There seems to be a trend to see our country’s economic problems through the lens of a glass containing several ounces of a beverage that is approximately 50% of what the container will hold. Some will look and say the glass is half empty. Those folks are perceived as pessimists. Others, including our President, view the glass as half full. That view is considered more optimistic. I have a very different take on all of it.
Let’s assume that the beverage is water. The conventional wisdom (which apparently is now being debated) is that you need 8 glasses of water each day. Thus, if I am looking at half of a glass of water, I’m not thinking “by golly, it’s half full!” Instead, I’m thinking “where the heck are the other 7 ½ glasses?” Surely, I can enjoy that half-full glass. But sooner or later, I’ll be thirsty again and if I do not find more water, I could slip into dehydration and then things could just get uglier from there.
Recently, a prospective client called me to discuss their business problems. Over the last several years, the client had made major investments into what he miscalculated as a growing business. Additional locations were added, staff was increased, and overhead costs exploded. The problem was that the revenue of the business depended exclusively on consumers who have disposable income and have a budget that provides for recreational spending. Needless to say, business was not going according to the original plan.
He told me his goal was reorganizing the business. After exploring a few options with him on the phone and learning more details about his situation, I asked if - as a part of his reorganization – he had considered pairing down his business to a more manageable or fiscally feasible model. He didn’t like that idea. I reminded him that it was important to consider a ‘Plan B.’
Before we ended our conversation he was kind enough to share with me this gem: “You know, I think need to work with someone who like me, sees the glass as half-full.”
Really?
I appreciate the need for remaining positive. Being positive is what helps us all get out of bed in the morning. However, I also appreciate the need for being realistic.
Imagine your waiter bringing over a lovely cheese soufflé and then asking him, ‘is this fattening?’ If the waiter wants you to feel good and still eat the dish you ordered, he’ll say something like ‘of course not’, or perhaps something wry such as ‘only if you eat it on Sunday, and since today is Wednesday, you’re ok.’ It would make you feel better about eating it, but it you cannot really say it was being particularly realistic…unless you really believed that eating certain foods on certain days of the week somehow affects their caloric value and fat content, which is far, far beyond what I am capable of commenting on.
On the other hand, if your waiter respects that your need for information is fueled by a desire to make an informed decision (and hopefully the best one), the answer you get will be honest. After all, do you call a bankruptcy attorney because you want an straightforward assessment of the issues facing your life and what you can do about them? Or are you looking for someone else that will look at that half-glass of water and tell you what you want to hear?
Perhaps this is a better question: are you better off believing that things are better than they really are? Or are you better off with honest answers to tough questions so you can make the best and sound decisions for you and your family? The bottom line, it really doesn’t matter whether the glass is half-full or half-empty. What matters is what’s in the glass, and whether you can, should, or want to drink it.
And that decision, as difficult as it may be, is entirely yours to make. But you cannot make it without the right information.
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This goes to the crux of biggest problem between attorneys and the rest of the world: Communcation.
What exactly is “the right advice?” Is the “right advice” the encouragement that he wants to hear? Or is it wisdom that he needs to hear? But then again, how can an attorney know exactly what their client needs to hear? Maybe what they actually need to hear is that “glass half-full” speech that inspires him to get back on the horse and keep going.
It’s impossible as an attorney to know for sure, so we do the best with what we have. In this article, it seems that you suggested to this man possibilities that he may not have contemplated before. He might have thought, “scaling down my business or changing the model? That sounds drastic!” Well, these are drastic times.
I’m an attorney not a tarot card reader and you should be thankful that I’m willing to lose you as a client instead of keeping you at all costs by assuring you things can continue how they are without consequence.
The facts have not changed. He walked into YOUR office. Obviously, something had to change with his business. If he can’t handle following through and making the change you suggest, there’s nothing you can do to force it. By then again, why would you want to?
I have also conferred with folks who simply do not want to hear what they do not want to hear. (At the risk of being sounding like a salesman) In my book, Chapter 13 in 13 Chapters, I encourage counsel to assess the client’s goals prior to filing the case. Perhaps the debtor wants to save their home, preserve some other asset, or reorganize a bit and then move on. Once some information is obtained, I recommending asking one fairly simple question: “how do you want to do that?” In other words, “what’s your game plan?”
Sometimes, clients have a game plan in mind. If they run their game plan by me, like this particular client did, I can assess whether it is realistic based on what I know bankruptcy can offer them – as well as the reality of their particular situation.
Other times, clients have no game plan and the response is “well, you tell me what the game plan is.” Sometimes I can offer some options. Sometimes, I can only offer them one option. But what I cannot do is offer them something that I know is impossible or unrealistic…or for that matter, cannot legally be done. In this particular client’s case, the hope was based on the economy turning around. With his particular circumstances, it was not a game plan.
I think that ‘the right advice’ means to give the client an honest assessment of the facts and circumstances so they can make the best decision for them. But what’s the right advice, or what’s good counsel, is fairly subjective. Among the reasons why we practice law is to help people. Sometimes I can. Sometimes I can only do what I can do. That’s not a half-empty glass. That’s reality. And sometimes reality is just not an easy thing to hear.
-Bill