APPLICATION TO LAWYERS
EXPERT PSYCHOLOGIST: JUAN TOSCA
HOW DOES SELF-CONFIDENCE AFFECT LAWYERS?
Fortunately, I have more than 24 years of experience and I have treated with people from very diverse backgrounds and professional environments, judges and lawyers amongst them, of course. ¿What can occur to a lawyer without self-confidence? Basically, that their job is tremendously difficult. If you are not sure about your abilities and characteristics, about how far can you go...i mean, you have to deal with the contrary part, and there is also public prosecutor and a judge who will evaluate your job. If you do not have faith in your, it is extremely difficult to perform well in this environment. You have to work a lot you social skills, assertiveness, even empathy. There are two basic pillars: your faith in yourself as a professional and as a human being, having clear your own limitations, what you can and cannot do based on this...but you have to take into consideration as well the work you have previously done and knowing if you are sufficiently prepared or not.
As a matter of fact, a lawyer's job is one of the most challenging in the world when it comes to treating with people, since they have to deal with a wide variety of individuals with different backgrounds and interests. We have identified three fundamental moments in which having self-confidence can significantly affect the eventual outcome.
1. Clients: if you do not have faith in your won abilities, how can you expect someone else do trust you. Indeed, clients need to be sure that their lawyer is going to defend their interests in the best possible manner. Hence, it is key for lawyers to show themselves as very capable professionals who know exactly what needs to be done in every moment.
2. Other lawyers (negotiation): it is equally important to have confidence when it comes to treating with the other part. Especially during negotiations, since recent research shows that under-confident lawyers achieve a successful outcome in just one in five of the negotiations they are involved. Nonetheless, confidence should never be confused with being arrogant or aggressive.
3. Judges: self-confidence is essential when you are in court. Indeed, you have to persuade a third person that what your saying is the truth, and therefore you must not show any doubts when arguing. Successful lawyers are successful not only because they win when the case is clearly favorable to their interest, but also because their are able to convince the judge when the odds are against them. And to do so, they need self-confidence.
