Moving Up

Business Development and Leadership Coaching

Book a no-obligation consultation with me

Many clients contact me when they begin to transition from associate to partner. They need to develop a practice of their own.

Some of my clients have achieved partnership status and want to grow their practice or assume a leadership role in their firm.

Lawyers who are in-house may be thinking about how to progress to a role as general counsel.

It means reorienting yourself so that a portion of your time is spent building your reputation, building business relationships, investing in the success of the people you manage, and meeting the expectations of your partners or the management of your company.

Attorney coaching services

Marketing & Business Development Coaching

Building a successful legal practice requires strong law firm business development, not just being a skilled attorney. If you want greater control over your career in private practice, your ability to attract work, strengthen professional relationships, and create opportunities for growth becomes increasingly important. Yet many lawyers were never taught how to develop business in a way that feels authentic and most of us are, at the very least, uncomfortable with selling.

Whether you are working toward partnership, trying to expand your visibility in the marketplace, or looking to grow an existing practice, coaching can help you create a practical approach that aligns with your strengths, personality, and professional goals.

My coaching helps lawyers move from good intentions to consistent action. Together, we identify the strategies most likely to support your success, whether that means strengthening your professional network, clarifying your positioning in the marketplace, deepening relationships with clients and referral sources, or becoming more intentional about how you build your reputation.

The focus is not on becoming someone you are not. It is on developing a business development and marketing approach that feels natural, sustainable, and effective over the long term.

Are you on Track? Want to enhance your marketing skills and get noticed?

Take my marketing assessment. Then book a no-obligation consultation with me.
Attorney coaching services

Leadership Coaching – Expanding Your Skills and Inspiring Your Team

As an associate in a law firm, your ability to be a great lawyer is the key to your success. But as you progress, being a strong individual contributor is not enough.  You need to become a good leader as well.

Similarly, if you are working in a corporate law department and want to advance into a general counsel role, you need to learn how to lead.

Leadership is the ability to translate vision into reality. Becoming a strong leader also requires an ability to inspire others.   As you move up in your firm or corporate law department, being a great individual contributor is no long enough.  To be effective as a manager and a leader, you need to be able to help set the strategy for the organization.  You need to have executive presence and learn to prioritize and delegate.

As your coach, I help you develop the leadership skills you need to move up in your law firm or corporate law department. I help lawyers achieve their professional goals, create and sustain their strategic vision, increase profitability, and inspire others.

I work with clients on strategic planning, increasing profitability, enhancing teamwork, managing staff, and associates, gaining support for new policies and initiatives.  I help leaders develop better time management skills so they can carve out time to lead with greater effectiveness.

Whether you are a partner, associate, or in-house counsel, honing your leadership skills is critical to your advancement and personal and professional success.

Working with a coach can help you get there.

What my clients say…

I hired Steve a few years ago to help me market my law practice. I had attended a number of marketing seminars sponsored by other professionals but found it hard to put the concepts into practice, especially in a way that felt comfortable for me. Working with Steve was a revelation. He understood my practice, broke through my roadblocks about marketing, and found a way to make marketing a more organic process that felt comfortable, natural and, to my surprise, fun. Like taking tennis or ski lessons, it took a little while before the concepts I learned from Steve became second nature for me, but eventually they did. I have seen a steady increase in revenues and in my ability to attract the kind of business I really want.

- Partner at Plaintiff’s Employment Law Firm

I had the good luck of meeting Steve, through a mutual connection on LinkedIn. In the past year, he has proven to be not only a fantastic coach, but an even better human being. Steve has helped me through some extremely difficult periods in my career, and he makes himself available at all hours.

He helped both guide me to a particular firm that was a really good fit for me, and to make that transition a success. He was also extremely helpful and successful in working with me to cultivate clients, which is something I have struggled with in the past. With Steve’s help and expertise, I was able to start building my book of business. I already referred several colleagues to Steve who are working with him and share similar sentiments to mine

- Real Estate Partner at AmLaw50 Firm

Steve Seckler has been a tremendous help to me over this past year with his sage advice, clear insights, perpetual patience, preternatural positivity, ability to push me without being pushy, and creative solutions to thorny problems. I feel he is an advisor, friend and role model all rolled into one.

- Construction Law Partner at Suburban Practice

I worked with Steve to plan my transition from an in-house career back to private practice, with the ultimate goal of developing a large enough book of clients to secure my independence from working as someone else’s employee. Steve helped me develop a business plan and coached me in networking tactics, and perhaps most importantly he gave encouragement when the goal seemed too distant. It took a few years, but I recently formed a new boutique law firm with a partner, and I could not be happier.

- Former General Counsel at Technology Company

I have had the pleasure of working with Steve for many years. He is a key business partner for our firm. Steve takes the time to understand our business and our current needs. He is very talented at what he does, and this firm has reaped the benefits of his hard work. We look forward to having this partnership continue for many many years.

- Executive Director
Midsized Law Firm

Steve is brilliant at what he does. I have learned networking and marketing from him. Previous to meeting Steve, I was relying on generic networking advice that was not that effective. Steve helped me up my game. I would recommend Steve for anyone who wants to step up on this side of lawyering (he’s also a great guy to bounce ideas off of unrelated to marketing and networking, as well, but these are his specialties).

- Sole Practitioner with Regulatory Consulting Firm

As the managing partner of a midsized law firm, I have many competing responsibilities and a diverse mix of personalities to manage. Steve has been a great sounding board as I think through approaches to effectively align my team. Steve is insightful, compassionate, and a lot of fun to work with. Many years ago, Steve was instrumental in guiding me to comfortable ways to grow my own practice. I continue to share these lessons with my colleagues. I feel very fortunate to have Steve in my corner.

- Managing Partner/Tax Attorney
Midsized Law Firm

I worked with Steve Seckler during an important transition period in my career as I began planning the next phase of my professional life and the gradual winding down of my law practice. Steve provided exactly the kind of guidance I needed, thoughtful questions, practical perspective, and consistent accountability. With his help, I was able to move from thinking about the transition to actually executing it. I was able to begin transitioning long-standing client relationships, communicate my plans to firm leadership, and put meaningful structure around the next stage of my career. I would strongly recommend working with Steve.

- Lead Rainmaker at Regional Firm in New England

If you are looking for someone to help you with workplace transitions, I would highly recommend Steve Seckler. I have known Steve for over 30 years. During that time, I have seen first-hand the dedication, attention to detail and commitment Steve puts into his work and his clients. In my own career when I needed someone to consult and bounce ideas off of, Steve was at the top of the list and always and consistently and eagerly available. He is an exceptional listener and has a special knack for knowing the right questions to ask and the professional experience that then allows him to provide thoughtful and meaningful guidance.

- Attorney/Mediator

Steve Seckler has an excellent perspective on all issues having to do with being an effective, happy and authentic legal professional. I would recommend him highly and enthusiastically for any coaching challenge.

- Former Chief Corporation Counsel to Major Biotechnology Company

Stephen works closely with his clients to help them develop strategies for legal marketing tailored to their unique circumstances. He brings to bear a strong understanding of best practices for establishing relationships of trust that will benefit both attorneys and their clients and works closely with his clients to design effective and achievable business development plans. I highly recommend him.

- Litigation Partner at Large Regional Firm and Past President
Boston Bar Association

It was important for me to work with someone who knows Boston and the legal environment. Steve helped me clarify my thinking, how to build my team, and how to put projects in motion. He was the spark that helped me confidently move forward.

- Corporate Associate Elevated to Partner at AmLaw100 Firm

I would recommend Steve, emphatically, to anyone facing a crossroads in their legal career, whether they’re confronting it in the moment or see its outlines in the future. He’s kind, loyal and generous with his wisdom, thoughtful strategic advice, support, and encouragement. Steve will listen to your goals, talk you through them, and help you on the path to achieve them. I feel quite fortunate that a friend recommended Steve to me – and that he has become a friend, too.

- Senior Associate Litigation Boutique who Launched a Solo Practice

While there are countless excellent books for lawyers (and I’ve written a few myself), this one stands out as the “fish out of water” guide to growth for attorneys. In this refreshingly honest and down-to-earth book, Steve shares personal life lessons and hard-earned wisdom to help lawyers avoid the pitfalls he encountered along the way. Steve’s candid insights make this book not just relatable but invaluable for any lawyer striving to build their book of business. If you’re uncomfortable with “selling legal services,” I wholeheartedly recommend this book …

- Steve Fretzin
President of BE THAT LAWYER with FRETZIN

… an essential field guide for attorneys attempting to get out of their own heads and unleash the business marketing dynamo within… It’s true that lawyers are trained to be risk-averse …. Of course, that’s not so great a quality to have as an entrepreneur; building a business, acquiring clients – it’s all fraught with risk, and coded for regular failures. In his book, Steve…relays how he overcame these built-in barriers, to make himself a successful entrepreneur – the same way you can…

- Jared D. Correia, Esq.
CEO | Red Cave Law Firm Consulting

This is the central insight behind Stephen Seckler’s book Think Like a Lawyer, Act Like an Entrepreneur, and it is one that every modern professional needs to hear…”The practitioners who thrive today are not only skilled technicians. They approach their practices with an entrepreneurial mindset that embraces opportunity, visibility, systems and growth.

- Susan Guthrie, Esq.
Founder and CEO, Guthrie Consulting & Media, Creator and Host of The Practice Playbook Podcast and the Divorce and Beyond Podcast

An excellent manual for attorneys seeking to improve client development. Seckler presents clear, actionable marketing ideas using humor and relatable stories to help lawyers take small, consistent steps toward big results.

- Kenneth A. Vercammen, Esq.