As stated in my initial entry on January 1, the purpose of this blog is to help.
The priority will always be on associates, but this content is also meant to help partners, law firms, and the clients too. The better, more adroit the associate becomes, the better it is for everyone and everything else, including the marketplace and the profession.
Regarding my motivation for putting Path2Partner in motion, this has been a project a long time coming. I am glad it is finally materializing.
Some context:
• I joined my firm in 2002 after an appellate court clerkship. I went to work for a partner who had tried many cases and had over 30 years of experience. Most importantly, he was a lawyer willing to manage and mentor. He gave me a lot of his time. Additionally, he gave me tremendous discretion about how I executed on his directions and guidance. The ability to exercise my own discretion from early on created a lot of self-confidence. I was working for the ideal partner. He shepherded me from associate to partner. A lot of what I learned from him, as well as many other senior lawyers along the way, will shine clear in this blog.
• I realized from the beginning of my work as an associate that in addition to the law being a profession, the law is also a business. Based on that realization, I got to work immediately on doing what I could to establish my own relationships and create my own business. I wanted my own autonomy and I desired to be the captain of my own ship. I marketed the legal knowledge I possessed and was gaining, tactfully shared my successes and achievements, and stayed in contact and tended my relationships. I wrote a great deal and spoke whenever and wherever I could.
• I joined the adjunct faculty of the University of South Carolina in 2009 and taught a course on Hotel and Restaurant Law to undergraduates for many years. It was during that experience, I realized I possessed the heart of a teacher. I truly enjoy teaching and helping others.
• My father was an officer in the United States Marine Corpsand I am a commissioned officer in the South Carolina State Guard. I grew up in a household that prized discipline and responsibility. As I have gone along in my career and built a team of my own, I take the responsibility for others’ development and well-being extremely seriously. The greatest achievements in my career have related not to my personal successes, but the successes realized by the lawyers and other professionals that I recruited and led.
These experiences and the mentality I possess about leadership, responsibility, and mentoring are what have prompted me to start this blog and share what I know and have learned with others. It is my hope that what I share during the life of this blog is in indeed beneficial to those that read it.
Path2Partner 