Overview

Many firms take it on faith that there's only one way to attract and retain top talent and motivate peak performance: Ever-rising salaries. But has it worked? Firms' hyper-competitive cultures, complaints of growing incivility and demoralization, a diversity crisis at the top, and a revolving door of talent suggest that it's time to try something new. Positive Professionals is a practical handbook of science-backed strategies to foster full engagement by enhancing people's experience of meaningful work, of feeling valued and valuable, and of growing and developing. Skeptical of a new approach? That's natural. But it has science on its side. The book's well-researched business case convincingly shows that greater engagement boosts not only individual well-being but also profitability, productivity, performance, retention of talent, and client satisfaction.

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9781641050401

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Reviews

Law firm failures aren't always spectacular implosions that produce dramatic headlines. Many firms are suffering a slower, more insidious death through worker disengagement. Lawyers are not alone in the search for personal fulfillment through meaningful employment. But today's attorneys are suffering disproportionately from its absence. In Positive Professionals, former Big Law partner Anne Brafford blends psychology, biology, social science, and personal narratives to develop practical solutions. A must read for every law firm leader (are you toxic or transformational ?), Brafford offers recommendations that, if followed, will enhance the quality of lawyers' lives and improve the profession. --Steven J. Harper, retired partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, columnist, and author of several books, including The Lawyer Bubble-A Profession in Crisis, and Crossing Hoffa-A Teamster's Story Law firm failures aren't always spectacular implosions that produce dramatic headlines. Many firms are suffering a slower, more insidious death through worker disengagement. Lawyers are not alone in the search for personal fulfillment through meaningful employment. But today's attorneys are suffering disproportionately from its absence. In Positive Professionals, former Big Law partner Anne Brafford blends psychology, biology, social science, and personal narratives to develop practical solutions. A must read for every law firm leader (are you toxic or transformational ?), Brafford offers recommendations that, if followed, will enhance the quality of lawyers' lives and improve the profession.--Steven J. Harper, retired partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, columnist, and author of several books, including The Lawyer Bubble-A Profession in Crisis, and Crossing Hoffa-A Teamster's Story Positive Professionals is a must-read for anyone who wants to learn more about work engagement and how to create it through practical, science-backed strategies tailored to the legal profession. It is a fascinating and useful read, and offers a much-needed fresh perspective on the potential for positive pathways to productivity and profitability in the law. The book will appeal to future-facing firms wanting to become magnets for the best talent and to enable all lawyers to be their best personally and professionally. It should be on the desk of every law firm partner. Morgan Lewis is proud to claim Anne as one of its own and applauds her important contribution to our profession! --Jami Wintz McKeon, Chair, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP

Law firm failures aren't always spectacular implosions that produce dramatic headlines. Many firms are suffering a slower, more insidious death through worker disengagement. Lawyers are not alone in the search for personal fulfillment through meaningful employment. But today's attorneys are suffering disproportionately from its absence. In Positive Professionals, former Big Law partner Anne Brafford blends psychology, biology, social science, and personal narratives to develop practical solutions. A must read for every law firm leader (are you toxic or transformational ?), Brafford offers recommendations that, if followed, will enhance the quality of lawyers' lives and improve the profession.--Steven J. Harper, retired partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, columnist, and author of several books, including The Lawyer Bubble-A Profession in Crisis, and Crossing Hoffa-A Teamster's Story Law firm failures aren't always spectacular implosions that produce dramatic headlines. Many firms are suffering a slower, more insidious death through worker disengagement. Lawyers are not alone in the search for personal fulfillment through meaningful employment. But today's attorneys are suffering disproportionately from its absence. In Positive Professionals, former Big Law partner Anne Brafford blends psychology, biology, social science, and personal narratives to develop practical solutions. A must read for every law firm leader (are you toxic or transformational ?), Brafford offers recommendations that, if followed, will enhance the quality of lawyers' lives and improve the profession. --Steven J. Harper, retired partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, columnist, and author of several books, including The Lawyer Bubble-A Profession in Crisis, and Crossing Hoffa-A Teamster's Story Positive Professionals is a must-read for anyone who wants to learn more about work engagement and how to create it through practical, science-backed strategies tailored to the legal profession. It is a fascinating and useful read, and offers a much-needed fresh perspective on the potential for positive pathways to productivity and profitability in the law. The book will appeal to future-facing firms wanting to become magnets for the best talent and to enable all lawyers to be their best personally and professionally. It should be on the desk of every law firm partner. Morgan Lewis is proud to claim Anne as one of its own and applauds her important contribution to our profession! --Jami Wintz McKeon, Chair, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP

Author Information

Anne Brafford, JD, MAPP, PhD Candidate. After practicing law for 18 years, Anne left her job as an equity partner in employment litigation at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP to study with world-class experts in individual and workplace thriving. Her aim is to help the legal profession build engaging workplaces where people and businesses can grow and succeed together.  Anne is the founder of Aspire, an educational and consulting firm for the legal profession, and author of the ABA-published book titled Positive Professionals: Creating High-Performing, Profitable Firms Through The Science of Engagement. The Professional Development Consortium (PDC) has selected Anne as a Trusted Advisor--an exclusive team of advisors for law firms’ professional development staff. Anne also is the Chair of the ABA Law Practice Division’s Attorney Well-Being Committee and is a member of multiple other national and local-level attorney well-being initiatives. She served as the Editor in Chief and co-author of the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being’s 2017 report: The Path to Lawyer Well-Being: Practical Recommendations for Positive Change. She also authored the Well-Being Toolkit for Lawyers and Legal Employers, sponsored by the ABA’s Working Group to Advance Well-Being in the Legal Proession.   Anne has earned a Master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) from the University of Pennsylvania and has completed all but her dissertation for the PhD program in Positive Organizational Psychology at Claremont Graduate University. She has served as a teaching assistant for both co-founders of Positive Psychology, Dr. Martin Seligman and Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. She researches, writes, and speaks about lawyer thriving, including topics like positive leadership, resilience, work engagement and burnout, meaningful work, high-quality motivation, work-life balance, political skill, and retention and advancement of women lawyers. Anne can be reached at abrafford@aspire.legal. 

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