I have been a legal recruiter placing partners and associates in major law firm positions for 20 years. I was always impressed with my partner candidates who accumulated millions of dollars in portable business.

What I could not understand was the fact that the number of rainmakers in most large firms was small compared to the number of partners and others without their own clients.

I wondered: (a) Did the rainmakers have special skills? (b) Were they born salesmen? (c) Did they have special training? I wanted to find out why they were so successful and others were not.

I then spent years interviewing various managing partners, partners, rainmakers, CEOs and others. During the same period I attended a wide variety of courses on self-actualization, transformational communication, money and sales. Having sold services to professionals for 35 years also helped me in my inquiry.

Eventually, after years of research, I came to realize that there were various issues common to rainmakers that were largely missing in those that could not attain such success. I also realized that the missing issues could be transformed. 

So my research also led me to develop a method to transform such issues. The bottom line is that virtually any attorney can become a rainmaker if, (a) they are committed to doing so, and (b) they transform the issues that stand in the way of actualizing their rainmaking potential.

The following issues or factors are among those I uncovered.

Compromising One's Well Being

Alcoholism, compulsive spending, debting and under earning, compulsive gambling, compulsive eating, eating foods that are not healthy, drug addiction, sex and love addictions, all forms of criminal behavior, any form of relationship abuse, grudges, not maintaining appropriate facilities, putting others in harm's way, low levels of generosity with others (this includes money and love), not taking appropriate risks, the avoidance of health issues, etc. A person who does not act in his or her own best interest cannot be highly effective with others. 

Victim-Thinking

When a person is prone to blaming others for problems in their relationships, in business or in other areas of their lives, this is the result of believing they have been victimized. This type of thinking is in part a product of an insufficient level of conscious awareness. 

When one is able to expand their conscious awareness they become able to recognize that there are other more constructive ways to assess and resolve their challenges in a win-win manner. 

Since this is so critical to developing clients I decided to develop interactive processes and found resources to expand conscious awareness.

 Contribution

"The more you give, the more you get." It has been shown that those who give back to the community tend to increase their development capabilities. It is not just that they are exposed to more contacts, it's an abstract phenomenon that causes greater attraction in general. 

Thus, supporting the professional in reaching new levels of leadership in community service is critically important. On client service issues, it is also important to identify where the professional can enhance his or her level of service. Taking care of clients is always of critical importance. Service should go far beyond what is expected.

Communication

Communication is our most powerful and important resource. Nothing would exist without it. Communication is more than merely a vehicle for discussion or a way to get our messages across to others. It's a very powerful human resource, and many of its most valuable aspects go largely unnoticed. 

In addition, there are certain common myths about communication that cause relating breakdowns. How many times have people said, "I cannot get through to him. He doesn't communicate." 

The fact is that everyone communicates. However, we are not always on the same channel. When one's context of communication is expanded it is easier to recognize when one is not on the same channel and to identify how to get on the same channel. 

Through powerful and highly effective modes of communication, new realms of opportunities emerge. New ways to access our own natural and most important communication capabilities are now available through advice, processes and resources.

A compendium of various person-to-person communication exercises is used to expand dimensions of communication. Processes involve rapid speaking, writing, general discourse, past-based relating analysis, guided meditation and exercises using creative visualization, etc. I also found certain outside resources to expand communication.

In individual sessions, situational relating and communication breakdowns are identified. Person-to-person and group relating strategies are developed to expand communication.

Being Open to the Advice of Others

We are all "coachable" to one degree or another on a variety of issues. For example, we may be very intent on learning a new phase of our profession but not open to improving a particular client relationship. We may be very slow at addressing our weight problem, while others may be very dedicated to weight reduction. 

One of the most valuable things I learned in my life is the importance of seeking out good advice, and following it. When I did that, I was more effective in my pursuits. In some cases new opportunities came my way. When I did not, I later paid dearly for not heeding the advice I was given. 

It is important to recognize that the more coachable one is, the more value one will derive from being coached. It is also important to realize that the more one is open to using good advice, the more likely a client or prospective client will take what you have to say seriously. "What goes around comes around."

Relations

The relationships we have or had with our parents is the source of all our other relationships going forward in life. It is no accident that people who have relationship problems with spouses, partners, colleagues, employers, prospects or clients also have integrity issues with their parents or other key family members. 

When people hold grudges with their parents or have diminished them in some way, they compromise their ability to produce breakthrough results. Luckily, there are ways to dramatically turn such problems around.  

Compromising Reasons

Former British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli said, "Men are not the creatures of circumstances. Circumstances are the creatures of men." Many people fail to reach their prospecting goals because they are stuck with so-called good reasons. 

They are sometimes convinced that certain circumstances have interfered with their business development efforts. The fact is that there are certain circumstances that do compromise one's pursuits. However, in far more cases there are solutions to various problematic circumstances.    

Summary

Anyone can be an outstanding business developer or rainmaker. It is not the sole domain of a few privileged or gifted individuals. We all have what it takes. It's just a matter of uncovering what has been repressed or hidden from view. 

There is no shortage of wealth or potential clients in the world. Money and clients are infinite. If you think there is a limit, just look at your competitors. They have the work you are not getting. Having a far greater market share is well within reach. 

And, it is available only to those committed to having it. Don't let excuses stop you from attaining the financial or personal satisfaction that we all deserve.

Arnold Keiser is a Client Development Consultant with Search International in Marlton.