I sat down in a law firm’s lobby after being greeted by the receptionist. She promised that the lawyer I planned to meet would be with me in just a minute. She offered me coffee and a magazine. I was happy.

Then the receptionist got a call. She asked “Mr. Conners” to hold. Then she pushed some buttons on her phone and told someone Jim Conners was on the phone and that he was upset that he hadn’t sent him “the Complaint.”

The person at the other end of the line took the call, and I focused on the magazine. A minute later from down the hall, I could hear a raised voice from an office. “Jim, we’re working on it. Calm down…you’re going to get…” and suddenly the lawyer I was waiting to meet appeared. We went back to her office and did our business.

I should have mentioned what happened in the lobby, but I didn’t. I should have told her about the receptionist breaching confidentiality and the conversation I overheard while sitting in the lobby. I should have told her the damage that her lobby was doing to her practice when clients and prospective clients realize that others are going to overhear their calls. No one wants to worry about the privacy of their divorce.

How do you solve the problem? Doors. Put people behind closed doors. Stop the sound from traveling around the office. We have a closed door between our lawyers and our lobby. We play music in the lobby to further block the sound. We don’t have a receptionist in the lobby. We use the window model found in some medical practices. We keep the receptionist behind the window so the sound won’t travel to the lobby.

Spend a few minutes sitting in your lobby. Think like a client would think and listen to find out what you can hear. If you’re hearing things you shouldn’t, then it’s time to go to work making sure you’re not accidentally giving away secrets.