Lessons Relearned: Speak Human and Be Understood

In this instalment of our Lessons Relearned in Law recap series, Scott revisits four past conversations on the theme that came up most often across the archive: being understood. He calls it the most fixable of them all. It’s effectively storytelling, it leads to influence, and nobody is born clear. It’s built from small habits.

The episode opens with Pola Karolczyk, General Counsel and Chief People Officer at Cowboy, on the oldest lesson she has learned: non-lawyers aren’t interested in the workings of the law, only the outcome. So be brief and specific, and tell them yes or no and how it helps them.

Next, Emilie Mathieu, General Counsel at Checkout.com, on putting the bottom line up front. Executives trust you, so answer in the first line of your next email and put your reasoning underneath.

Roel Staes, formerly General Counsel International at FedEx, adds the idea of “pregnant sentences”. If you tell the exec committee the company may be fined, they’ll want to know how much, so give a range. Be accurate, be complete, and talk in business terms rather than legal ones. Scott’s exercise: take the last piece of advice you gave and cut it down to three key messages.

The last clip is Steph Lopes, Chief Legal Officer at Volt, on taking people along on a journey rather than announcing a decision, and the buy-in that follows.

Scott’s three habits for this week: answer first, distil your message to three things, and take people with you. And remember that nobody in your business cares about the law as much as you do. Once the sting passes, it’s freeing.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with Wordsmith AI — the legal AI platform built specifically for in-house teams.

Resources & Links Mentioned in This Episode

• Register your interest in joining The Lodge In-house Legal Community: https://bit.ly/TheLodgebyHB
• Heriot Brown: https://heriotbrown.com/
• Wordsmith AI: https://www.wordsmith.ai/
• Legal Engineering Project Application form: https://wordsmith.fillout.com/legalengproject

Listen to the Podcast

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/61xrrepWuWxNsnXIaYxsj5
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lessons-i-learned-in-law/id1563397804
• YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/@HeriotBrownInHouseRecruitment

Connect with Heriot Brown

• https://heriotbrown.com/

About Heriot Brown: At Heriot Brown, we help lawyers find fulfilment in their careers. Beyond recruitment, we foster a thriving community of in-house legal professionals who share insights, experiences, and growth opportunities.

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