New York Lawyer
April 13, 2006

Q:
I recently left a large law firm for an in-house position in a slower-paced city. While I enjoy the new work environment tremendously, I am sometimes finding it difficult to mesh with my colleagues who are significantly less intense and work at a more methodical pace.

What can you suggest to convey a sense of urgency to coworkers without coming off as being obnoxious and bossy? Especially when deadlines are looming and cooperative work is required?

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A:

Repeat after me: people don't like change. They especially don't like change thrust upon them by newcomers. So - you must proceed very, very carefully.

Having said that, newcomers can provide the fresh blood and new perspective that is invaluable for the health of an organization. You are able to bring that new perspective to the organization and the department can be the better for it. However, you have to make sure that your message gets across in a palatable form, and that behavior actually changes as a result, rather than your colleagues rejecting you and your ideas like a nasty virus. You don't say whether you are in a supervisory capacity with your laid back colleagues, or whether they are on the same level, and obviously that makes a difference, as you can be more directive if you are in charge. If not, here are some thoughts:

Be careful what you wish for. I'm assuming you wanted to leave your high-powered law firm and go to a more low-key and livable environment. So - is it simply more "relaxed" than you had expected? Maybe you just need to get used to it, and perhaps in the end you will find that you have less stress, more time to yourself and for family and hobbies, a better life. You might even be happy. Believe me, there is many a lawyer out there who would love to be in the environment you describe.

Be empathetic. Try to understand what it's like for established employees when they are confronted with a wise-acre newcomer who has newfangled ideas about how things could run better. Putting it succinctly: they usually don't like it. Bear that in mind as you try to have an influence. You must make sure that your message isn't overcome by your style.

Set an example. The best thing you can do is to lead by example. If you think people slack off, work harder; if you think your colleagues don't take their work seriously enough, do a stellar job. A job well done is as influential as anything else you can do.

Be factual. If you do have comments or ideas, make sure to stick to facts as you make your remarks. In other words, avoid conclusions like "boy, people around here sure take it easy, do they?" You can instead focus on the best interests of the company and how to make sure that the work product that is produced is the best it can be, emphasizing in a factual manner how that can be accomplished. This is especially the case when "deadlines are looming" - there's nothing more concrete than a deadline, which is a great motivator, very concrete, and undeniable in its importance.

Always emphasize teamwork. Make sure that your comments always focus on you can accomplish good results together, as a team, rather than suggesting that you are loftily directing people how they can improve on their own.

Keep an eye out for new systems. Perhaps there are ways that things can be done better in your department on a systems basis, with work assignments, performance evaluations, day-to-day feedback and the like. You can see where work gets done in an ad hoc manner when in fact it could be accomplished in a more systematized and thoughtful way. For example, if performance evaluations are done on a hit-or-miss basis, or aren't very rigorous, you can suggest ways that the evaluations can be more helpful in terms of guiding people's careers.

Try a few of these approaches and maybe you can wake up your sleepy workmates.

Sincerely,
Holly English
Principal Consultant, Values at Work