In the 15 years that I have been writing this column, the most-requested series was the one that discussed the most common attributes of the most successful lawyers I have worked with or otherwise have known in my 35-plus-year career. As almost a decade has passed since the original publication, I have decided to revise and update that series. Most of it has stood the test of time (I hope!), but there are some new attributes and tweaks that have been made.

I was staring at the sea of young players I was about to coach many years ago and wondered not only about who would make the team, but which ones would be our stars. I called a coaching mentor that night, who explained that while talent was important, I should focus on a range of other characteristics, too, if I hoped to select a group that would become a winner.

I recently asked the leader of a major law firm about what separated the highest achievers in his firm from their peers. The memories of that discussion with my coaching mentor came flooding back, as the managing partner reeled off a list of traits that mirrored, in many respects, the qualities my former coach had espoused. Despite the passage of time and the markedly different environments, the key components of what constitutes winners were remarkably similar.

Ten characteristics that often define the most successful lawyers will be discussed. This list has been compiled based on discussions with managing partners, generals counsel, individual lawyers, business executives and my own observations from having worked with lawyers (in the trenches and in a consulting/recruiting capacity). Law firms and corporate law departments make significant investments in their lawyers—forecasting which ones will emerge as their real winners can be quite chancy—so hopefully this list will provide some guidance. In this month's column, the first five traits will be discussed.

 Winners Are Goal Setters

"Goals determine what you're going to be." — Julius Erving

I have yet to meet a successful lawyer whose career has been defined by pure serendipity. Sure, there were undoubtedly moments in which the fates may have smiled on them, but every one of them had set some long-term goals—such as making partner or becoming a general counsel—and had further established defined mile markers on the road to achieving those objectives.

When firms or companies presented specific benchmarks (such as billable hour requirements), these lawyers routinely set their own goals, which normally were well in excess of those minimum standards. Similar targets were set as their careers progressed. For example, rather than aspiring to be a rainmaker, most of these lawyers established specific origination numbers and corresponding dates by which they expected to reach those milestones. This habit becomes so deeply ingrained that it becomes second nature.

Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich," which was first published almost 100 years ago remains the best book, in my opinion, in helping one learn to set goals and then execute against them. Even the most celebrated self help gurus of our times pay homage to this book and I cannot recommend it highly enough in this realm.

Winners Are Self-Motivated

"Motivation is a fire from within. If someone tries to light that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly." —Stephen R. Covey

Sports is a field in which the motivating influence of coaches ranges from the fabled fire-and-brimstone speeches of Knute Rockne to the Zen-like mysticism of Phil Jackson. However, think for a second about the truly great performers, such as a Michael Jordan or Wayne Gretzky—can you ever recall them needing to be exhorted by a coach to try just a bit harder to win a particular contest? Jordan, in fact, is legendary, as he refused to lose even in pickup games. The motivation for these stars came from within and burned brightly throughout their careers.

This same internal drive is characteristic of the most successful lawyers I know. Everyone seems to have an inner voice that has spurred them throughout their careers. One might think that the biggest rainmakers, for example, may relax a bit once they have built a significant practice and are well established. In fact, it has been the opposite, as these lawyers are always concerned about where there next big case or deal is coming from and are relentless in pursuing that work. Interestingly, these lawyers rarely worry about how their peers are doing (such as who spent more time with the CEO last week or who has better performance metrics); rather, their biggest competition is themselves and their personal quest to meet or exceed their goals.

Winners Are Strategic

"Champions aren't made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them—a desire, a dream, a vision." —Muhammad Ali

Successful lawyers do not just show up, do the work that is handed to them, and assume it will continue forever. Rather, they have foresight and think a step ahead of others. I can recall a new general counsel who inherited a law department that had a reputation for being aloof and too "lawyer-like." As the general counsel knew that there were some important initiatives he needed to undertake, he felt it was most important to first gain acceptance of his team from business executives throughout the company.

The general counsel dispersed four of his best lawyers to work at company facilities in different parts of the country and implored them to become fully immersed in daily business activities. This proved to be a terrific strategy, as the legal department began to be perceived as much more in sync with the company, which provided the foundation that the general counsel needed to get buy-in for his key projects.

Strategic thinkers tend to ask questions and do not reflexively accept the "we have always done it this way" answer to inquiries about methodology. They often are interested in trends and will devote time to studying the topic.

A products liability partner comes to mind, who was immersed in work and was keeping a team of 10 lawyers fully occupied. The partner knew that sales of the products that were at the heart of his cases were declining; as such, even though the litigation was still likely to be heavy for a few more years, it inevitably would decline. Rather than wait for that day to come, the partner invested a few days of his (unbilled) time at the client's site, to talk with R&D, marketing and operations staff, who provided a forecast of what the next generation of products would be. The partner then spent time educating himself and a few others about those products and their scientific underpinnings, so that they would be poised to handle new cases that potentially could be filed after the products hit the market in the future.

Winners Have Positive Attitudes

"Whether you think you can, or think you can't, you're probably right." —Henry Ford

Lawyers are trained, in part, to assess what may go wrong in any given situation. Business lawyers, for example, structure aspects of deals to protect their clients from maladies and other developments that could hurt them if things break a certain way. Almost every litigator is brought into a matter in which there is a breach, injury, or some other transgression that has occurred or is looming on the horizon.

This focus on the negative becomes so deeply ingrained, that, unless someone has a high level of self-awareness, it can unknowingly permeate how he not only perceives the practice of law, but life itself.

Winning lawyers rise above this and are able to maintain positive attitudes, which separate them from many of their peers. Even if they have lost several new business pitches in a row, they assume they are going to get the next one and often do. The confidence that underlies their presentation is palpable and can make the difference for a decision-maker, especially in the closest of contests.

Just remember that even the best professional baseball hitters fail the vast majority of the time they stride to the plate. A positive attitude is crucial in plugging away and if someone can get a hit, on average, just three out of 10 times, he very well may end up in the Hall of Fame.

Winners Are Well Prepared

"It's not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win that makes the difference." —Bear Bryant

It is the hallmark of a good lawyer to be prepared. Most lawyers learned early that their native intellect, when combined with preparation, positioned them well for success, whether that was in school or in their professional life. The objective of being ready is not a hard sell, as it is something that is under their control and is a "check the box" type of endeavor that is inherently attractive to lawyers. There are two facets of preparation, though, that separate great lawyers from those who are very good.

The first such aspect is the tendency to take an extra step (or two) with respect to preparation, especially in high leverage situations. For example, consider the lawyer who will be attending a conference (online, or, post-pandemic, in-person) or other function in which opportunities exist to fraternize with other lawyers or executives who may be good business sources, links to job opportunities, or good extensions to their professional network.

A good lawyer may review the list of expected attendees and give some thought as to the persons she hopes to meet. A very good lawyer may go a step further to review the bios of those persons and even peruse a few recent news stories about their companies or firms. A great lawyer will take those steps, plus will be ready to offer help to those other persons if they should meet, which may take the form of a follow-up article (that he already found through his preparation) or other piece of information that also starts to build a relationship.

The second trait is to never become complacent about preparation, even after one progresses in his career. Human nature can lead accomplished lawyers to believe that all they have to do is show up, or only do a modicum of preparatory work, as others may know them at a later stage of their career. This is a risky gambit, as competition is fierce (and will include others who actually did prepare) and each year that goes by introduces another wave of younger persons into the mix—who may be future clients or contacts—who know very little about their past accomplishments and will be unimpressed by a lack of familiarity with them. The great ones always assume that there are hungry aspirants to the throne and are ready for their challenges.

Frank Michael D'Amore is the founder of Attorney Career Catalysts, http://www.attycareers.com, a Pennsylvania-based legal recruiting and consulting firm that focuses on law firm mergers and partner placements.  He is a former partner in an AmLaw 200 firm, general counsel in privately held and publicly traded companies, and vice president of business development. He can be reached at [email protected].