Stop Copying Other Lawyers. You're Playing Tennis with Your Wrong Hand.

You're in a mediation.

That barrister speaks with authority. Every word is listened to and accepted. 

You watch. You study. You try to replicate it.

And it doesn't work.

Not because you're incapable. 
Because you're trying to be someone you're not.

And it's exhausting.

Here's the thing—this happens whether you're 2 years in or 20 in practice. 

You watch someone who appears to have it all figured out. 
So you adopt their approach. 
You tell yourself that if you do what they do, you'll get the same results.

But deep down, you know it doesn't fit. 
It feels forced. 
And you're not sure if anyone else notices, but you feel like it's fake.

Their approach works for them because it's built on who they are. 
Their personality. 
Their priorities. 
Their values.

That barrister relies on force and seniority. 
You might win by staying quiet and asking the question that changes everything.

That partner speaks with charisma. 
You might earn deeper trust through reliability and consistency.

That mediator pivots fast after years of reps. 
Your edge might be the rapport you build that makes clients actually listen to you.

You've believed for years that doing it their way is how you succeed. 
That if you get good enough at mimicking what works for them, eventually it'll feel natural (and it's the only way to success).

It won't, and it's NOT.

Because the lawyers and barristers people actually trust aren't performing someone else's version of credible. 

They're showing up as authentically themselves.

Here's what nobody tells you: you don't get what you want. 

You get what you are.
Who you are as the best version of yourself dictates your results. 
Not their version. Yours.

When you stop trying to be them and start operating from who you actually are, as the best version of you...everything shifts.

You're harder to dismiss. Harder to undermine. Impossible to replicate.

Not because you've perfected someone else's style. 
Because you're not playing a role anymore.

So this week, pick one situation where you think you'll be trying to be like them. 
One hearing. One mediation. One conversation.

And ask yourself: "What would I do if I showed up as myself?"
- Maybe you'd use silence instead of filling space with overexplaining.
- Maybe you'd set the boundary you've been avoiding.
- Maybe you'd trust you can handle whatever comes—without pretending to be anyone else.

Stop copying the wrong people.

Your influence comes from understanding what makes YOU most effective in the high-stakes rooms that matter.

Want to figure out what makes you most effective? Apply for your free Winning Edge Session HERE and discover the tactical approach that works for who you actually are.