Am I going to be tested on this?

At first glance, this question is reminiscent of high school and college years, it reflects a certain laziness, a desire to make it through on minimum effort without accidentally learning anything.

However, as the vivid break-outs and keynotes of LMA 2012 are muted with time and a crowded catch-up inbox, the question is strikingly efficient: sorting through noise to distill vital information is critical in a time-sensitive environment.

• Have I followed up with new and old colleagues that I met in the halls and exhibits of the conference? 
• Did I take any actions to insight loyalty among my clients following the inspirational keynote by James Kane?
• Have I transcribed the notes I so busily scribbled while they are still legible?

I have not, thank you for asking. I wrote this blog post instead.

A brief meditation on relationships

You'd be hard-pressed to find a word more prevalent than relationships when it comes to law firm business development efforts. Relationships dominate discussions about client surveys, internal communications and  vendor agreements.

It's surprising to me, the first day into my grocery budget challenge, how much my relationship to food has changed in one day. No longer can I wander mindlessly through the store grabbing the food that strikes me at the moment. It really has to be a decision made about the value of the item. For example, will this hunk of cheese fit more than one item on the week's menu? Will the short-term benefit of eating the thing that looks really, really good in the moment sabotage my long-term goal?

For the record, one day in and I'm still on track spending only $ 15 at the store yesterday (though I did cheat slightly by starting with a full pantry!).

Time, like money, is a limited resource. It's critical to make the most of every interaction with external and internal clients lest they be taken for granted like the overripe banana that looked tasty at the time, but I just didn't get a chance to use.