August 23, 2005
Anonymous Lawyer — a Funny Blog
I'm in Phoenix for the International Legal Technology Association conference. The city is experiencing a cold snap. It was 107 degrees yesterday, but is only going to reach 101 today. It's 3:30am local time and is still 85 degrees. It is too hot and too early to do anything outside. My body is still on Central time, so I decided to check the BLOG world.
Funny, Funny, Funny! If you have never read the posting on Anonymous Lawyer, mailto:anonymouslawyer2004@yahoo.com, you are missing out on some funny stuff. The BLOG purports to be stories from the trenches by a fictional hiring partner at a large law firm in a major city.
For stories this funny, there has to be a foot planted somewhere in reality. TV producers, especially BBC producers, pay attention. This is great situational comedy stuff—a little bit of "The Office" with a law firm venue. How funny is it? Check out her story about the overly old senior partner who lost his dentures in the office (post of Monday, July 11, 2005).
However, I must admit there is a strong condescending feeling that often comes through when the author is writing about peers, clients, and new associates. Such as in these few lines from an April 19, 2005, posting:
“So many of my colleagues are overbearing individuals. They're loud, they're obnoxious, they get their way, and they appear to have absolutely no emotional depth. Maybe they've just suppressed it. But I find myself oftentimes wanting to lift them up and shake them. "Stop for a second", I want to say. "Stop talking. Stop smiling. Stop acting. Surely, there must be something beneath this facade. Surely, you must feel things. Surely, you must understand that others feel things.”
So, as funny as this BLOG is, you should be prepared to laugh at yourself rather than be offended by stereotypical word images.
The April 19 posting reminds me of a story about Stephen Collins. Stephen, like yours truly, started his career as a CPA with Price Waterhouse, as did one of my younger brothers. So we are a PW family. Price Waterhouse tests all new candidates. The interviewer called Stephen to tell him the results of his test. The interviewer told Stephen that he had some bad news and some good news. First the bad news, “According to your test results, you can come across as obnoxious and overbearing at times." Stephen asked, “What is the good news?” The interviewing partner replied, “That is the same score most of the partners received—you are hired. Welcome aboard.”
What does this have to do with more partner income? If you can’t have fun at your own expense, what good is more money anyway?
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Filed under Blog by Tom Collins