In the video above the science journalist Joshua Foer speaks about how people obtaining a new skill will eventually hit an autonomous state where they go on autopilot, and stop getting better. He calls it the “okay plateau”, and sets forth the following four principles experts in their field use to get past this plateau: 1) Experts tend to operate outside their comfort zone, and watch themselves fail; 2) Experts tend to study highly competent people; 3) Experts strive for constant and immediate feedback; and 4) Experts treat what they do like a science.
Operating Outside Your Comfort Zone
Good is the enemy of great
- Jim Collins
Don’t get complacent with how you handle your cases. After handling thousands of cases many attorneys become complacent in the way they analyze and argue their cases. It is often difficult for experienced attorneys to find new ways to improve their litigation after they become complacent with the way they litigate cases.
Learn From Other Litigators & Speakers
While it helps to practice arguing your case in court one of the best ways to improve as a lawyer iis to learn from other high level litigators & speakers. Interestingly Joshua Foer stated the top chess players were not the players who played the most, but the players who spent the most time studying other grandmasters. I have always believed it is important to Read Regularly to find new ideas to help you improve as a lawyer.
Get Constant & Immediate Feedback
In litigation it is difficult to get reliable feedback. It can be tough to tell whether you did a good job on cross-examination or if the witness just gave you a gift. An effective argument may be allowed by one judge, but might be excluded by another. For this reason I generally try to Focus On Advocacy Skills. When implementing a trial tactic I look at the Rule Of Advocacy, the reason for the rule, and if there is an overriding reason to break the rule. Then I implement the tactic, and look to see if it paid off to follow or break a specific rule.
Treating Litigation As A Science
Advocacy is generally considered to be an art, which is true to a large extent. I tried to come up with the Rules Of Advocacy in an attempt to add an element of science to the art of advocacy.
