Leading Through Adversity: Michael Mogill + Finkelstein & Partners

3 minutes to read

During these times of uncertainty, leaders have the responsibility to ensure the wellbeing of their team and clients is a priority.

In the most recent installment of Leading Through Adversity, Crisp Founder & CEO Michael Mogill sits down with Andrew Finkelstein of Finkelstein & Partners to discuss the importance of taking care of your physical and mental health so that you can give your best to your team, your clients, and your community.

Check out their full conversation here.

0:38 – Leap of faith. We’ve been hit with many different scenarios that have interrupted our business and driven fear in our staff. A lot of trust has been placed in me and the firm. People take a leap of faith when they start working at a particular organization. That leap of faith is built on the integrity of the organization, the integrity of the individual, the people behind the organization, and their ability to see through adversity.

2:54 – Best frame of mind. If we can’t be healthy — physically and mentally — we can’t deliver our best selves to anyone. I focus on communicating that to everybody in my firm. Anything I can do to help my team be in the best frame of mind — because I can see the pressure that they’re feeling about job security, home life, and their kids being taken care of. I try to communicate anything I can do to help so that they have the confidence and comfort of knowing they’ll be taken care of.

9:16 – Quality of life. I’d rather have somebody super effective and efficient rather than working hard for the sake of working hard. People have to be okay to stop work to take a break and decompress a little, because when they do, they’ll come back and work smarter. That may sound strange for somebody who leads a firm to tell people you don’t have to work that hard, but I truly believe it. This is about quality of life. It’s not about running a sprint. It’s a marathon.

11:17 – Care about clients. I’ve made sure to reach out to every one of our clients. Some of our clients have been in the hospital during this process, prior to COVID, and they can’t take on visitors. We are their lifeline. Others who are sheltered in place in their home — they have to know that we care about them and we’re doing everything we can to make sure that they are in a good place mentally.

14:51 – Virtual conferencing. It’s going to be a long time before we have jury trials. I’m on a committee talking about the potential of virtual jury trials. We’ve been fortunate enough to still obtain new business during this tough time, but we’ve done it all through video conferencing. We’ve been doing video conferencing with our clients for 15 years.

15:48 – Future of technology. The delivery of the legal service is not going to be as dependent on an in-person relationship, but it’s going to be a blend between video, live streaming, and informative pre-recorded videos that can be accessible. People will be getting more knowledge and understanding of what that process is before they sit down to talk to an attorney. People are going to be more informed and better educated about the process and about their expectations.


If you’re viewing this challenging situation the same way Andrew and Michael are, text Michael directly at 404–531–7691 to tell him what you’re doing to step up for your team and clients.