Is this a confusing title?  Probably.  That is because “adding value” can be a confusing.  Or rather, when to add value and when not to can be a confusing choice.  Let’s try to make it easier.

I discuss “adding value” in my book, Best Friends at the Bar: Top-Down Leadership for Women Lawyers (Wolters Kluwer/Aspen Publishers 2015).  It is a concept that most leaders do not understand, and there is a very good reason for that.  Most leaders think that they know everything about everything and that whatever they have to say on the subject needs to be said.

Not so much.  Consider this.  You are a leader in a law firm.  A junior lawyer comes to you with an idea that she thinks is a really good idea, and she is very excited about the possibilities.  Most often what you, the leader, does in response is to interrupt and wax prolific about all you know on the subject, how many times you have addressed the issue and how you can improve the idea of the junior lawyer.  If you think that approach is unproductive, you are right.  That kind of “adding value” is discouraging to the junior lawyer and most likely will be the beginning of a not-so-valuable relationship.

How about another approach?  You are a leader in a law firm, and the same young woman lawyer comes to you very excited about her idea.  You listen — yes, actually listen instead of speak.  You let this enthusiastic young woman talk about her idea and all of its nuances, and you LISTEN.  At the conclusion of her “sell,” you compliment her on her initiative and tell her that you hope she will continue this kind of innovative thinking.  You resist being the center of attention in favor of encouraging and mentoring a junior person.  If the idea needs improvement and refinement or further discussion, there is plenty of time for that once you have established the foundation that the idea is worthy of your consideration.

Leadership is difficult.  It means having the patience to listen, encourage and develop talent even if there are hundreds of pieces of paper on your desk that need attention. It means not needing to be in the spotlight all the time and putting someone else there to shine.

But, effective leadership pays off in spades.  It should never be overlooked.   Effective leaders know that and do not have to “add value” all of the time.  They have learned that much of what we say does not have to be said.  They have learned when to talk and when to listen.

For more on adding value, see this recent blog by my leadership mentor and the world-recognized leadership guru Marshall Goldsmith.  The comments of his C-Suite clients will help drive these concepts home beautifully.

Sometimes you just have to learn what you would rather not know.  Here is a case in point.

Gender bias is a terrible and destructive thing.  We all seem to understand express and intentional bias, and there are laws to protect us against it in the workplace.  That is the easiest kind of bias to spot.  It is obvious when someone tells you that you cannot have the case because you are a woman or when someone targets you with a gender slur. 

However, it is more complicated with implicit gender bias, which can be subtle and unintentional but also can be just as destructive to a career.  To learn more about implicit bias and how to spot it and eliminate it, read the new book, Breaking Through Bias: Communication Techniques for Women to Succeed at Work (Bibliomotion, 2016), released last week.  Written by my friend Andrea Kramer, a partner at McDermott Will in Chicago, and her husband Al Harris, a law firm founder, it is a virtual primer on bias in the workplace and how to overcome it.  Andie and Al have been studying these issues for years in their efforts to improve advancement of women lawyers in law firms.  Now, they are making all of their research and findings available to you as a super assist in advancing your talents and your careers.

For more on this subject, you also should look at my book, Best Friends at the Bar: Top-Down Leadership for Women Lawyers (Wolters Kluwer/Aspen 2015).  The topic of unconscious bias (another name for implicit bias) is discussed in Chapter One of that book because it is so critical to the discussion of retaining and advancing women lawyers.  I include fabulous advice from the legendary lawyer Mary Cranston of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman on achieving gender diversity and combating gender bias in law firms.  Here is a summary:

• Push from the top.  There must be leadership from the top not just lip service.  The leaders must understand unconscious bias.  An example is identifying women as having less potential for leadership and stereotyping them as having no “bandwidth”;
• Put women in top jobs and let them prove themselves.  Give them a chance to succeed instead of making unfounded assumptions; and
• Give women gender training so that they are more proficient in recognizing and controlling gender stereotyping.  Women must have this information so that they do not play into the gender stereotypes.

I might also add the obvious — that the male lawyers need that same gender training!  There is plenty on that in the book as well.

So, join Andie and Al and me in our pursuit to make the law a better and more rewarding profession for women.  As they say in their promotional materials, the cost of a book is less than the cost of lunch. 

Skip lunch one day, if that is what it takes, and protect your future!