Could this be the single most important change to the legal profession? Since most law firms are currently profitable and its arguable that many of the lawyers and staff are miserable, what would happen if law firms took steps to cash in on the profitability of happy.
What is the Profitability of Happiness?
It has been found after a decade of research that happy employees produce better results. Harvard’s own Shawn Achor has studied happiness for decades and found happiness[1]:
- increased sales by 37%;
- increased productivity by 31%; and
- increased accuracy on tasks by 19%.
Everyone can benefit from stats like that. Imagine you and your team were 19% more accurate. Think about all the time and money wasted during a work week fixing small mistakes that arose from inaccuracies. Plus imagine a day where you are 31% more productive AND happy at the same time.
Positive psychology research indicates that happiness is 50% determined by genetics, 10% by personal circumstances such as sex, ethnicity, education, and geography, and 40% by intentional activity or behavioural choices.[2]
That means that 40% of happiness is in our own hands. We can learn to be more positive and therefore happier.
How to achieve Happiness in the Workplace
That’s all great right, but how do you actually increase happiness in yourself, your staff and the law firm you work at. Well its actually pretty simple and can work in any place of employment, not just law firms.
Start at the level of the individual. Happiness is contagious. Shawn Achor recommends doing the following to increase personal happiness (these steps were part of the study which led to the increases noted above)[3]:
- Write down three new things you are grateful for each day;
- Write for 2 minutes a day describing one positive experience you had over the past 24 hours;
- Exercise for 10 minutes a day;
- Meditate for 2 minutes, focusing on your breath going in and out; and
- Write one, quick email first thing in the morning thanking or praising a member on your team
While increasing your own productivity through finding happiness is not something that you need to wait around for someone else to do, it is easier when you have buy in from those that you work with. There are simple things that the firm can do to benefit from the profitability of happy. The first and foremost is to understand that the profitability of happy is real and the firm as a whole will see tangible results. Identifying that happiness benefits everyone is simple. A top down approach can go a long way. Since we know that 40% of positive behaviour is learned, all it takes is a little effort. If the firm you are working at commits to creating a positive working environment, even on a very small scale, it becomes easier for the individual to work on their positivity. Positivity takes practice. The brain is hardwired to be negative.
A firm can commit to creating a culture of happy. This takes more effort than just making sure to engage in conversations with colleagues on a daily basis, despite the positive impact this can have. Creating a culture of happy means a commitment to establishing a way of business that promotes the key factors which help make employees happy.
According to Robert Half, one key happiness indicator is an employee’s ability to influence important decisions[4]. One way to do this in a law firm is to operate several committees some a mix of lawyers, clerks and other staff and some committees a mix of partners and associates. Allowing all employees to feel like the have a say in the day to day operations can be very effective. This allows everyone to have a voice while the partnership remains in control of final decision making. One criticism of this is that committees can quickly become an avenue to air grievances. This is not the form for that and this can be overcome by ensuing committee mandates are clearly established and addenda’s adhered to. Another thing to consider is having a clear and easy to use process of grievances so that the committee is not side tracked. The more employees at all levels feel appreciated and included the less grievances there will be to air.
Another way to ensure employees are able to influence key decisions is for the instructing lawyer to lead with integrity. That sounds like a bunch of fluff but what I mean but that is for them to truly value and appreciate those working with them be it other lawyers, associate lawyers, clerks, and staff. Everyone has strengths; utilize them. If someone on your team has skills in technology, ask for them to take the lead in creating templates or easy to use precedents. If someone on your team is skilled in drafting documents and they enjoy doing it, let them take the lead. Lawyers cannot do their job without others helping them. It is important to create strong relationships with the people you work with. It is even more important to handle mistakes and error with tact. Even the best and the brightest will make mistakes. How you handle them is crucial to maintaining positive relationships. To learn more about this topic read “ How to Handle Errors, Mistakes, and Performance Management with a Positive Approach”. A firm with a zero tolerance approach for abusive or near abusive relationships is important for creating a culture of happy.
Another key to promoting and fostering workplace happiness is appreciation. Feeling apricated is one of the biggest indicators of job satisfaction[5]. This is true for every single person in the building. The good news is that it is not difficult to show your appreciation. A simple thank you or kind gesture is enough. The key however, is that the appreciation must be genuine. The firm or the person giving the praise must truly be grateful for the others contributions.
If an employee is happy there is less likelihood of turnover. Less turn over also means less costs associated with hiring, training and less business interruption. Just another way happiness = profitability.
The profitability of happy has benefited fortune 500 companies, small start ups and business in between. It can be transferred to the practice of law. Creating a firm culture or even a practice group culture based upon positive and meaningful interactions will increase productivity, job satisfaction and overall well being which in turn increases profits.
Creating a culture of happiness will take some trial and error. There will be push back and obstacles to overcome. However, if one or a few people can take the lead to introduce small steps it can go a long way. Each firm is different and will need to approach this in their own way. Regardless, small steps can make a big difference.
[1] Shawn Achor, The Happiness Dividend, June 23, 2011 Harvard Business Review retrieved on January 20, 2020 from: https://hbr.org/2011/06/the-happiness-dividend
[2] Positive Psychology Strategies for Increased Happiness, University of New Hampshire retrieved on January 20, 2020 from: https://www.unh.edu/pacs/positive-psychology-strategies-increased-happiness
[3] Shawn Achor, The Happiness Dividend, June 23, 2011 Harvard Business Review retrieved on January 20, 2020 from: https://hbr.org/2011/06/the-happiness-dividend
[4] Robert Half, 5 Ways Managers Can Promote Happiness at Work, November 9, 2016 retrieved on January 22, 2020 from: https://www.roberthalf.com/blog/management-tips/5-ways-managers-can-promote-happiness-at-work
[5] PayScale Human Capital, The Formula for a Winning Company Culture, retrieved on January 22, 2020 from:https://www.payscale.com/content/whitepaper/wp_EmployeeExperience.pdf?utm_source=Marketo&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=