I got a big reminder recently of how we lawyers look at the world. Sometimes it’s scary.

The way we think is not always healthy or helpful for us or our businesses.

We aren’t like other people. We’ve got special training. That training is an asset in many respects. We couldn’t do our jobs without it. But it comes at a price, and that’s compounded when it comes to those of us growing our practices.

A couple of weeks ago, we launched a private membership site at the Rosen Institute. The site is off and running and features several monthly programs as well as a thriving forum.

Watching the lawyers inside the Rosen Institute is fascinating. I’ve seen this behavior before, but I was reminded of it—strongly—over the past week.

How Lawyers Often Evaluate Ideas

Here’s our process:

1. Idea. Something comes up. It’s something new or a twist on something old. It’s interesting, different, and maybe creative. It has potential to add value to us, our clients, or our businesses.
2. Critique. We respond with a “that’s great, but…” and we express our concerns. Of course, the “that’s great” is sometimes forgotten as we trip over our words rushing to the “but….” We explain what’s wrong, what might be risky, and why it might not work.
3. Discard. We then focus on the critique instead of the idea. The discussion continues, and we pile on with more “but….” Once the idea takes a hit or two, it’s dead. An idea might be 85 percent good and 15 percent bad/risky/unlikely to work. Doesn’t matter that it’s got an 85 percent chance of being useful. If it’s 15 percent off, then it’s done. We move on.

Idea, critique, discard is how we roll. It’s who we are. We identify the issues, elevate concern for the risks and downsides, and roll on doing what we’ve always done and doing it the way we’ve always done it. We’re finished.

Somehow, we allow the 15 percent bad to become our focus, and we completely lose sight of the 85 percent good. It’s bizarre. Of course, if someone points out what we’re doing and how we’re losing out on the good by focusing on the bad, we’re not discouraged. We quickly jump in with an explanation of why the risk outweighs the benefits. Our bias is that a slight risk trumps nearly all benefits.

That way of thinking helps our clients stay out of risky situations when they take our advice. They stay safe, and they don’t risk liability, failure, bankruptcy, and disaster.

But it’s a status quo way of thinking. Nothing changes. Progress slows, and we move forward, but barely.

Here’s an example:

“I could hire a virtual assistant in the Philippines for a low wage.”

“That’s a great idea, but what if the virtual assistant sent your e-mails to other people and causes you to be disciplined for a breach of confidentiality, resulting in adverse publicity and loss of your clients and resulting income?”

“Oh yeah. I hadn’t thought of that. I guess I’ll keep paying someone more money so he can do the work here.”

The way we think is arguably helpful. But it’s inhibiting. It keeps us from taking risks. It’s a wonder we’re not using inkpots and quills.

How to Grow Ideas

There’s this thing I learned in a class during a failed attempt to learn how to do improv comedy. They teach you the “Yes, and…Rule.” You never want to respond with “no” or a single word in improv. It kills the conversation. “Yes, and” is additive.

When someone says “Wouldn’t you like to see her naked?” you don’t respond with a single word like “nope.” You say something like “Yes, and I’d really like to see her naked and I’d talk her into wearing a hat with lots of feathers poking out.” The other person will hopefully add to the conversation with something like, “Yes, and then I’d scoop her up with my arm and we’d ride off toward the town on my horse.”

You get the idea: “yes, and” adds to the situation. It makes the scene bigger, better, and more valuable. It’s a phrase that promotes growth of the idea.

What if, instead of the feathers, the horse, and the town, the response had been “Nope, I’d never want to see her naked. Forget that idea. It’s terrible”?

That’s kind of a deal killer, right? The conversation is over. We come to a grinding halt.

That’s what happens when lawyers throw out new ideas. Idea—boom (exciting, interesting, loads of possibility). Criticism—blah (dead, over, history, energy-sucking mush). And we’re right back where we started.

Be careful not to shoot down the idea. Be careful to foster the new thought in yourself and in others. Let the idea grow.

[ While I have you here, I wanted to remind you that you can get the latest articles delivered to your inbox a week before they go up on the web. Just one email per week. Sign up here. ]

Lots of ideas (probably most) start with a small percentage of good and a big percentage of bad. Take the good and grow it. Take it up a notch. Increase the good part and discard the bad part. Make the idea work for you instead of deciding how it won’t work. Say “yes, and” and see what comes. See how it might help you grow.