The Making Of A Rainmaker

Developing the Next Generation of Rainmakers The Making of a Rainmaker Whether you are reading this blog because you want to be a rainmaker or you want to prioritize your career and your life, I hope you find something valuable from my book, Rising Star.  I have included in this blog some paragraphs from the introduction. And I have included what one attorney has said about Rising Star. I hope you find this helpful. “This is the second book I have written about Tony and Gina Caruso. In “Say Ciao to Chow Mein: Conquering Career Burnout” I focused on Tony, who after finishing his first year as an associate in a large Texas law firm is burned out and struggling to find meaning in his career. In Ciao, Gina loves her work as a clerk for a Federal Court judge. At the conclusion of Ciao, Tony has just been promoted to partner and he and Gina have two children. Rising Star: The Making of a Rainmaker is about Gina, who is now a partner in a mid-sized firm. She is the talk of the firm, having brought in $1 Million of business. Yet, she feels like a one-hit wonder because her success was a result of one big case from one big client. I have known Tony’s and Gina’s throughout my 35 years practicing law. Their characters are a composite of lawyers who have worked for me and lawyers I have been blessed to coach and mentor. Many of those lawyers have caused me to study and examine differences between lawyers who are successful and happy and lawyers who are not. Interestingly, many of the people who are truly successful also have a great personal life and are very family oriented. *** Gina learns you must begin by knowing what you want. Then becoming credible to your potential clients and finally by understanding their wants, needs, and perceptions so that your service and what you provide them is “remarkable” in their eyes. When I developed my own successful law practice, and when I wrote Rising Star, I was not familiar with marketing guru and successful author Seth Godin. The main focus of his writing has been about the need in our complex society to be “remarkable” to be even noticed. In the November/December 2006 issue of Selling Power,” Seth Godin talks about three kinds of customers. I will put it in the context of clients: 1. Clients who don’t need the services you or your firm offer. 2. Clients who need the services you or your firm offer, but are using another lawyer or firm. 3. Clients who are ignoring you. Godin says you can’t market directly to the second and third group. “Instead, have them come to you.” How do you suppose you can get them to come to you? Godin suggests you have to create something “remarkable.” Gina learns that principle and I have taught others to do the same thing. Jennifer is a labor and employment lawyer I am coaching. She created the “Easy Guide” which is a compilation of labor and employment laws on laminated cards which an HR person can attach to his or her monitor. Jennifer has the clients in the second and third category calling and asking for an “Easy Guide.” Writing Rising Star has been a labor of love, but not nearly the joy I have had over my career working with young lawyers like Tony and Gina. I hope you will use Rising Star as a guide to develop your own success. What remarkable thing can you create that will cause clients to come to you?” If you want to read the rest of the introduction and a couple of sample chapters, click here for information about how you can get a free e-copy sample of Rising Star. This is no simple ‘how-to’ rainmaking book filled with lists and instructions that you promise to read once you find the time. This is a book you will pick up and read cover to cover, and likely read again. Mr. Parvin has brought rainmaking and career development to life through this story of a young lawyer struggling to balance professional and personal life. There is helpful advice for all lawyers here â€" from setting specific goals to making a name for oneself. I highly recommend it. Christina Plum, Attorney, Stenzel Law Office LLC Past Chair, American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division To order Rising Star, click here â€" or you may find it on Amazon.com As you read Rising Star, please feel free to come back to this blog and add a comment. I practiced law for 37 years developing a national construction law practice representing some of the top highway and transportation construction contractors in the US.