Balancing Expectations: Navigating Job Choices Without Setting Unrealistic Standards

Description

• Navigating Job Choices: Harrison discusses the importance of managing expectations when choosing a job.
• Overheard Conversations: A personal experience shared about a senior associate leaving, revealing the challenges of workplace dynamics.
• Avoiding Unrealistic Standards: The dilemma of setting expectations without being overly optimistic and discerning between the right and wrong firms.
• Law Firm Realities: Harrison emphasizes that all law firms face challenges, and individuals should focus on positive aspects rather than negative sentiments.
• Fountain Fillers vs. Drainers: Harrison introduces the concept of positive "fountain fillers" and negative "drainers" within organizations, urging individuals to choose a positive path.
• Career Impact: The advice underscores the potential life-changing impact of being a positive force in professional and personal life.
• Survival of Firms: Explains that successful organizations consistently remove individuals draining value to maintain a healthy work environment.
• Success Formula: Being positive, adding value, creating opportunities, and helping others grow are highlighted as key elements for success in any career.
• Personal Examples: Stories of individuals who maintained success by staying positive, building others up, and contributing to their firms.
• Unveiling the Secret: The revelation that successful attorneys often attribute their prosperity to positive actions, generosity, and creating opportunities for clients.
• Choose Your Path: A call to action for individuals to consciously choose to be positive contributors rather than negative influences in their careers and lives.

Transcript:
 
Balancing Expectations: Navigating Job Choices Without Setting Unrealistic Standards
 
Thank you for the presentation. I'm impressed because I almost perfectly described my situation at a previous job. I remember my first week learning that the office is only a senior associate, but I overheard the conversation where he gave notice that he was not on the phone. And when my boss was screaming at and braiding him for taking what sounded like a better job at a more prominent firm that day, I was walking on eggshells.
 
I never would have taken the job in retrospect. How can I draw the line between setting my expectations too high and unrealistic, but still No? How do I avoid firms that will not be where I want to be versus those that are? Okay, let me understand this better in my first week. Okay, avoiding firms that will not be where I want to be versus those that are.
 
Okay, so the idea here, and I think it's important to understand, is that even if you're in a law firm where people are quitting, even if you're in a law firm where things aren't going well, even if you're a law firm where it doesn't matter, it just doesn't matter, It's you just have to every, you have to realize every law firm has problems with people quitting.
 
Every law firm has people who are leaving all the time. Every law firm has people who are fired. Every law firm. There's no such thing as that. So, with the mistake that many people make, it's hilarious. So someone may be at a giant firm, like Simpson Thatcher, which is very prestigious. And they'll say.
 
Yes, I'm leaving because morale's very low, or I'm leaving because things are slow, or I'm leaving because it's just become a toxic environment. Like they'll say this about a firm. Again, I think Simpson Thatcher, I love the firm. I think it's one of the best law firms in the world. I have nothing negative about Simpson Thatcher, but people will say things like that.
 
And they'll say this because I don't know why they say it, but they say things like this about Simpson Thatcher. I don't know how old that law firm is; it's a hundred. Or they'll say it about Davis Polk, but I need to find out how old it is. Ancient firm. They'll say this about these firms, and that's unbelievable because these firms will be around decades from now, or they may be around another hundred years.
 
I don't know, but they're excellent firms. And if somebody is applying to one of these firms and they, or they're working at one of these firms and they say something like that, the patent is generally them, it's not the firm. Because the firm may be toxic one day or not the next, but these firms just keep going.
 
So you don't have to worry about it, you should ignore unhappy people. You should pay attention to the people where things are going well, right? To people where things are going well in straight stuff, where things are going well. People for whom things are going well, sorry.
 
Why do you think that? If you go to a law firm and almost everyone that goes there doesn't make a partner or whatever that some people do, you're probably better off sticking with the person where things, understanding the person where things are going right. You can't; things are going well, and then those are going wrong.
 
So, this advice is worth the admission price because everyone makes this mistake. So you have, this is an essential point. So, I want to make sure that everyone understands it. This one point could change your life and your career. That's how important it is. If you're still on this webinar, which it looks like most people are, which is excellent, this could change your life and career.
 
So there are two types of people. Some people are fountains, filling fountains, and some people are draining fountains. So what does that mean? So that means. That you have a choice of being one of two types of people. You have a choice of being someone positive, adding value, all these sorts of things, creating opportunity, communities, growing others.
 
And this is an essential point. This is the whole reason that most people fail in life and also in law firms. So this is your choice. You have a choice. And these are negative people. And this is, again, this: you choose your path. It's up to you, man. But you look at your parents, and you look at successful people.
You look at people that could be more successful. You look at your friends, who you went to school with. People who are doing well, happy people, and people who are are one of two types. It's just the way the world works. So you have training files. They're negative. It means you're taking value away from organizations or working with others.
 
That means that they're destroying or destroying opportunities. It means that they're not growing. They're not growing others. They're not growing others. There's more to this than that. Than that, but this is the general idea. Let me just see, not growing others. And there's just people that this is how they are.
 
So you have a choice. You can be one of these two types of people. If it were me, what you need to do is try to be a positive person. So what am I doing to do with you? I'm trying to be positive. I'm trying to add value to your career. I'm trying to create opportunities. I'm trying to help you grow.
 
I'm trying to grow myself by learning more things. And if you want to be, again, this is worth it. This is the path that I've chosen. Is it? Am I perfect in it? No, but this is the path, and you can be harmful and take value away. You can destroy opportunities. You can not be thrown. You can not be throwing others.
So, you have two choices if you are in a law firm. You can be this person and then fill out the filings. Or you can be the one draining fountains, and that's your choice. So, some associate calling up and yelling at a partner is probably someone draining fountains.
 
These are just the types of people that are everywhere. So just because you're surrounded by some negative people that are draining fountains like that's wild because Simpson Thatcher is going to be around. Forever. Probably. Forever. But you understand what I've been saying for a long time. It's been around for a long time.
 
All a good organization does, by the way, any good law firm, any good employer, any good company, all they do is they just are constantly, and this, again, this is so freaking important. If you learn this, your whole life and career will change. Your relationships will change. Law firms are just always, firms are always, what is it called?
 
Expelling people, getting rid of people that are draining fountains. That's one of the whole points. So that's what a good thing. The same thing with companies is that law firms are always getting rid of people who are draining fountains, and what happens to law firms that go out of business law firms that go out of business.
 
Are not draining fountains. So, law firms that go out of business just have all these kinds of toxic people sitting around, and they just get so many of them, and it overwhelms them. They don't get rid of them. So law firms that fail are often not failing, are often not draining fountains, or they're just overwhelmed with evil people that are draining fountains.
 
And so that's what happens. Same thing with companies. You're in trouble once you get a bunch of negative people there who are doing draining fountains. That's just how it works. So you have to choose one side or the other, and you probably know right now what side you're on. And most people, by the way, are often on the draining fountains.
 
This is what they're looking for in law firm interviews. This is what, are you that type of person? And if you are that type of person, you will be in a lot of trouble and not get jobs. That's what people are looking for. They're looking for fountain drainers. And that's what good law firms are firing people for.
 
So, just because a law firm is firing people or getting rid of people, that doesn't mean that you have to quit or that something's wrong. That means the law firm is probably draining funds and trying to remain a good firm. Or the person is just a fund drainer. Does that mean all law firms are good and all firms are excellent workplaces?
 
No. But this is the significant dynamic that makes law firms survive. You cannot say that Simpson Thatcher or some other big firm is a horrible place because they're letting people go, their morale is low, or it's become a toxic environment. Probably what's happening is they're draining fountains.
 
So that's just what happens. Do you know what law firms do, by the way? When there's a recession, and work slows down, law firms often look forward to it. Do they look forward positively? No, but it allows them to get rid of negative people and people who are drinking brownies.
 
It's just what happens. It happens because that's what law firms and organizations need to do to survive if they have a bunch of negative people who are taking value away, doing things that are hurting morale and not Rowing and just harmful and not growing others and just putting others down and sitting around and talking with people.
 
Those are the people who want from don't want; they know who you are, and they don't like it. If you're positive, you build up other people around you, and there's a guy. He may be on this webinar right now. And I like him. He sent me a nice. Email after this past summer: I am still waiting to respond to him. I should have so many emails, but he's an associate. I think he's probably in his late forties or early fifties, but he's an associate who keeps getting into these jobs.
 
He has incredible jobs at big firms, like giant international firms, but he's not a partner. He's in the practice area, like some sort of. Very technical practice area. I need to find out what the practice area is. It's some corporate-related, arcane finance, or financing airplanes, or I need to figure out what it is.
Something like that. And he is so positive. Like he, he sends emails like, thank you for your support.
 
I liked this. You did you, this is, and the thing is about him. It's so interesting that I wondered how someone hangs on to an associate position this long. These major law firms and meaning-making without any business consistently making a lot of money, I'm sure, make over half a million dollars a year.
 
And how does that happen? It happens because he's in this practice area where it's probably tough to get business, but he can still win in law firms. He is consistently at work when they have worked, always to hire him, but he's so positive, building people up, and enthusiastic about his job growing.
 
Learning and doing all these positive things. And that's a fountain filler. And those are the kinds of people to see them, but imagine this guy, like most people, bailing out of probably the law firms kind of law firms that worked in one or two years in five or six years later, and then popping in house and doing all these other things, this guy's managed to keep going.
 
And so what's nice is just. He's like a fountain filler. And if you see the most successful partners in law firms, like these are fountain fillers, like they, they go out and they build up their clients, add value, connect to the opportunities, and help the client grow and be good.
 
This is what the best attorneys do with their clients. It's what they do with others. It's what you, what the most successful associates do. They're all fountain fillers. Every single one of them is up and down somewhere toxic and things. But for those people, typically, the system will flush them out, and they will not rise.
 
They will; I look at attorneys I knew, and I'm sorry to go into so much detail about this; it's just so important. I knew attorneys that I knew when I was younger who were partners in law firms because they may have been hired by a branch office of a big law firm when the law firm just needed people to look. I was going, and they were just complete fountain drainers.
 
Negative building people up around not making people feel good, them not growing, believing they have a huge deal, and all of those people, their careers just went entirely in the fricking toilet. Like they just, now they're major 1000 plus personal law firms. Now they're just cowering in these little firms, a few people without any, and they may have started.
 
So, if you have a choice, I'm sorry to like harp and harp on this; this is one of the most important lessons. That you can have in your life because this is what it takes to do well. This is what makes people happy. This is what makes you very important. What people get is essential. Let's make attorneys get business.
It would make people happy if you contribute to others and are positive with clients. Employers with everything, and you are filling fountains, and then you will succeed in your life and career. You are going to succeed in your relationships with people. You are going to succeed in your relationships with your significant others.
 
You are going to succeed in your job. You are going to succeed in whatever you do. If you choose this, if you choose this option for your life and your career, and that's what's going on in law firms, when people are losing their jobs or typically fountain drainers, when people are doing harmful things, they're typically fountain drainers.
 
It would be best to stay around people filling fountains and doing positive things because that's all there is. If you need to, and sometimes you'll be in a firm where it's just a bunch of negative people and the firm's having all these problems. That means you go another direction, but you watch what's happening in law firms, who's getting loose in their jobs, who's having problems, who's not getting work.
 
And there are always going to be people who are doing this fountain drainer and so forth. It's just; it's how it works. You wrote down if you ever just learned one thing in these webinars. This is your choice to be one of these two people. If you're a fountain drainer, you're going to have an unsuccessful career, you're going to be unhappy, and you may not even know why, just, you won't even know why am I getting business?
 
Why am I unhappy in my job? Why do I keep getting fired? Why am I having all these problems? Why am I unhappy in my life? Why do I have bad relationships? Why do I keep getting divorced? Why do I keep it? Why do people not like me? Why am I unhappy? It's all because of this. It's effortless. If you are building other people up and adding value to companies, your clients, your firm, all that stuff you're making, creating opportunities for others, or helping people, that's all you need to do, man.
 
That's it. This is the number one lesson to being successful. As an attorney doing that, if you do the opposite and you just take a value, you don't help people. This is what people remember. People always remember those who help them grow and value and do all these things. This is what they remember.
These are the people that they thank. These are the people whose funerals they go to and give speeches. These are the people. That that you remember, these are the people that change your life. These are the people that if you are that person, people will always care about you. These are the people that this is it.
 
You just need to be on one side or the other. And if you're on the rainy fountain side, you're never going to know why you're having problems in your; you're just going to think it's everything sucks. The whole idea of this, by the way, is like I talked to very successful partners. Just because I don't know, I just keep meeting them, and most of them are looking for jobs, but people with this, these astronomical books of business and all they do, like their secret, is they give them their time freely when someone's not a client they find, they always try to save their clients money.
 
They create opportunities for. People around them create opportunities for clients. They just do all these very positive things, and people like them and give them business. And they have these great, incredible careers, prosperous and whatever. And that's what you need to do to be successful; you just need to be on one side or the other.
 
And by the way, most people are on the side of filling fountains. Most people are on the side of draining fountains. And that's why they get pushed out of law firms and jobs and are unhappy. That's just how it works, man. Think about where you want to be. I remember one of the most successful attorneys that I ever met.
 
I was in law school with him. I think he's like the head of a considerable firm, DLA Piper. I am trying to figure out what it does. He was always going around and being nice to people, offering to help them, being excited, and just upbeat. And I just remember from law school, I was like, why is this guy so fricking psyched and happy?
 
And again, he became without, I remember, I don't think he had, I don't think he had the most excellent grades. I don't think he was just incredibly successful because he was so positive and of so much value to others since that's the kind of person you want to be.