By David Daggett on 1/21/2008 7:49 AM

Ask More Questions

     Do you ever feel exuberant? Are you ready to jump right in and give answers? Perhaps it would serve us well to ask more questions. We are reminded of this at Lewis& Daggett every time we make a presentation at a school - the students love to ask questions!

Students naturally ask questions    

     First thing this morning, right after I got out of bed, my wife told me I was "exuberant!" Exuberant! I had not even gotten started yet… I hadn't had a workout, I hadn't begun working, I hadn't even gotten going and I was already exuberant. Perhaps this exuberance is related to Slow Down! and Take a Chill Pill.

     At Lewis & Daggett our exuberance has us always ready to go, and we help people with answers very quickly. Folks at a law firm are probably more inclined to give answers than the average person. We are always moving very fast, ready to go, and are "exuberant" in our willingness to answer questions.

     So, our next resolution is to ask more questions. Do you ask more questions or do you give more answers? The truth is, we all sometimes act like we know more than we really do. Of course, none of us knows everything, and one way we learn is by asking questions. In fact, children learn how to ask questions at a very early age.

     Our own children can get us trapped in the "why?" game very quickly. They always want to know more. Perhaps we can learn from children that we learn more when we ask more questions.

     Asking questions instead of giving answers (or even direction) is probably a more effective form of leadership. Asking questions gets others involved and participating in achieving a result. Perhaps the results are even more meaningful.

     The art of asking more questions will probably take some practice and some patience, so we will need you to help us along the way. The good part is we will probably become more interesting, more effective, and learn more along the way.

     Can you help us ask more questions?

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By David Daggett on 1/7/2008 6:53 AM

Resolutions

     Do you ever make resolutions for the New Year? Every year for the past 20 years or so I have done my annual "Resolution Ride" on my mountain bike. I leave home very early New Year’s morning so that I can sit on the little hill on the west bank of Salem Lake and watch the sun rise. I have been out in cold, snow, rain, and everything in between. The last couple of years have been cloudy and/or rainy, but this year was spectacular!

Daybreak 2008!

     We also work on goals, resolutions, here at Lewis & Daggett. Interestingly, I had never looked up the definitions of "resolution" previously, but one of the members of our management team presented them to us this past week. Resolution is a decision to do, a commitment. Commitment is a sincere and steadfast fixity of purpose; binding yourself emotionally to a course of action; or, to make a pledge or dedication. Wow, these are powerful words!

     So, let’s spend some time reviewing resolutions. Resolutions can take many forms. They seem to divide into two big categories of pragmatic and aspirational. Pragmatic are specific such as a goal to lose ten pounds. Aspirational goals are not as empirical rather more like becoming more patient, a better dad, or strengthening relationships.

     Resolutions typically fall into categories like weight loss and health, personal betterment, professional development, volunteer more, educational advancement, and spiritual growth. Many people make more than one resolution every year. Interestingly, folks rarely actually keep their resolutions.

     So, how do we make resolutions stick? Find a partner to make a similar resolution so you can help keep each other on track. Experts say it takes about 30 days to break a bad habit and form a new one, so stay at it. Post your resolution in a place where you will see it often such as your bathroom mirror, dashboard, or computer screen. Most of all, be your own cheerleader.

     Over the coming weeks we’ll be discussing some of our law firm goals, or resolutions, that we’ll be working on for 2008. We invite you to join us with some resolutions and to feel free to share them with us. I will also be sharing some of my own here.    

      Together, we can make 2008 a great year. Please join us in taking positive steps forward.

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By David Daggett on 12/31/2007 9:49 AM

Top 10 Posts of 2007

     2007 was a great year! Thank you for joining us. We have some interesting topics in the works to start 2008. We have some L & D firm goals for 2008, and I will also be working on some personal resolutions here.

Wake Forest Quad Shortly After Bowl Win!

     Below is a Top Ten List of our top blog posts for the year. Click through to enjoy them again. Thanks for being part of our growing little community.

     10. Our Future Looks Bright!

      9. Encourage Child Safety

      8. Momentum Shift

      7. Commitment!

      6. Teamwork

      5. Completion

      4. Do Good Things . . .

      3. Collective Impact!

      2. Internet Safety In Your Own Home

      1. A Piece of Our Heart

     Thanks again for joining us. We appreciate your being part of our team and look forward to our relationships continuing in 2008.

     All the best for the New Year!

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By David Daggett on 12/17/2007 10:10 AM

   Our Future Looks Bright! 

    Youth are our future. At Lewis & Daggett we have focused for many years on youth initiatives, like Safe Sober Prom Night. We do this naturally out of our concerns for individuals. This is consistent with our L & D Team’s care and helping of people seriously injured, hurt at work, and disabled.

     So, to further this mission we spent some time this week with the After School Program at the West Forsyth YMCA. As you can see from the photo above, we had a good time.

     We were contacted by the After School Program Director Mary Ridings to talk about internet safety. She is a delightful hard working young lady who clearly loves the kids. Mary had read our piece on Internet Safety and asked us to discuss these issues with the students. We were more than happy to go out and have a discussion with their students.

     Don’t sell our students short - they were very bright and had a keen insight on the issues presented by today’s world, including internet safety. Our discussions led to three basic principles that probably apply to most aspects in life.

     First, "You Become Who You Hang With." This is their language, not mine. Certainly this is great advice and is consistent with what we all learned as kids - surround yourself with good and you will be good. The same applies with on-line activity.

     Next, "Don’t Talk to Strangers." We all learned this when we were very young, yet somehow the impersonal nature of the internet seems to make us not take it so seriously. There are predators (strangers) out there that we shouldn’t talk to. These students understand that the same principle applies just the same with the internet.

     Lastly, "Establish and Keep a Good Reputation." The students already know and are aware that colleges look at things like Myspace pages when making admissions decisions. Law firms do too. So, it is important to keep on-line materials positive and reflect favorably upon you.

     Please contact us if you would like more information on internet safety. Help us encourage and support our young people. We were impressed by these students and know that their future is bright!

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By David Daggett on 12/10/2007 12:42 PM

     HEROES

     Who are our heroes? We probably all have them. The truth is our real heroes are usually not superstars, but everyday people who affect us in everyday life. Perhaps we should spend more time focusing on the heroes who we see every day.

     Here at Lewis & Daggett I believe we have many heroes. I believe we have a team of people who truly care to help the folks who come to us at their times of greatest need. Quite frankly, I believe that quality is in all of our folks right up to the top with our leader, Mike Lewis.

     In actuality, many of our clients become our heroes. These people come to us when they are severely injured, disabled, or out of work, and somehow manage to keep on going. In fact, many times they end up being our encouragers. Wow! We are proud of and truly admire these people who can persevere at such difficult times.

     Can you think of the various mentors in your life? This would certainly include family, parents, colleagues, folks at church, and all those people we depend upon regularly for counsel and guidance. I read somewhere that everyone should intentionally have several mentors and at the same time have several mentees. When you think about it, this is how our values get passed along from person to person and from generation to generation.

     John Edwards has been a friend of our law firm for many years. He has gone on to be a United States Senator, vice-presidential candidate, and now presidential candidate. Certainly John Edwards has now become a star. However, knowing him on a personal basis also probably puts him in the hero category.

     We are all surrounded by heroes in our daily lives. I want to say a special thank you to all of my heroes. Some of you probably know who you are, and others, I will try to do a better job of recognizing. Thank you!

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