Parting Thoughts
Identifying challenging personalities quickly and maintaining a consistent approach to managing such people is key to two things: (i) if it is a client, saving them from themselves in certain circumstances, and if it is another stakeholder, simply managing that personality in the best possible way and (ii) keeping your own mental, professional, and personal well-being intact.
There are some who may claim that all people and all personalities are challenging. Those people are wrong and are likely to be the same people who walk into a room full of poop and say, “Hey, there's a lot of poop in here!” We prefer the people who walk into that room and say, “Hey, there must be a really neat and large animal somewhere in this stinky room! Watch your step!”Be that person looking for the pony but do it in a way that is eyes wide open and armed with a good lawyer's brain full of thoughtfulness, healthy skepticism, and a deliberate working ability to deploy the core concepts of lawyering discussed above and elsewhere in this book. Godspeed.
This chapter could not have been written without the existence of certain individuals we've come across in our professional lives and their relentless efforts to be as difficult, abrasive, and all-around challenging as possible. Thank you. You've made us appreciate kind, thoughtful, and helpful people that much more. Note
1 If a senior colleague is unavailable, seek other expert assistance and guidance as to how to best navigate this set of circumstances. This is likely a sticky professional responsibility issue requiring specific expertise.