Prospective lawyers need to start networking on their first day of law school, Jakob Wissel says. Once in practice, attorneys need to exercise all the skills of ethical salespeople to keep their jobs and to bring value to the profession.
The need for sales skills seems self-evident, but many law students keep their nose to the grindstone in the expectation that their class rank will make networking an inconvenience at best. Then they bomb their on-campus interviews.
Or these students make editor of the law review and clerk for a respected justice. Then they have issues relating to clients and partners when they join a firm.
Sales skills are essential for connecting to the right firm and for maintaining the smooth client relationships necessary for favorable legal results.
What kinds of sales skills do successful attorneys need? Here are nine examples.
Jakob Wissel has an outstanding record in sales. He brings those skills to the law.