Lawyers, let’s talk about storytelling—and truth.
Good storytelling is a great way to make yourself memorable. If you meet someone at a networking function, telling them you do M&A, VC financing, and general corporate is not an effective way to stand out.
That will come across as cold an uninteresting.
But I hear lawyers do that all the time.
Instead, when asked what you do, why not tell a story?
You work with startup ventures and you just helped a fintech company get VC funding. The founders are college friends of yours and they are building out some AI tools to help financial planners with client communication.
That version is much more likely to resonate.
But does it matter where the company is actually located or what month you closed on the financing?
In my opinion, good storytelling requires a fluid relationship with the truth.
That doesn’t mean lying. But it does mean recognizing that not every detail matters.
This is hard for many of us in the legal profession. We’re trained to be precise. We focus on getting the facts exactly right. But when you’re telling a story to illustrate the kinds of problems you solve, simplicity matters. So does confidentiality.
Did you meet the founders sophomore or junior year of college? Who cares! Are their kids in first or second grade?
It doesn’t matter.
In fact, lawyers have an ethical duty to keep client information confidential—so it’s okay to change names, industries, even genders. You’re not misleading anyone. You’re protecting your client and getting your listener’s attention.
I used to think I was a bad storyteller because I have a bad memory. I got hung up on getting it right. My stories tended to drag on.
Now I aim for essence over precision. I don’t fabricate material facts or mislead, but I do shift irrelevant details (to protect privacy—and keep the story flowing.)
I now have a fluid relationship with the truth.
Ever watch a biopic? A fluid relationship with the truth is part and parcel of many biopics. Changing some of the facts makes for better storytelling.
In No Direction Home, for example, Bob Dylan visits his idol Woody Guthrie in the hospital.
It didn’t actually happen. But Dylan was deeply influenced by Guthrie, and that scene captured that.
So when you talk about your work, don’t perseverate over every small detail.
Tell the story that gets the point across. And if you’re worried about confidentiality or sounding inaccurate, remember: you’re not writing a brief or presenting an oral argument. You’re communicating a story.