LawVision INSIGHTS Blog

Law Firm Sales and Lessons from the Spider

By Silvia L. Coulter on October 24, 2014

Inspired by the fun holiday of Halloween this month, I thought I’d write about my recent experience with a spider’s web. In between travel over the last few weeks, I often let my dog out in the evening before we all hunker down for the night. I have watched with interest a large spider wait patiently in its web each night for the right “prospect” to hit the sticky, entangling web. During the day it disappears, but every night he’s there again.

This is not a typical spider one might see but a rather appropriately colored for Halloween (quite large) brown and yellow spider you might find in the deep woods. Its patience is remarkable and its willingness to show up each evening and wait is intriguing to me.

It reminds me of my many coaching meetings where woven into my message and guidance are the words, “Be Patient!” “It Takes Time.” As I observe this spider, it reminded me of how long it can take to reap rewards from tremendous efforts. It never seems to give up, knowing at some point the wait will be worth the reward.

So while my comparison may seem like a bit of a stretch, and certainly the reward for the new client won’t be his or her demise but rather a new opportunity to build a great legal partnership, we can take a lesson from the spider about business development. Build it, show up often, be patient, master your craft and they will come.

Happy Halloween!