Companies don't hire lawyers for legal advice. They hire lawyers to solve problems and achieve business objectives.

Anthony Ulwick is the creator of Outcome-Driven-Innovation and the 'Jobs-to-be-Done' theory. Here is one devastatingly simple yet profound takeaway from his ideas; you go to a hardware store to get a hole in your wall, not to get a drill. You boil water to have a hot drink, not to have boiled water. This is why toolmakers focus on utility; what is intended to be delivered. It is the same for lawyers, every moment engaging with clients about their project goals is a moment well spent. In Anthony Ulwick's parlance, this is being outcome-driven.

Law firms need to understand what clients want from the relationship and what they don't want to see in a project. In the same way, individual lawyers need to understand what their firms want and don't want in a project. In the two-sided market, there are a couple of clear and recurring lists, "Relationship Wish List" and the "Project Loathe List."