is focused on the vision of the firm and the relationships with the firm members. He or she is generally concerned with the future and the development of people. A leader must be able to have a clear and compelling vision and the ability to translate that vision into reality.

An example of a paralegal-leader is one who may be responsible for meeting the objectives of the firm and supervising others, but will also have his or her eye on the future and where the firm and the team needs to go. This paralegal will be looking to encourage, motivate and create leaders to help walk the path to achieve the vision without worrying about reward or recognition.

Peter Drucker puts it simply as this: “Management is doing things right. Leadership is about doing the right thing.”

Leaders first and foremost lead with integrity. They are not swayed by false values but hold true to themselves and what is the right thing to do while never losing sight of the long-term vision. Those that follow believe in the dream because it is the right thing to do. Leaders do not have egos.

Leaders are people-positive. They are always looking to find the best in people and help others walk the path to success. These leaders encourage and motivate you to want to do things – and do them right.

Leaders are not negative people. They generate excitement in others. They create leaders.

Coupled with the traits of integrity and people-positive beliefs, leaders tend to be effective communicators. They can motivate others. They are organized. They plan. They take all these skills to reach the vision they have. All of these traits can be learned.

Can you be a leader? The answer is a resounding yes.

Show passion for what you do. Demonstrate integrity. Take responsibility for your actions. Give up control. Believe in yourself. And invest time and energy into honing the skills of leadership so that others will follow you because they want to, not because they have to.

Editor’s note: Dave Favor and Cheryl Leone are principals in Catalyst Group Inc., a national company based in Raleigh, N.C. that provides teaching and training in self-mastery, leadership and development of high-performance law firms. Soaring Eagles is a division of the company focused on paralegal development. They are experienced speakers and trainers. For more information, visit www.catalystgroupinc.com or www.theexpertspeakers.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles Cheryl Leone, Dave Favor, Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor

Special to CPN

We have spent this year looking at self-mastery. We started by telling you that taking control of your life allows you to transcend challenges and learn the secrets of soaring to new heights.

We also told you that you will find opportunities to practice self-mastery many times each day. Every moment of your life provides an opportunity to practice expanding your vision, awakening your mind and heart and achieving full responsibility for living, growing and contributing to being the best you can be.

First, we instructed you to define your values. Your core values stabilize you and build the foundation from which you can make good decisions. Values define you, guide you and protect you. They are a powerful message to others about who you are and how you will walk through this life.

We then asked you to develop a vision for yourself. This is where you can allow yourself to dream the impossible dream. It is also where you begin to plan. For us, nothing is more exciting than connecting with someone who wants to change their way of living, define a new future and start realizing that the only impediment to their success was their own negativity.

The key to self-mastery is realizing everyone reacts to a situation emotionally, based on their beliefs.

Fear will always be the first emotion you feel when faced with a problem. How quickly you move through the fear stage will determine how quickly you can gain control of your life and master the obstacles that seem to appear. Fear is a powerful emotion that you have to overcome to get to the other side.

Once you move from fear, you go into a duty mode, where you successfully complete all of the tasks set before you. Most of us like the comfort of the duty mode because it is a strong rope that you can cling to. But you can’t achieve true success without moving on towards what we call the achievement mode.

While fear and duty are your safe modes, operating from the achievement paradigm allows you to truly start to see your possibilities. It gives you a good look at your vision so that you can be all that you can be.

And finally, you get to where you want – self-mastery. You operate with integrity. You have a clear sense of yourself and understand the foundation of your values. You know your purpose. You see yourself for exactly who you are and what you will be.

Every day, we wake up and try to keep our vision and purpose first and foremost in our minds. Sometimes we stay on track. Other times, we find ourselves stuck in first or second gear.

But the more that we keep our eyes on our vision, the easier it seems to handle things that would cause others to shut down. We accept that we can fail – and sometimes we do – but we also know that as long as we walk the path we have laid out for ourselves with a sense of integrity, anchored by our values and the vision of what we are capable of, the end goal seems always within our reach.

One of our readers told us that about halfway through the articles, she suddenly realized that she was saying “Why not?” rather than “Why?” She saw unlimited possibilities where she previously saw limitations. She became the master of her own fate.

Simply put, how you make the journey through life is far more important than the destination.  If you find yourself on the receiving end of an event, remember you can always control how you react.

Editor’s note: Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor are the principals in Catalyst Group, Inc., a national professional development company in Raleigh, N.C. Both speak and write nationally on law firm development and mentor and coach lawyers and paralegals in personal and professional development. Soaring Eagles is the name they apply to law firm personnel when speaking and writing. The company website is www.catalystgroupinc.com. Soaring Eagles blogs can be found at www.lawfirmcoachblog.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor

Special to CPN

As a reminder, the principles of self-mastery can be placed into four paradigms – fear, duty, achievement and integrity. No matter what type of task you seek to accomplish, arriving at integrity is the ultimate goal of self-mastery.

Integrity means being true to yourself, your beliefs and your values. This would be simple to do were it not for two unfortunate factors.

First, many of us do not know what our values are. We tend to respond based on the moment.

The second complication is that people have different perceptions based on their cultures. Have you ever heard the expression, “My truth is not necessarily your truth?”

Now add another layer to this mix: your work culture. You now have to consider the values and beliefs of the business in which you work. Ideally, your values and the established values of the business are the same – or close.

If your own values and business values match, you are ready to move into the integrity paradigm.

The problem we often have to work around is perception. People around you will form a perception of who you are based on your actions, your profession and their culture.

In other words, they will judge you before they know you.

To overcome any differences, your actions must be consistent. That does not mean everyone will like it. Throughout history, there have been political figures with great integrity that were disliked. They may have had integrity, but you may not have liked their values.

People in the integrity paradigm become leaders as they prove themselves. As your actions demonstrate integrity, people will begin to trust that you will continue to act the same way all the time. You will have the ability to move into a leadership role.

The journey to self-mastery is cumulative. You perform your duty and add value to the business. You achieve results, thus increasing your value to the company even more. You demonstrate integrity, thus increasing your potential to be a leader.

You can become stalled anywhere along the way. The journey starts many times every day when you choose to react to an event.

The best way to prepare for it is to have a firm grasp of your end goal.

If you have no idea where you are going to end up, you have no purpose. You tend to react randomly to events driven by the moment.

One of the first questions we ask staff members when we come into a law firm is, “Why are you here?”

We are looking for that stake in the ground. Do you know what your job is, what the expectations are and how this all relates to your life?

People who know the answer to that question develop a passion for their work and their lives. They also know the vision of the law firm, and how the firm’s vision supports their own personal vision.

The second puzzle they must figure out is how to reach their goals.

To answer that question, they have to know their values. The people who can answer these questions understand the rules of the game and how to win it. That knowledge puts them on the road to integrity. In the business world, that translates into a leadership role.

To wrap the self-mastery series up, let’s look at the four paradigms we have discussed:

• Fear: If you live in fear, you make no progress. You spend your time looking for anything that will support your fear. You are totally ineffective.

• Duty: If you live in duty, you don’t really trust everybody, but you will do your duty. You go to work, pay taxes, etc. You become a good worker and add value to the business.

• Achievement: If you move up to achievement, you start to question the truth around you – including your own truth. Your focus is on accomplishing your purpose in life. You become an entrepreneur. If your vision and values are similar to that of the business, you become a valued employee and start to advance in the company.

• Integrity: If you move into integrity, you have an open and honest life. You establish values related to your beliefs and (some say) spiritual guidance. Your self-confidence builds and you become a leader.

Your assignment is to discover who you are. Why are you here (in this job, in this life, on this project, etc.)? Identify your values, your passions, your purpose – and start your journey.

Editor’s note: Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor are the principals in Catalyst Group, Inc., a national professional development company in Raleigh, N.C. Both speak and write nationally on law firm development and mentor and coach lawyers and paralegals in personal and professional development. Soaring Eagles is the name they apply to law firm personnel when speaking and writing. The company website is www.catalystgroupinc.com. Soaring Eagles blogs can be found at www.lawfirmcoachblog.com.

cherylleone.davefavor Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor, Special to CPN

As a reminder, the principles of self-mastery can be placed in four categories, or paradigms: fear, duty, achievement and integrity. No matter what the event, you always start with fear and go through duty and achievement to arrive (hopefully) at integrity.

This article focuses on the achievement paradigm. We seek importance and meaning through our achievements. We are concerned about what others think of us. We are hardworking, competitive, independent and goal-oriented.

As we move into the achievement paradigm, we become more focused on self. We are, after all, talking about self-mastery. We have now turned the corner and are on the path to integrity.

As we start to focus on achievement, two interesting changes take place.

First, we start thinking about our own vision, capabilities and contributions.

Second, we start to take control of a given situation, gradually moving towards a conclusion that is best for us.

By doing this, we gain skills, reputation, contacts and opportunities. We are no longer locked into fear or restricted by the boundaries of duty. We gradually gather all the resources we need to move into integrity.

The key to this process is in our interpretation of an event. Our belief systems and resulting values drive how we interpret events.

As we respond within the achievement paradigm, we expand our self-confidence and our base of knowledge. We see the benefits of moving past fear and duty.

The question becomes: How well will we adapt to this flood of information and skills?

Our actions become much more visible just because of the amount of activity. People see you taking action and react, creating even more events in your life. This again causes you to accelerate into self-mastery.

This is a critical time. With all of this activity, the opportunity to respond with fear or duty also increases.

Remember that responding with fear or duty is a safe environment. If you have been living in these paradigms, a jump into achievement may be too much and you will revert back. It may take a few tries before you are ready to step out there.

Let’s look at the example of trying to cross a bridge. You have decided not only to cross the bridge, but also to paint the bridge and lead everyone around you across it.

Suddenly, you hear complaints or harsh words about your involvement. “Who put that guy in charge?”

You begin to worry about what others think about you. You consider sliding back into the duty or fear paradigms.

The critical elements here are your beliefs, values and vision for the future.

Your beliefs will help form your vision.

Your vision will define the goals.

Your values will tell you your boundaries.

Most of the time, when people can not move from duty to achievement it is because they do not have a clear vision to help define their goals.

Editor’s note: Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor are the principals in Catalyst Group, Inc., a national professional development company in Raleigh, N.C. Both speak and write nationally on law firm development and mentor and coach lawyers and paralegals in personal and professional development. Soaring Eagles is the name they apply to law firm personnel when speaking and writing. The company website is www.catalystgroupinc.com. Soaring Eagles blogs can be found at www.lawfirmcoachblog.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles

By Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor, Special to CPN

This article focuses on the second stage of self-mastery – the duty paradigm. As we exit the fear paradigm and enter duty, we are attempting to gain control and exit the deadlock of fear. In the duty paradigm, we decide that we need to act and the best way to proceed is to do what is expected of us.

A few things need to have happened before you decide to move into the duty paradigm. You must always go back to the starting point – figuring out your values and vision in life. If you know who you are and have faith in yourself, you will quickly move from fear to duty to the third paradigm – achievement.

In duty, you need to know what is expected of you. In other words, what is your duty in a given circumstance? If you are in a business, this means that everyone has to have a good understanding of what the expectations are so that each member can formulate what their duty is. If you are alone or addressing your internal feelings, you need to know what your values and vision are to understand what your personal duty is. We still do not have a lot of control and we are still in survival mode, but we are moving.

The primary advantage of leaving fear and moving into duty is that we are exposed to outside influences and have opportunity to learn. While we are in the duty paradigm, we see what is going on around us, seek advice and become motivated. Eventually you will meet someone or learn something that will start your movement to the next paradigm.

To do this, you need to be encouraged to take risks. Just doing your duty is a safe environment. The way to move on is to encourage your employees or yourself to take risks. This combination of being exposed to new ideas and taking risks will move you to the achievement paradigm.

It is possible to stay in the duty paradigm and be a productive member of a business. However, someone in this paradigm may not make a lot of progress towards their personal goals.

The negative side of the duty paradigm is that you are not working on your vision or finding your purpose in life. By just doing your duty, you are working on someone else’s agenda.

One of the dangers of the duty paradigm is that it can become too comfortable. There is limited risk. You can get locked into this paradigm, just like fear.

For example, there could be many opportunities to build a relationship, family, career or even to save the whales, but you find yourself saying “I had no choice, it was my job.”

Look again at your vision. A good vision will define what you want, when you want it, why you want it and why it is important. To move out of the duty paradigm, you must stay focused on your vision. Like all steps in self-mastery, we start with well-defined values and a clear vision.

Here’s an example: You must cross a rope bridge over a deep ravine. Your first reaction is fear. You stand frozen at the end of the bridge.

Eventually, you realize that you are expected to cross it. You step out onto the rope and do your duty. And while you are out there, you begin to realize that you can do it. Eventually, you realize that you could do more. That’s when you are moving out of duty and into achievement.

People and businesses get bogged down when they forget – or never had – their vision. Without a clear purpose, there is no passion. With no passion, there is no progress.

A good vision must be compelling and easily understood. You cannot create a rule for every possibility. Instead, you define a vision of the future that describes what you really want and why you want it. You then must be able to execute a plan to achieve that vision without violating your values. If you allow life’s events to distract you along the path, you can become locked in the fear or duty paradigms.

While we all want to “do our duty,” the truth of the matter is our goal is to move onto achievement and finally operate from a sense of integrity. Understanding the path leads to control of your life.

Editor’s note: Cheryl Leone and Dave Favor are the principals in Catalyst Group, Inc., a national professional development company in Raleigh, N.C. Both speak and write nationally on law firm development and mentor and coach lawyers and paralegals in personal and professional development. Soaring Eagles is the name they apply to law firm personnel when speaking and writing. The company website is www.catalystgroupinc.com. Soaring Eagles blogs can be found at www.lawfirmcoachblog.com.

cherylleone.davefavor COLUMNS, Soaring Eagles