When someone leaves a system – a role, an organisation, a social group – the impact on both them and the system they leave behind can be profound. When not handled well, it can lead to serious dysfunction in the organisation as system attempts to restore balance. Here are my tips for handling retirement from professional services firms.

In this week’s blog, I share my thoughts on an article published in the Harvard Business Review regarding how it pays to be yourself. Catering to others is less effective than ‘showing up’ as your authentic self and being willing to adapt to the situation at hand. Read more…

Dispositional attribution vs situational attribution.

If someone else does something wrong in their role as a leader, we tend to attribute it to their disposition. But if we do, we attribute it to the situation. I explore the difference in this week’s blog…

There are four common mistakes that smart, focused partners can make as retirement approaches.

With the right planning however, you have the ability to forge a different path, and turn the years up to and beyond retirement into a fulfilling encore career that is engaging, rewarding… and fun.

If you’ve found yourself setting new habit goals and not achieving them, perhaps you need to lower the bar. These could be habits such as exercising frequently, spending more time with someone, or introducing more self care to your routine. Give yourself an opportunity to make a more realistic plan and build it up gradually. Set yourself up for success.

For retired (or soon-to-be) partners of a law firm, the opportunity exists across the alumni network to share wisdom and skills, to have a positive impact, and to enliven and be enlivened by the constantly evolving world in which we all live. There is plenty of benefit for both the firm and alumni to continue this valuable relationship. Read more…

Have you found yourself eliminating elements of your natural style to accommodate others? Why not try asking how those elements can help you lead and influence? You may find a key that will allow you to soften up a little, free up your energy and let you get on with succeeding in a way which is both truly you and incredibly effective.

One of the most common hurdles blocking a soon-to-retire partner from doing so with ease and enthusiasm for their next chapter is a fear that their hard-built practice will wither and die. And fair enough… but sooner or later, retire they must. So if this is you, what can you do to ensure your practice is cared for?

At times, leaders can be told to improve their influencing and persuasion skills. Often, these are highly capable and professional people with significant expertise in a technical field. They may be apt at presenting strong data, significant research, and a lot of technical argument and not focus so much on emotions, beliefs, social ties and so on. There is a way that you can connect with your audience in a way that resonates with them. Read more…